ODYSSIAD® LIVE SEMIFINAL AND FINAL ROUNDS

LIVE SOLO SEMIFINAL & FINAL ROUNDS: August 3–4

LIVE CONCERTO SEMIFINAL & FINAL ROUNDS: August 5–7

The Odyssiad® LIVE Semifinal and Final Rounds are FREE and open to the public to attend at the University Center for the Arts at Colorado State University: 1400 Remington Street, Fort Collins, Colorado 80524

Applicants will be notified of their acceptance to the Semifinal Round through the Acceptd application site. Please check the Acceptd site frequently for announcements and important updates.

2026 Schedule (subject to change)

DATES & DEADLINES

    • 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.

    • Messages to competitors will be sent through the Acceptd app.

  • By June 22, 2026, semifinalists must notify Odyssiad® co-directors of:

    • Intent to participate in the Live Semifinal Round in Colorado.

    • Register and pay the festival fee of $325, which 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. Housing Suggestions

    • All Semifinalists, guest artists, and judges should arrive in Fort Collins, Colorado by 12 p.m. (noon) on Sunday, August 2, 2026, and check in with their host family or hotel.

    • Registration and festival check-in will be from 3–5 p.m. in the lobby of Griffin Concert Hall, University Center for the Arts (UCA) at Colorado State University. The UCA is located at 1400 Remington Street, Fort Collins, Colorado.

    • Practice rooms will be open on Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026.

    • All Concerto rehearsals and Solo Semifinal Rounds of the Solo Odyssiad® will take place on Monday, August 3, at the University Center for the Arts (UCA), 1400 Remington, Fort Collins, Colorado.

    • A schedule of audition times and room numbers will be sent to all Solo Semifinalists by the Odyssiad® Competition co-directors, Dr. Cindy Lindeen Martin and Dr. Iris Zhang, via Acceptd messages.

    • Concerto rehearsals with Official Staff Accompanists will take place on Monday, Aug. 3, in at the UCA. A schedule of rehearsal times, accompanist assignments, and room numbers will be sent to all Concerto Semifinalists by the Odyssiad® Competition co-directors, via Acceptd messages.

JUDGING

    • For the LIVE Semifinal Round, a new team of judges will evaluate the performance for technical and artistic merit using the Odyssiad® scoring sheet.

    • Judges will conference together to select up to three (3) finalists in Levels A and B, up to six (6) finalists in Level C of the Solo Odyssiad®, up to six (6) finalists in the Junior Young Artist Concerto Division, up to six (6) finalists in the Professional Young Artist Concerto Division.

    • For the LIVE Final Round, a new team of judges will rate performances using the Odyssiad® scoring sheet AND assign a numerical score for technical merit and for artistic merit.

    • Judges will conference together to determine the Gold, Silver, and Bronze medal winners. 

    • The Odyssiad® finalists with the highest composite scores for technical and artistic merit will receive the Gold, Silver, and Bronze Medals, and other awards.

    • All judges’ decisions are final.

    • Level A (13 and under) – minimum of 10 minutes, maximum of 15 minutes

    • Level B (14-18) – minimum of 15 minutes, maximum of 20 minutes

    • Level C - Professional Young Artist (19-35) – minimum of 20 minutes, maximum of 30 minutes

    • Level is determined by the competitor’s age as of June 1, 2026.

    • The same repertoire must be used for each progressive round.

SOLO
DIVISION

CONCERTO
DIVISION

    • One complete concerto from the standard repertoire with either second piano or orchestral accompaniment. The Tchaikovsky Concerto No. 1 is not allowed in 2026.

    • 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 complete concerto with the Fort Collins Health and Wellness Community Orchestra during the 2026-2027 season.

    • A complete concerto from the standard repertoire with second piano or orchestral accompaniment. The Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2 is not allowed in 2026.

    • 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 a complete concerto from the standard repertoire with the Boulder Symphony in Boulder, Colorado during the 2026-2027 season series, Devin Patrick Hughes, conducting.

    • The time limit for the Semifinal Round is also 25 minutes.

    • The complete concerto is allowed for the Final Round.

    • An Official Staff Accompanist may be requested for the Live Semifinal and Final Rounds of the competition for a fee of $150 USD.

    • The $150 fee includes one hour of rehearsal time prior to the Semifinal Round and all subsequent performances (e.g., masterclasses or competition rounds).

    • Accompanist fees must be paid-in-full at the registration table prior to any rehearsal. If the fee is not paid, the competitor will forfeit all services of the accompanist. 

  • We encourage all Odyssiad® participants and family members to follow all current recommendations for health awareness and prevention.

  • If you have any questions once you have started your application, please contact Odyssiad® Competition co-directors, Dr. Cindy Lindeen-Martin and Dr. Iris Zhang, through the Acceptd site messages.

    For technical questions, please visit the Acceptd Help Desk.

ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION