Official Rules
YAMAHA YOUNG PERFORMING ARTISTS 2025 COMPETITION ("COMPETITION")
OFFICIAL RULES
Yamaha Corporation of America ("Sponsor") is inviting young musicians to submit audio recordings of solo performances. The Grand Prize includes the opportunity for a trip to the Yamaha Young Performing Artists Celebration Weekend at the Music For All® Summer Symposium ("Symposium"), presented by YAMAHA®, held at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, June 21, 2025 through June 24, 2025. Winners will have the opportunity to perform in front of thousands at the Symposium, attend workshops and clinics designed to launch a professional career, and get media exposure throughout the world via the Internet.
- ELIGIBILITY. The Competition is open to all legal residents of the 50 United States (including District of Columbia), who are full-time students
studying in the United States, and are 18 to 22 years of age at the time of entry ("Applicant"). All Applicants must include a nomination by a
university or private teacher, conductor, director, professional performer, music dealer or community musical leader ("Nominator"). Nominators
may not be a relative of the Applicant. The nomination process is further described in the Application (defined below). Employees of Sponsor,
Music for All, Inc., and their parent, subsidiaries, affiliates, dealers and members of their immediate families (spouse, parents, children and
siblings and their respective spouses) or households (whether related or not) are ineligible to enter and win. Void outside the 50 United States,
and where prohibited. By participating in this Competition, you agree to these Official Rules and all decisions of the Competition judges, which are
final and binding, and you further certify that you meet all eligibility requirements, including but not limited to the fact that you (and anyone with
whom you may collaborate musically to create your entry) are not:
- Subject to a contract that would make your public appearance in connection with the Competition a violation of any third-party rights; or
- Under any other contractual relationship, including but not limited to guild and/or union memberships, that may prevent Sponsor from being able to use your Competition submission worldwide in all media in perpetuity on a royalty-free basis, without any payment or fee obligations.
APPLICATION PERIOD. The entry period begins September 16, 2024 at 12:00 a.m. (Eastern Time) and ends on December 18, 2024 at 11:59:59 p.m. (Eastern Time) ("Application Period").
- HOW TO ENTER. To be an eligible entry, during the Application Period, Applicants must submit a completed online 2025 Application & Video
and Audio Recording(s) at https://app.getacceptd.com/yypa ("Application") indicating whether Applicant wishes to be considered as a jazz/contemporary or classical applicant, including Nominator's information, and a minimum of two (2) and a maximum of four (4) different
recordings, at least one of which must be a video recording (the format is described in the Application) of solo performances – with
accompaniment, if applicable – using one of the following instruments: Piccolo, Flute, Oboe, Bassoon, Clarinet, Saxophone, Trumpet, French
Horn, Trombone, Euphonium, Tuba, Mallet or Concert Percussion, Drums, Violin, Viola, Cello, Upright Bass, and Piano (collectively the
"Submission"). A separate Application is necessary if an Applicant wishes to apply for both classical and jazz/contemporary, or on multiple
instruments. At this time, Sponsor cannot accept Applications for Recorder, Guitar, Bass Guitar, Mandolin, Ukulele, Banjo, or Voice. Receipt of
Submissions will not be acknowledged, and Submissions will not be returned. Submissions will not be available to the public. Proof of Submission
is not proof of receipt.
For all jazz/contemporary Applicants, recordings should feature Applicant as a soloist, rather than an ensemble player; edit recordings to include solo materials you would like Competition judges to consider. All performances (or excerpts) may display different styles, but should show Applicant's strongest musical attributes. The titles and composers of each submitted recording must be included in the file name of the uploaded recording files. Original pieces are welcome. Audio and video recordings must be of high quality. The format of all Submissions is further described in the Application. Without limitation, the following additional requirements apply:
- Submissions must be Applicant's own performance created solely by Applicant.
- Submission must not contain any personal information of any person other than Applicant and Applicant's Nominator.
- Submissions are ineligible if they could be deemed to: (i) contain vulgar, obscene, indecent, sexually explicit, insulting, hateful, threatening, harassing, or other inappropriate language, behavior or content; (ii) defame or libel any person or entity; (iii) violate the intellectual property rights of any person or entity; or (iv) otherwise be inappropriate in the sole discretion of Sponsor and its designees.
- Submissions should not include any personal photos, in any form.
All Submissions will be pre-screened upon receipt for compliance with the foregoing requirements. Submissions violating any requirements will be disqualified. Incomplete, untimely, unreadable, lost, misaddressed or misdirected entries will be disqualified, as well as entries not pursuant to these Official Rules. Sponsor and those acting on its behalf will not publish, display or perform any submitted materials online or otherwise for public access. However, the selection of any Applicant(s) or performance as Winners remains solely with the judges, as described below. Yamaha reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any Submission that it believes violates or potentially violates any of the foregoing requirements or otherwise fails to comply with any provision of these Official Rules. Sponsor may allow for minor discrepancies in duration of Submissions if an Applicant has otherwise tried in good faith to comply with these Official Rules, as determined by Sponsor.
LICENSE AND USAGE PERMISSION. In consideration of the opportunity to participate in the Competition, you, on behalf of yourself and Nominator, hereby: (a) represent and warrant that you have the authority to grant the permission and rights granted herein, and that no other permission is required to grant such rights; (b) irrevocably grant to Sponsor and its assignees and designees (including but not limited to its advertising, promotion and public relations agencies) the right, but not the obligation, to distribute, reproduce, broadcast, publicly display, modify, edit, translate, create derivative works and otherwise use the contents of your entry and Submission (song, lyrics, audio recording and any other materials), your name, voice, likeness, personality, and biographical information and address (city and country), and any statements made by or attributed to you, in whole or in part, either alone or in combination with other materials and content, in connection with the Competition (or future versions thereof) or other marketing or publicity purposes, in any and all media, now known or hereafter devised, without notice, review, or approval, in perpetuity and throughout the universe without further compensation, without restriction of any kind, including any acts that might otherwise be deemed a violation of moral rights; (c) release Sponsor; the Symposium; Music For All, Inc.; Meta Platforms, Inc., doing business as Meta and Facebook ("Facebook"), and their respective parent, subsidiaries, affiliates, partners, successors, assignees, employees, directors, officers, agents, advertising and promotion agencies, and all others associated with the development and execution of this Competition, and anyone acting on behalf of any of the foregoing (collectively the "Released Parties") from any and all claims or liability arising out of any such use; (d) agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Released Parties from and against any and all claims, damages, liabilities, costs and expenses, including reasonable legal fees and expenses, arising out of or related to any breach by you of any provision of these Official Rules, including, without limitation, your representations and warranties, and (e) covenant not to bring any legal action against the Released Parties with respect to any non-waivable moral rights (or other similar rights) relating to your entry.
DATA. Any personal information supplied by you as part of the Application process will be subject to the posted Privacy Policy on the Competition website. By submitting an Application in the Competition, you grant Sponsor permission to share any and all such information with any other companies or persons who are working with or on behalf of Sponsor for the purpose of carrying out the Competition process, and in addition you acknowledge that any and all such information will be collected and may be used and shared with others as set forth in the posted Privacy Policy to the extent allowed by applicable law.
WINNER SELECTION. Winners will be selected via the process described below. Decisions of Competition judges are final and are not subject to appeal.
All Submissions will be judged by a panel of Yamaha Artists who will attempt to find Winners from the following instrument categories, regardless of genre of music (classical or jazz/contemporary), and with the possibility of more than one prize to be awarded within the same instrument category: Piccolo, Flute, Oboe, Bassoon, Clarinet, Saxophone, Trumpet, French Horn, Trombone, Euphonium, Tuba, Mallet or Concert Percussion, Drums, Violin, Viola, Cello, Upright Bass, and Piano. Judging will be based on the following three criteria, giving equal weight to each: (i) Musicality; (ii) Expression; (iii) Tone Quality. Not all categories of instruments or genres may have Winners, as not all Submissions may fully meet the criteria for the Program, and Submissions of poor quality will not be judged.
WINNER NOTIFICATION AND VERIFICATION. On or about February 28, 2025, up to ten (10) potential Winners from the combined categories of jazz/contemporary and classical will be contacted by phone and/or email using the contact information submitted on the Application. Each potential Winner must respond within two (2) days or such potential Winner's entry may be disqualified, the prize forfeited, and an alternate Winner may be selected. Fewer than ten (10) prizes may be awarded if a sufficient number of Submissions are received that the judges deem worthy to earn a prize.
Winner will be solely responsible for all federal, state, and local taxes, and Winner may be issued an IRS Form 1099 for the value of the prize. Winner may be required to sign an Affidavit of Eligibility and Liability and Publicity Release indemnifying the Released Parties from any and all liability related to the awarded prize. Each potential Winner may also be required to sign one or more additional agreements to confirm all terms of these Official Rules, as well as an IRS Form W-9, plus an assignment of all rights (including but not limited to copyright) in and to the winning Submission. Failure to sign and return any documents when requested, or the providing of any false or incomplete information, may result in disqualification.
WINNER'S LIST. Winners will be available and identified at https://usa.yamaha.com/education/yypa/ within thirty (30) days of determination.
PRIZES AND THEIR VALUE. One Grand Prize is available to each of Winner, up to a maximum of ten (10) possible Winners. The Grand Prize includes a trip to the Yamaha Young Performing Artists Celebration Weekend at the Symposium held at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, June 21, 2025 through June 24, 2025 ("Trip"). Winners will have the opportunity to perform at the Symposium, attend workshops and clinics designed to launch a professional career, and get media exposure throughout the world via the Internet.
The Trip consists of: round-trip coach air or ground transportation for Winner between metropolitan airport, rail station, or bus station ("Port") nearest Winner's home, or mutually agreed to Port if Winner is not near their home, to Port in Indianapolis, Indiana, as well as ground transportation from Indianapolis, Indiana to hotel in the vicinity of Muncie, Indiana; standard hotel accommodations for one-room, single occupancy, three (3) night stay at a hotel in the vicinity of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana; and three meals a day provided by Sponsor.
All expenses not specifically mentioned herein are not included in the prize and are solely Winner's responsibility, including but not limited to round-trip transportation between Winners' residence and Port nearest Winners' home, baggage fees, missed travel and rebooking fees, international travel, fees associated with transporting large musical instruments, hotel room service, parking fees, laundry service, food, beverages, merchandise, souvenirs, local and long distance telephone calls, tips, gratuities and service charges. Airline carrier's regulations and conditions apply. Winner must possess all necessary documents for travel, including but not limited to a valid passport or other valid identification. Major credit card will be required at hotel check-in to cover any incidental charges. Travel and lodging are subject to availability. Trip must be made June 21, 2025 through June 24, 2025. Winner must participate in the prize Trip on the given dates or forfeit the prize in its entirety. Winner is responsible for possessing all necessary ID and other documents that may be necessary for travel and/or attendance at the Symposium, including but not limited to any proof of vaccination or negative COVID test that may be required by any transportation provider or the Symposium. Failure to comply may result in disqualification and selection of an alternate Winner if time permits.
Each prize is valued at approximately $1,300.00, and the total approximate retail value of all the prizes is $13,000.00. Value of travel prize may vary depending upon departure city and date(s) of travel; any difference between actual and advertised value of travel prize will not be awarded. No prize substitutions, cash equivalent or transfer of prizes permitted except at the sole discretion of Sponsor. Sponsor is not responsible for lost or misdelivered prizes due to Applicant's inaccurate or improper address information. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, stolen or damaged prizes, once received and in the possession of prizewinner. Prizes may not be exchanged for cash or otherwise, except that Sponsor retains the right to substitute prizes of equal or greater retail value in the event any advertised prize becomes unavailable. No responsibility is assumed for cancellation, interruption, or postponement or modification of the Music for All Summer Symposium or any other prize-related activities or events that are beyond Sponsor's control. If the Symposium is postponed, all aspects of the prize relating thereto will be changed to match the new dates. If the Symposium is cancelled after Winners have been determined and notified (or if Sponsor decides in its discretion that participation in the Symposium is not appropriate for health, safety or other reasons beyond Sponsor's control), all aspects of the prize relating to the Symposium will be cancelled, but each Winner will (a) remain with the title "Yamaha Young Performing Artists Competition Winner" for 2025, and (b) receive a trophy acknowledging their Winner status. If the Symposium becomes cancelled before Winners have been determined and notified, the Competition will be cancelled and no prizes or titles will be awarded If the Symposium is converted to a virtual event rather than a live event, Sponsor will endeavor to make reasonable accommodations for any Winner to participate in the virtual event to the extent it is practical to do so.
Sponsor is not responsible and will not pay for the travel or any expenses for parents and/or guests of Winners. Each Prize will be awarded only to the one individual identified in the Application with the winning Submission.
INTERNET. If, for any reason, Sponsor is unable to conduct this Competition as planned due to technical failures, such as those caused by a computer virus, hacking, other unauthorized interference, fraud, or any other cause which obstructs or otherwise adversely affects the proper administration, reliability, fairness, or integrity of the Competition, Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any person found to have interfered or tampered with the Competition, and if deemed necessary by Sponsor in its sole discretion, to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the Competition. Sponsor assumes no responsibility for any failure in transmission, however caused, including any omission, interruption, deletion, defect, communications line failure, theft or destruction of information or unauthorized access to entries, their damage or alteration. Sponsor is not responsible for its failure to receive any email, essay or entry form due to software failure, technical problems, human error or transmission congestion on the Internet or at any Website, or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to an Applicant's, or any other person's, computer relating to or resulting from participation in this Competition or downloading of any materials in this Competition. SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES OR OTHER PENALTIES, OR REMEDIES, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, FROM ANY PERSON(S) ATTEMPTING TO DELIBERATELY INTERFERE WITH THE CONDUCT OF THIS COMPETITION OR TO DAMAGE THE WEBSITE. If a dispute arises over the identity of an Applicant, the "Authorized Account Holder" of the email address submitted at time of entry will be deemed to be the Applicant. The "Authorized Account Holder" is defined as the natural person assigned to an email by an internet access provider, online provider or other organization (e.g. business, education institution, etc.) responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted email address. Any entry sent through the use of an automated sending device will not be accepted and will not be considered a valid entry.
GENERAL CONDITIONS; RELEASE. By participating in this Competition, all Applicants and Winners release, discharge, and hold harmless the Released Parties from and against any and all liability or claims for any and all liability or legal claims, injury, loss, illness, litigation or damages arising out of their participation in the Competition and/or the acceptance, use, misuse, non-use or possession of the prize. Any portion of the prize not accepted by Winner will be forfeited, and the Released Parties are not responsible for any inability of the Winner to accept or use the prize (or portion thereof) for any reason. Released Parties are not responsible for printing or typographic errors related to the Competition or related material or for stolen, lost, late, misdirected, damaged, incomplete, postage due, and/or illegible entries or transmissions. If, in Sponsor's opinion, there is any suspected or actual evidence of a virus, bug, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud technical failures or other causes corrupt the administration, securities, fairness, integrity or proper play of the Competition, Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any individual and/or void any entries submitted fraudulently, to modify or suspend the Competition, or to terminate the Competition and award the prize using all non-suspect eligible entries received as of the date of such action. In the event that any dispute arises regarding the meaning or interpretation of these Official Rules, participants agree that the dispute shall be resolved by applying the laws of California and that it shall be resolved by and within the courts of that state.
- SPONSOR. The Sponsor of the Competition is Yamaha Corporation of America, 6600 Orangethorpe Avenue, Buena Park, CA 90620. Any information you submit online is to the Sponsor, and not to Facebook. Competition is in no way sponsored, endorsed, or administered by, or associated with Facebook.
All Applicants must have attained a high level of musical achievement in solo appearances and ensemble performances and possess personal qualities compatible with the high musical standards necessary for acceptance into the Yamaha Young Performing Artists Program ("Program").