The ABF Slavic Themed recital is now open for submissions!

The deadline is October 14 at 9PM Eastern US daylight saving time.
Please note this deadline is firm and cannot be extended.

Pieces by any composer of Slavic origin are welcome. Slavic here refers to the group of countries which historically represent Slavic languages and culture. There have been some major changes in the governmental organization of Eastern Europe in the last decades. But countries that well fit the defition today would be the following: Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia. However there have been people of Slavic origin in other European countries as well and we are not that picky. So if it feels Slavic to you, go ahead and submit! Duets with piano or other intrument are allowed as well. In fact the only requirement is that there is some keyboard instrument present. Transcriptions are fine as well.

About the recital:
1) ALL skill levels are welcome, especially beginners. There are plenty of grade 1-3 pieces as well to learn in this "genre". Do not feel intimidated by the selections of our more experienced members. This place is for beginners, some virtuosos just hang around because this is such a great place. So if you have learned a simple piece from a method book by a Slavic composer, that is just as welcome as any advanced repertoire!
2) Duplicate pieces by different members are allowed
3) You can submit as many pieces as you wish.

There’s a file size limitation given below, but you can contact me if your piece exceeds that and we'll see if something needs to be done.

There's a separate
sign-up thread. You can sign up until the deadline though and duplicate entries of the same piece are allowed. But it's not compulsory to sign up beforehand, you may just submit a recording.

There’s also a pre-recital discussion thread.

If you have any questions you can ask here or PM me (outo).

Important information:

I may change the order of submissions before the recital goes live, but usually the submission are published in the order of submission.

Editing or digital alteration of your performance (other than minor edits such as trimming long silences at the end or beginning of the piece) is counter to the 'live recital' spirit of the AB Forum Recital and is thus strongly discouraged. In any event, any editing should be disclosed in the "additional information" section of the recital submission template.

Recital submissions must be in MP3 format. The maximum size of the file is 20 MB. We recommend encoding the recording at 192 kbs with a constant bitrate, as that works best with the online streaming player. At that bitrate, a 20 MB file works out to be about 7-9 minutes in length. Your recording will be normalized when placed in the consolidated zip files, but your original link will still be available for those who want it.

If you are new to recording your music, there are several threads in the forum archives that address the ways and means. See the "Important Topics in the AB Forum" thread stickied at the top of the AB forum page. Audacity is an excellent free recording application that can be used.

If you're new to the forum and the recitals, I encourage you to browse through a few of the past recitals to see what they're like. An easy way to find past recitals is to use Sam S.'s extremely helpful recital index, located here:

http://recitals.pianoworld.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page


How to submit your recording:

We will be using the wonderful automatic web-based recital program that mahlzeit wrote. You will upload your mp3 file to the recital server as part of the recital submission process.

When you have your mp3 file ready, go to:

https://recitals.pianoworld.com/

Follow the instructions there. Once you have uploaded your info to the automated recital software, you will receive a confirmation e-mail. You will have the opportunity to revise your submission any time up until the deadline. If you have any problems at all using the new website, or if you do not receive a confirmation e-mail within a few hours, just PM me. If you have not participated in past recitals using this software, I strongly encourage you to submit your recital piece at least a day in advance in case you run into any problems with it.

The recital website uses the following submission template to be filled out along with your attached music file. You may want to have your responses to these fields prepared in advance so all you have to do is cut and paste:

Performer's Name: {forum ID and real name if you'd like}
Where you are located: {optional}
Avatar image link: {optional}
Experience: {Yrs/Mos of piano playing experience}
Link to YouTube or other video: {optional}
Home page link: {optional}
Title of piece/composer:
Source of music: {sheet music, improvised score, play-by-ear, etc}
Instrument used: {Piano make, keyboard model, etc.}
Recording method: {audacity, Zoom, digital to PC, etc.}
Constructive technical feedback wanted: {Yes/No}
Additional Info: {Your thoughts on the piece, what you had for lunch, etc.}


The due date for all submissions is 9:00 pm US EASTERN DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME on Sunday October 14, 2018.
There will be no exceptions!

By submitting a piece to the recital, you are certifying that it is a recording of your own performance.

You can revise your entries on the template (e.g., thoughts about your piece, adding YouTube links, and the like) any time before submissions close.

Looking forward to your submissions!

outo