International Competition of Young Pianists “Merci, Maestro!”
Jury rules and regulations

1. The management of the Competition will appoint the members of the jury at its sole discretion. There is no limit to their number. They are chosen for their international reputation in the world of music, without taking into account any racial, ideological, political or linguistic considerations. The composition of the jury may vary from one round to another.
2. The jury is chaired by a person appointed by the competition management.
3. Relatives or allies of a candidate may not vote for a candidate (up to the 4th degree of kinship).
4. Members of the jury may not vote for a candidate of whom they are or have been a professor. A "student" is defined as a candidate who has taken more than five courses with the member of the jury in question. In case of doubt, the interested parties will contact the management, which will determine the position to be taken. If a member of the selection board does not provide a mark for a candidate, the average of the points awarded to the candidate by the other members of the selection board, multiplied by the average of the points awarded to all candidates by the member of the selection board concerned, divided by the average of the points awarded to all candidates by all the other members of the selection board, is added to the sum of his points.
5. Candidates do not have the right to challenge a member of the jury.
6. The list of names of all candidates will be given to each member of the jury.
7. At the beginning of the session, the list of names of the jury members will be published on the competition website.
8. Each member of the jury will submit to the Competition secretariat a signed declaration (see the end of the document).
9. If it is shown that the declarations in Article 8 are not true, their signatory would be excluded from the jury and the Competition.
10. Throughout the session, the members of the jury will refrain from any direct or indirect contact with a candidate, and a fortiori from living under the same roof as him.
11. The number of finalists may vary each year and is specified by the rules of the Competition.
•	For the 2019 competition a maximum of 10 finalists in each category will be accepted.
12. The decisions of the jury are final. The Jury may decide not to award any prizes in either category. In the event of a tie, the chairman of the jury and the artistic director shall have the casting votes.
13. The jury will vote by secret ballot.
14. Under no circumstances may the members of the jury communicate to each other the marks they have awarded. It is forbidden to use mobile phones for the entire duration of the competition (it is only possible to use mobile phones during breaks.)
15. The function of the Chairman of the Jury is to direct the operations of the Jury during the session.
16. For the choice of works and parts of works to be performed: there is a precise program.
17. In the event of illness or incapacity of a major force, the jury member shall be replaced, for the entire session or part thereof, either by a member of the Executive Committee appointed by the Chairman of that Committee or by a musical personality appointed by the Executive Committee of the Competition.
18. The President of the jury or artistic director shall announce the results of the tests, faithfully reflecting the decisions of the jury.
19. Rules
First round:
-For the first round, the members of the jury will receive a ballot paper containing the names of the candidates. They will give each candidate a score between 0 and 20 corresponding to the assessment of the performance.
-The member of the jury will indicate whether or not he wishes to see the candidate go on to the final:
•	The passing rule: candidates with score 1-14 do not pass to the final
The number of finalists awarded by each jury member is limited to a maximum of 12 in each category
If the points obtained by the candidates concerned by the tie were equal, the President of the jury with the Artistic Director of the Competition could decide that exceptionally, all or none of these candidates would participate in the final.
The names of the finalists will be announced after all the candidates in the same category have passed.
Finals: 
After the audition of all finalists, the jury members will receive a ballot with the names of the finalists.
Next to each name, the members of the jury will give each candidate a score between 0 and 20 corresponding to the assessment of the performance.
The assessment rule is as follows: 
•	Score 15-16: 3rd prize
•	Score 17-18: 2nd prize
•	Score 19-20: 1st prize
Each jury member can choose maximum 6 candidates at each category with 15-20 points.
In addition to assigning a score, the jury member will rank the finalists in order of preference, with his or her first choice coming first.
Jury members who have one or more students among the finalists will not rank their student(s). 
The members of the jury will each sign their own ballot and submit it to the President of the jury.
The ranking will be established on the basis of the totals obtained by adding for each candidate the sum of the points awarded to him by all the members of the jury 
All finalists will receive the title of "finalist". Maximum 6 finalists per level will receive the prizes (1st, 2nd, 3rd prize), as well as the youngest in each category can obtain the special diploma.
The names of the winners will be announced after all the candidates in the same category have passed through.
20. PRIZES, DISTINCTIONS AND AWARDS. Various prizes, distinctions and awards will be distributed among the finalists. Each prize can be divided between a maximum of 2 winners (i.e. a total of 18 winners) and also special diplomas for younger participants in each category can be awarded.
•	Category A : - First prize: 200 Euros; - Second prize: 150 Euros; - Third prize: 100 Euros
•	Category B: - First prize: 400 Euros; - Second prize: 300 Euros; - Third prize: 200 Euros
•	Category C: - First prize: 600 Euros; - Second prize: 400 Euros; - Third prize: 250 Euros

All finalists will receive diplomas: the finalists who were not selected to participate in the Gala concert (who did not become winners) will receive their diplomas after all candidates in the same category have passed through the final.
The winners: the prizes, awards and diplomas signed by the President and the members of the jury will be awarded to the winners during the Gala concert of the laureates of the “Merci, Maestro!”.
21. The Executive Committee of the Competition has the power to accept other donations, scholarships and concert offers for the benefit of candidates and winners.
22. Candidates are passed in alphabetical order. However, the Competition Management reserves the right to change this order. 

DECLARATION
I undertake to comply with it and certify that none of the candidates on the list given to me has related me up to the 4th degree or is (was) my student. If not, I inform the administration of the contest "Merci, Maestro!" that the candidate(s): surname, first name:....................................................................................................................................................................category:....................................................................................is related to me up to the 4th degree or is (was) my student.
I, the undersigned, member of the jury of the International Competition for Young Pianists "Merci, Maestro!", session 2019, declare that I have read the rules of the Competition. I acknowledge that in the event of a dispute, only the French and Dutch texts are legally valid.
Done on............/........../...................at............................................

Signature