ODYSSIAD® COMPETITION
ODYSSIAD® ONLINE PRELIMINARY ROUND: March 1 – June 1, 2026
LIVE SOLO SEMIFINAL & FINAL ROUNDS: TBA
LIVE CONCERTO SEMIFINAL & FINAL ROUNDS: TBA
The Odyssiad® LIVE Semifinal and Final Rounds are FREE and open to the public.
All instructions, rules, and regulations for the 2026 Odyssiad® can be found on the Acceptd audition platform—the audition application opens on March 1, 2026. Go to the REGISTRATION drop-down menu for details about the ONLINE Preliminary Round and LIVE Semifinal and Final Rounds for Solo and Concerto Divisions.
Eligibility: Gold Medalists in previous Odyssiad® competitions are not eligible to re-enter the same age level of the competition, but may enter the next age level when eligible. Silver and Bronze medalists may re-enter their age level again and compete for the Gold Medal.
SOLO
DIVISION
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Minimum of 10 minutes, maximum of 15 minutes.
Level is determined by the competitor’s age as of June 1, 2026.
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Minimum of 15 minutes, maximum of 20 minutes
Level is determined by the competitor’s age as of June 1, 2026.
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Minimum of 20 minutes, maximum of 30 minutes
Level is determined by the competitor’s age as of June 1, 2026.
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Two or three pieces of solo piano repertoire selected from at least two or more stylistic periods:
I. One Baroque or Classical piece (required)
II. One Romantic, Impressionistic, or 20th/21st Century piece.
The style of the pieces performed should be varied to reflect the abilities of the performer.
All music performed must be played from memory.
The same repertoire must be used for each progressive round.
CONCERTO DIVISION
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Repertoire requirement: Complete concerto from the standard repertoire with either second piano or orchestral accompaniment. All music must be played from memory.
No changes in concerto repertoire may be made after June 1, 2026.
One winner will be chosen to perform with the Fort Collins Health and Wellness Community Orchestra during the 2026-2027 season.
Time Limit: Odyssiad® Competition participants in the Complete Concerto Division must be prepared to perform the entire concerto; however, judges will limit performance time to 25 minutes for the Preliminary and Semifinal Rounds, and allow the complete concerto for the Final Round.
Level is determined by the competitor’s age as of June 1, 2026.
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Repertoire requirement: A complete concerto from the standard repertoire with a second piano or orchestral accompaniment. All music must be played from memory.
No changes in concerto repertoire may be made after June 1, 2026.
One winner will be chosen to perform the concerto with the Boulder Symphony during the 2026-2027 season with Devin Patrick Hughes conducting.
Time Limit: Odyssiad® Competition participants in the Complete Concerto Division must be prepared to perform the entire concerto; however, judges will limit performance time to 25 minutes for the Preliminary and Semifinal Rounds, and allow the complete concerto for the Final Round.
Level is determined by the competitor’s age as of June 1, 2026.
DEADLINES
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All instructions, rules, and regulations for the Odyssiad® can be found on the Acceptd audition platform. The audition application will be open from March 1 – June 1, 2026. Go to the REGISTRATION drop-down menu for details about the ONLINE Preliminary Round and LIVE Semifinal and Final Rounds for Solo and Concerto Divisions.
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Application Fee: Solo Competition Division ($175); Concerto Competition Divisions ($175); If entering BOTH Solo and Concerto Divisions ($300).
Concerto applicants must provide their own accompanist for online preliminary rounds but may choose to use an Official Staff Accompanist for a $100 fee if selected for the Semifinal and Final Rounds.
The accompanist fee must be paid at the Registration Table prior to the Semifinal Round.
Apply for the Odyssiad® Competition.
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March 1: competition application opens:
June 1: competition application deadline/closing
June 14: Judges send their Online Preliminary Round scores to the competition co-directors
June 16: Odyssiad® Competition co-directors announce competition results and notify competitors of their advancement to the LIVE Semifinal Round in Colorado
June 22: Semifinalists notify Odyssiad® co-directors of
Intent to participate in the Live Semifinal Round in Colorado
Register and pay the festival fee of $325 (includes all Odyssiad® Competition and Festival events, the LIVE Semifinal and Final Rounds of the Odyssiad® Competition, and a series of exciting evening concerts by international piano competition winners and world-renowned guest artists.
Confirm request to stay with a host family rather than a hotel (list the age, and gender of each person in your group requesting a host family). Host families are not guaranteed, so hotels should be preemptively reserved. Hotel suggestions.