2025 Competitions Schedule
Young Artist Program
Junior Program
Senior Program
Composition Competitions
Applications open in August 2025 for Composition and must be submitted online at the MTNA competition website prior to Wednesday, September 10, 2025 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time. There will be no exceptions.
Please visit the MTNA Website for the following:
If you have any questions, please email PMTA State Competition Co-Chair: Amanda Gunderson Gunderson@lycoming.edu
Performance Competitions
We are happy to announce that Pennsylvania State MTNA Competitions will take place on Sunday, November 9, 2025 at Messiah University in Mechanicsburg, PA.
Applications open in August 2025 for Piano, Piano Duet, Strings, and Woodwinds. Applications must be submitted online at the MTNA competition website prior to Wednesday, September 10, 2025 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time. There will be no exceptions.
Chamber Music, Brass, and Voice applications open Nov. 1, 2025. Deadline for Chamber Music (Wind and String), Senior Performance (Brass and Voice), Young Artist (Brass and Voice) registration and video submissions to Acceptd is December 3, 2025, 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time. There will be no exceptions.
**NEW THIS YEAR—Programs may be over or under the performance time limit. Programs over the time limit at any level of the competition will be cut at the judges’ discretion. For every category, entrants can only enter 10 minutes over the maximum time allowed at the National Round.—NEW THIS YEAR!
-
- Junior Performance time:
- State Competition:
- Maximum performance time: fifteen (15) minutes—NEW THIS YEAR!
- Division and National Competitions:
- Maximum performance time: twenty (20) minutes
- State Competition:
- Senior Performance time (Piano, Piano Duet, Strings, and Woodwinds):
- State Competition:
- Maximum performance time: twenty (20) minutes—NEW THIS YEAR!
- Division and National Competitions:
- Maximum performance time: thirty (30) minutes
- State Competition:
- Young Artist Performance time (Piano, Piano Duet, Strings, and Woodwinds):
- State Competition:
- Maximum performance time: twenty-five (25) minutes—NEW THIS YEAR!
- Division and National Competitions:
- Maximum performance time: forty (40) minutes
- State Competition:
- Brass and Voice Performance time:
- Senior Preliminary Round and Final Round at the National Competitions:
- Brass: Maximum performance time: thirty (30) minutes
- Voice: Maximum performance time: fifteen (15) minutes—NEW THIS YEAR!
- Young Artist Preliminary Round and Final Round at the National Competitions:
- Brass: Maximum performance time: forty (40) minutes
- Voice: Maximum performance time: twenty-five (25) minutes—NEW THIS YEAR!
- Senior Preliminary Round and Final Round at the National Competitions:
- Junior Performance time:
-
-
-
-
- Please also note that the Young Artist Group has been expanded to ages 19-29 this year.
-
-
-
Please visit the MTNA competitions website for full competition guidelines and helpful information
If you have any questions, please email PMTA State Competition Co-Chair: Amanda Gunderson Gunderson@lycoming.edu
The Ebony Prize for 2025–2026 MTNA Competitions
Now in its fourth year, solo piano entrants are reminded of The Ebony Prize for the MTNA Competitions. This award was created to encourage more students and teachers across the nation to include music by Black composers in their competition programs. The Ebony Prize is awarded to the national piano finalists who present the best performances of piano pieces by Black composers. A cash award is given at the national Junior, Senior and Young Artist levels. In addition, PMTA has established a state-level Ebony Prize cash award honoring the best performance of solo piano pieces by Black composers. For more information and repertoire suggestions, please read below.
Ebony Music, Inc., a non-profit organization that promotes Black pianists and piano music by Black composers, was founded by MTNA member Leah Claiborne, who was the inaugural winner of the MTNA Stecher & Horowitz Power of Innovation Award. In the MTNA webinar, Competition Piano Repertoire by Black Composers, Leah Claiborne presented Top 10 lists of competition repertoire by Black composers organized by Junior, Senior and Young Artist levels. Teachers are not limited to these lists, but they are provided for those who wish to have a starting point for exploring the vast repertoire by Black composers. Click Here to access these repertoire lists on the Ebony Music website.