Regulation

1. ABOUT THE COMPETITION

The XX Open composers competition named after Andrey Petrov (here and after “Competition”) is announced in three categories: “SYMPHONIC MUSIC”, “A NEW PERSEPCTIVE ON THE WIND ORCHESTRA” and “SHORE OF HOPE” for young composers. The Competition will take place from February (application submission) to September (final round) 2026. The main goal of the Competition is to discover new names in composition.

Organizer: The Foundation for the preservation and development of the creative heritage of composer Andrey Petrov.

Objectives:
• support of serious musical art
• support for young composers
• increasing youth interest in academic symphonic music
• exchange of professional experience
• preservation and development of Russian national culture and its cultural, historical and spiritual values
• strengthening the positive image of Saint Petersburg as the cultural capital of Russia.

2. PARTICIPATION CONDITIONS

• The Competition is open to all applicants regardless of education or place of residence.
• No participation fee.
• Official language of the Competition – Russian.
• Compositions must be submitted anonymously under a motto (max. 20 characters).
• Works containing identifying information will not be accepted.
• Each participant may submit one composition per category under different mottos.
• Works must not have previously won awards, been published, publicly performed, broadcast, or recorded before February 2024.

Age restrictions:
- Nomination “Symphonic music” – no age limit
- Nomination “A New Perspective on the Wind Orchestra” – no age limit
- Nomination “Shore of hope” – up to 25 years old*

*Participants’ age is determined as of the application deadline for the Competition (May 31, 2026).

Duration of compositions:
- Nomination “Symphonic music”: 10–15 minutes
- Nomination “A New Perspective on the Wind Orchestra”: 4–10 minutes
- Nomination “Shore of hope”: 5–10 minutes

Orchestra instrumentation:
Nomination “Symphonic Music” — symphony orchestra:
piccolo flute, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon,
4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, 2 harps, piano, strings. 5 percussionists: glockenspiel, xylophone, marimba, vibraphone, timpani, snare drum, tambourine, wood blocks, cymbals, bongos, guiro, tam-tam, tom-toms, triangle, bass drum, and others.*

* The use of rare instruments or instruments not typically included in the standard symphony orchestra must be approved in advance by the Competition Directorate.

Nomination “A New Perspective on the Wind Band”— wind band:
1 piccolo, 1 flute, 1 oboe / English horn, 6 B♭ clarinets, 1 B♭ bass clarinet, 1 bassoon, 2 E♭ alto saxophones, 1 B♭ tenor saxophone, 1 baritone saxophone, 3 F horns, 4 B♭ trumpets, 3 trombones, 1 B♭ euphonium, 2 tubas, 3 percussionists, 1 timpani. *

*With the approval of the Competition Directorate, it is permitted to include one additional musical instrument not included in the standard wind band instrumentation.

Nomination “Shore of Hope”— chamber string orchestra.

• The submitted work may be cyclic (multi-movement) or single-movement.
• In each category, participation of one soloist (voice or instrument) is permitted.
• Participants applications (biographical and other information) submitted to the Competition must be written in Russian / English.
• Works that have previously won prizes and/or other awards are not eligible to participate in the Competition.
• Members of the Expert Council and other persons affiliated with the Competition may not participate.
• The work submitted by the participant must not have been published, publicly performed, and/or recorded on commercially reproduced media, nor broadcast, prior to February 2024, i.e., before the period of the previous Competition. *
• Materials submitted by Competition participants will not be returned and will not be reviewed.
• Submitting an application to participate in the Competition confirms the participant’s agreement with all terms of the Competition Regulations.

* Under “public performance of works” is meant the presentation of a disclosed work in a live performance or by means of technical devices (radio, television, and other technical means) in a place open to the public, or in a place where a significant number of persons are present who do not belong to the usual circle of the family, regardless of whether the work is perceived at the place of its presentation or simultaneously in another place with the presentation of the work.

The term “disclosed work” means a work that, with the author’s consent, has been made available to the public by way of publication, public display, public performance, broadcast over the air or by cable, or by any other means.

3. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

Competition directorate
The Competition Directorate provides organizational and informational support for all Competition events, ensures the anonymity of participants during the competition rounds, creates the necessary conditions for the work of the Expert Council, and provides prizes and awards in accordance with the Expert Council’s decision.

Expert council
The Expert Council evaluates and selects the works submitted by Competition participants and determines the best entries.
• The composition of the Expert Council is formed and approved by the Competition Organizer from among renowned musicians—composers, conductors, and other cultural figures.
• The Expert Council list will be published on the Competition’s official website no later than April 1, 2026.
• The Expert Council has the right not to award all prizes/places, to split places between contestants, and to present special diplomas and prizes.
• The decisions of the Expert Council are final and not subject to review.

Counting commission
To calculate the results and determine the final outcomes of the Competition, the Directorate forms a Counting Commission. The Counting Commission processes the protocols and evaluation sheets submitted by jury members, calculates the average score across all criteria, and enters the results into the final scoring sheet. The Counting Commission consists of two people.

4. COMPETITION TIMELINE

Application period: February 2 – May 31, 2026

First round (remote): June 8 – July 12, 2026
Results published: no later than July 16, 2026
As a result of reviewing all works submitted to the Competition, the jury selects for participation in the second round no more than 50% of the applications submitted in each category.

Second Round (remote): July 16 – August 4, 2026
Results published: no later than August 11, 2026
Based on the results of the second round, the jury selects at least four finalist works in each category.

Final round (public concerts):

The third round of the Competition takes place over three days in the form of public concert auditions of the selected works.

Nomination “Symphonic Music” – September 17, 2026
Nomination “A New Perspective on the Wind Band” – September 18, 2026
Nomination “Shore of Hope” – September 19, 2026

5. FINAL ROUND

Nomination “Symphonic Music”:
Venue: Grand Hall of the St. Petersburg Academic Philharmonic named after Dmitry Shostakovich.
Date: September 17, 2026.

Competition finalists will be invited to St. Petersburg in September 2026 to take part in the rehearsal process and the final round of the Competition.*

* If a contestant is unable to attend the rehearsal of their work in person, the right to make artistic interpretive adjustments to the performance of the work remains with the conductor.

Nomination “A New Perspective on the Wind Band”:
Venue: Small Hall of the St. Petersburg Academic Philharmonic named after Mikhail Glinka
Date: September 18, 2026

Competition finalists will be invited to St. Petersburg in September 2026 to take part in the rehearsal process and the final round of the Competition.*

* If a contestant is unable to attend the rehearsal of their work in person, the right to make artistic interpretive adjustments to the performance of the work remains with the conductor.

Nomination “Shore of Hope”
Venue: Small Hall of the St. Petersburg Academic Philharmonic named after Mikhail Glinka
Date: September 19, 2026

Competition finalists will be invited to St. Petersburg in September 2026 to take part in the rehearsal process and the final round of the Competition.*

* If a contestant is unable to attend the rehearsal of their work in person, the right to make artistic interpretive adjustments to the performance of the work remains with the conductor.

6. EXPENSES COVERED BY THE ORGANIZER

- Accommodation in a 3‑star hotel in the center of Saint Petersburg (breakfast included), up to five nights.
- Travel and additional food expenses are not covered.

7. AWARDS

• Winners of the Competition are awarded the titles of Laureates or Diploma recipients and receive monetary prizes.
• All finalists of the Competition receive special diplomas and commemorative gifts.
• A professional audio and video recording of the final concert is provided.

Prize amounts:

Nomination “Symphonic Music”:
one prize and the title of Laureate – 150,000 rubles*

Nomination “A New Perspective on the Wind Orchestra”:
one prize and the title of Laureate – 100,000 rubles*

Nomination “Shore of Hope”:
one prize and the title of Laureate – 100,000 rubles*

* All monetary prizes are paid exclusively in the national currency of the Russian Federation (rubles) to an account in any credit institution (bank) licensed by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and are subject to taxation in accordance with Article 224 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. The payment of prizes will be made by the end of the financial year (no later than December 31, 2026).

8. PROCEDURE FOR INFORMING COMPETITION PARTICIPANTS

Information about applications received for the Competition is published on the official Competition website — www.konkurspetrov.ru/en — at least once a week. Information about participants admitted to the first, second, and third rounds, as well as the Competition winners, will also be published on the official website.

Application submission rules for the Competition:
• Applications from participants are accepted from February 2 to May 31, 2026, exclusively in online format, in accordance with the selected category;
• Online applications are accepted only through the official Competition website: www.konkurspetrov.ru/en

The application must include:
• a file containing the score of the composition in PDF format, labeled with a motto (the motto must not exceed 20 characters);
• a file with a demo recording of the composition (mp3 or wav format), labeled with the same motto (submission of the recording is recommended but not mandatory);
• a file with a completed application form, labeled with the same motto.

9. COPYRIGHTS

Participants who advance to the third round (final) of the Competition undertake to sign an agreement with the Competition Organizer (the Foundation for the Preservation and Development of the Creative Heritage of Composer Andrey Petrov) granting the right to use their competition works under a non-exclusive license worldwide for a period of 10 years, by all means provided for in paragraph 2 of Article 1270 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. No remuneration is given for granting the right of use.

By submitting an application to the Competition, the participant thereby agrees to all provisions of the Competition Regulations and grants the Competition Organizer non-exclusive rights to:
• to perform, broadcast, and record their composition during public hearings and the gala concert (final) of the Competition, as well as to partially use the composition in informational and promotional materials of the Competition without payment of author’s fees;
• to publish the composition on the official online resources of the Competition and the Andrey Petrov Foundation (including official websites and social media pages and communities) without payment of author’s fees;
• to use the composition in printed form without payment of author’s fees.

10. CONTACT INFORMATION

In case of any questions regarding the provisions of the Competition Regulations or other organizational matters, applicants may contact the Competition Directorate via email at org@konkurspetrov.ru

The Competition Directorate will respond within five working days from the date the request is received, sending the reply to the email address specified in the request.

Official competition website: www.konkurspetrov.ru/en
Andrey Petrov Foundation website: www.fondpetrov.ru