The 2nd CAE Skylark Music Award · Brass Competition Rules (Trombone · Horn) (2027 · Guangzhou)

I. About the Competition

The CAE Skylark Music Award is organized by the Organizing Committee of the CAE International Cultural Exchange Arts Festival, with professional guidance from institutions directly under China's Ministry of Education, from conservatories and music departments across the country, and from national first-class associations, and with support from official media including the "Xuexi Qiangguo" platform of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee. The first edition was held in Beijing in February 2026.

The second edition continues the two-stage format of "Online Qualifying Round + On-site Grand Final", with the Grand Final moving to Guangzhou. The Brass Division comprises two instruments: Trombone and Horn.

Supporting organizations: UNESCO, BACH trombones, C. Bechstein Pianos (Germany), CMA World Accordion Championship China Region, China Children's Art Promotion Association Media support: "Xuexi Qiangguo" (Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee), CCTV Video, China Education Online

II. Key Dates

Certificates and personalized written comments from the judges are issued for both the online and the on-site rounds.

III. About the Whitelist Certificate

• Whitelist = the "List of National Competitions for Primary and Secondary School Students" published on the official website of China's Ministry of Education
• Basis of issuance: in line with the Ministry of Education's requirements for national competitions for primary and secondary school students, the certificate is available only to eligible primary and secondary school students; its scope (e.g. solo groups only) and form (e.g. an Outstanding Organization Award) are determined by the Organizing Committee
• Certificate issuance (2026–2027): the schedule follows that of the partner competition actually listed on the 2026 Whitelist
• Selection rule: awarded to a set proportion of Grand Final competitors only. The Online Qualifying Round does not award these certificates, but it must be passed
• Path to the certificate: Online Qualifying Round → advance to the On-site Grand Final → place within the award quota → Whitelist certificate (nationally numbered, verifiable on the official website)
• Certificates: the online round awards Qualifying Round certificates; the on-site round awards Grand Final honour certificates plus the Whitelist certificate (within the quota). Every certificate carries personalized written comments from the judges

IV. Groups and Repertoire Requirements

The Brass Division comprises two instruments, Trombone and Horn, each with an Open Division (公开组), a Professional Division (专业组), a Comprehensive University Division (综合院校组) and an Ensemble Division (重奏组), plus a Brass Quintet Group (铜管五重奏组) and a Brass Chamber Music Group (铜管室内乐组) shared by both instruments — 20 groups in all. The age limits, repertoire, time limits and entry fees for each group are gathered in this section.

Every trombone group is open to both Tenor Trombone and Bass Trombone.

Age calculation: ages are reckoned as of 1 January 2027, i.e. age = 2027 − year of birth. A competitor born in 2012 therefore counts as 15, even if their birthday has not yet fallen within 2027.

Time limits are maxima. Judges may stop a performance that runs over, and any material beyond the limit will not be scored.

Advancement: the two rounds are scored independently of each other — a score of 20 points (on the 25-point scale) in the Online Qualifying Round qualifies a competitor for the On-site Grand Final. The Grand Final is scored afresh and ranked on its own; Qualifying Round scores are not carried forward. The Organizing Committee reserves the right of final interpretation.

1. Open Division (公开组)

For amateur players and students. Qualifying Round entry fee: 699 RMB (Grand Final: 999 RMB).

Trombone — Open Division

Horn — Open Division

2. Professional Division (专业组)

For students enrolled at professional music institutions, professional orchestral players, and any competitor of comparable standard. Qualifying Round entry fee: 699 RMB (Grand Final: 999 RMB).

Trombone — Professional Division

Horn — Professional Division

3. Comprehensive University Division (综合院校组)

Set up specifically for current students of normal (teacher-training) universities and of music schools or departments within comprehensive universities, and judged separately from students of independent conservatories. Qualifying Round entry fee: 699 RMB (Grand Final: 999 RMB).

Eligibility: current undergraduate and postgraduate students of music programmes (music performance, music education, instrumental studies, etc.) at normal universities or at music schools/departments of comprehensive universities. No age limit.

• Competitors meeting the above criteria must enter the Comprehensive University Division and may not enter the Open Division; they may choose to enter the Professional Division instead.
• Undergraduate and higher students of independent conservatories and current professional orchestral players enter the Professional Division.
• Graduates are not eligible for this division: music graduates (including in-service music teachers) enter the Professional Division.

4. Ensemble Division (重奏组)

Qualifying Round entry fee: 299 RMB per person (Grand Final: 499 RMB per person), charged per participating performer (piano accompanists are not charged).

5. Brass Quintet and Brass Chamber Music Groups (铜管五重奏组 · 铜管室内乐组)

Shared by the Trombone and Horn sections. Qualifying Round entry fee: 299 RMB per person (Grand Final: 499 RMB per person), charged per participating performer (a brass quintet pays 1,495 RMB for the Qualifying Round and 2,495 RMB for the Grand Final).

【建议】Common substitutions are permitted, e.g. bass trombone for tuba or flugelhorn for trumpet; any substitution must be stated at registration.

• A standard brass quintet enters the Brass Quintet Group; any other line-up enters the Brass Chamber Music Group.
• Trombone or horn with piano only (piano accompaniment) counts as a solo entry: enter the appropriate Open or Professional group; piano accompanists are not charged.

V. Registration and Video Requirements

1. Registration, payment and video-link submission are all completed through cae.feuxfollets.top.
2. Video resolution 720P (1280×720, 16:9), format .mp4 / .mpg.
3. Fixed camera position, landscape orientation, camera about 3 metres from the performer; the competitor must be shown full-length against a clean, natural background. Because the horn's bell faces backwards, horn players are advised to place the camera to their front right and to avoid standing with the bell close to a wall or curtain, which muffles the sound.
4. No spoken announcement is required; repertoire details are entered on the registration form and in the video description.
5. Accompaniment is unrestricted in the Online Qualifying Round: unaccompanied, with piano, or with a backing track are all accepted. For the On-site Grand Final, competitors arrange their own accompaniment; accompaniment is not compulsory (unaccompanied performance is accepted).
6. Audio level −18 to 0 dB; a small amount of natural or digital reverberation is permitted, but do not overdo it.
7. The complete programme must be recorded continuously in a single video file with no break between pieces. No audio or video editing of any kind is permitted; violation results in disqualification.
8. Upload the video to Bilibili: title "Group + Name + 2027CAE线上比赛", category "Music — Performance" (音乐 — 演奏), tag "2027CAE云雀音乐线上比赛长号组" or "2027CAE云雀音乐线上比赛圆号组" (according to the instrument entered; Brass Quintet entries may use either), description "Composer + Repertoire + Duration". Set the visibility to "Public" or "Unlisted but shareable" and submit the link. A video set to "Private (visible only to me)" cannot be judged and will be treated as a withdrawal.
9. Full repertoire details must be entered at registration: composer, title of the work, opus number and movement. Repertoire may not be changed after the registration deadline.
10. The CAE Organizing Committee reserves the right to reject any video that does not meet these requirements.

Entry Fees

• Ensemble, brass quintet and brass chamber music entries are charged per participating performer (piano accompanists are not counted as chargeable participants).
• Fees paid are neither refundable nor transferable.

VI. Judging Procedure

• 25-point scale (15–25 points, to two decimal places). Each judge awards a single overall score; there are no weighted sub-criteria and no difficulty coefficient.
• Judges score independently and blind to one another.
• Scoring: the highest and lowest scores are automatically discarded and the remainder averaged, to two decimal places (the number of judges is set per group by the Organizing Committee; where there are too few judges, the discarding of extremes is switched off for that group).

VII. Awards and Publication of Results

Awards are set for each group separately and determined by the Organizing Committee on a proportional basis. Results and awards are published together.

VIII. Other Provisions

1. Entry constitutes consent for the Organizing Committee to use the competitor's name, group, results and performance footage in competition publicity, results announcements and related publications.
2. Competitors warrant that the video submitted is of their own performance. Entries performed by a substitute or appropriated from another person's video will be disqualified and announced publicly.
3. The Organizing Committee accepts no liability for compensation where the competition is altered or cancelled due to force majeure; entry fees will be handled according to the circumstances.
4. The CAE Skylark Music Award Organizing Committee reserves the right of final interpretation of these rules.

Registration platform: cae.feuxfollets.top