News and Updates
Special Rules and Procedures for the 2021 Remote Contest
Houstonfest Scholarships
Scholarships at State
Teacher-to-Teacher Tips
Tips for Pair Discussion
Photo Gallery
2014
Arrival at Heights High School
Lunch options
Plays will be performed at Houstonfest
Daily log of changes to
state-qualifier list
Important Dates
Sat., Jan. 16, 2021: Regular deadline to submit registration
spreadsheet in order to pay regular price of $10/student (payment does not have
to be mailed until 1/25).
Mon., Jan. 25, 2021: Final deadline to submit registration spreadsheet
for late price of $12/student and deadline to postmark payment.
Mon., Feb. 1, 2021: Proof sheet of entries sent to teachers for final
verification and changes.
Wed., Feb. 3, 2021,
8:00 p.m.: Deadline to submit changes (adds,
drops, substitutions). After this point, no more additions or
substitutions will be allowed.
Sat., Feb. 6, 2021:
Houstonfest (100% remote): some events conducted
"live" (online) that day, all others submitted digitally by 9:00 a.m.
Sat., Feb. 13, 2021:
Houstonfest online awards ceremony, time TBA.
Wed., Feb. 17, 2021:
State online registration due by 11:59 p.m.
for "early bird" price of
$10/student (payment does not have to be mailed yet). Also, deadline to apply for the
Mary El-Beheri Memorial Scholarship
and to submit entries for
promotional video contest
to State director Jennifer Christianson.
Mon., Feb. 22, 2021: State online registration due by 11:59 p.m. at
regular price of
$12/student.
Sat., Feb. 27, 2021: Texas State German
Contest (100% remote): some events conducted "live" (online) that day, all
others submitted digitally by 9:00 a.m.
Sat., Mar. 6, 2021:
State online awards ceremony, time TBA. Also,
Houstonfest Scholarship
applications due.
Fri., Mar. 12, 2021:
Gail Cope
Scholarship applications due.
Fri., April 30, 2021:
Gail Cope Teacher Grant applications due.
|
Rules:
Music Events
Below are the "normal" rules
for Houstonfest in a non-pandemic year. To preserve a record of the normal
rules, alterations to the rules for the 2021 remote contest will not be
reflected here but rather documented at this link: Special
Rules and Procedures for the 2021 Remote Contest. In a nutshell,
however: The only music events offered in 2021 will be Contemporary Music
(solo acts only) and Vocal Solo.
General
rules for all music events:
-
It is not allowed for any
contestant to perform any piece which he/she has performed in any previous year
in Chorus, Classical Ensemble, Contemporary Music, or Vocal Solo. (This rule does not apply to Folk Dance or Polka Band.)
For example: If your chorus performed "Der Tanz" by Schubert in 2020, you may not use "Der
Tanz"
for Chorus in 2021 or 2022 unless the members of the group are 100% different in
the subsequent years. The spirit of this rule
is that students should be challenged to work with different material from one year to the next.
-
Failure to provide at least 2 copies of the piece to the judges will result in a
10-point deduction from the cumulative score.
Chorus:
Entry Limit:
1 chorus per school: 4-12 singers.
Time Limits:
5-10 minutes, with a 30-second grace period (over or under).
The piece(s) must
be by German-speaking composers and be recognized works of music. Song(s) must
be classical and/or folk. A performance may consist of one song or a medley of
songs and singers may use pantomime and choral reading to enhance their
production. Song(s) must be sung in German and must be memorized. Groups are
responsible for their own accompaniment, whether recorded or live, or may sing
a cappella. No instruments or audio-players will be provided at the
contest site. Two copies of the sheet music (notes and lyrics) must be
provided for the judges.
Download critique
sheet.
Classical
Ensemble:
Entry Limit:
1 ensemble per school: 3-6 musicians; 1 member may be a student who has never
been enrolled in German.
Time Limits:
5-10 minutes, with a 30-second grace period (over or under).
The piece(s) must be by a German-speaking composer and be a
recognized work of music, e.g., Beethoven, Bach, Brahms, Haydn, Schubert,
Strauss, Mozart, Schumann, Mendelssohn. Music must be classical and groups may
do medleys of songs. No electric instruments, other than one electric keyboard,
are allowed. No music stands will be provided at the contest site. Attire is
part of the judging criteria. If a non-German student is included in the
ensemble, this information must be given to the judges. Two copies of the
sheet music must be provided for the judges.
Download critique sheet.
Contemporary
Music:
Entry Limit:
1 entry per school: 1-5 musicians (vocalists and/or instrumentalists, but no
advantaged speakers as vocalists).
Time Limits:
2-4 minutes, with a 30-second grace period (over or under); contestants must be
able to set up and break down in a total of 5 minutes (in addition to the
actual performance time).
One piece is to be sung from a contemporary (post-World War II)
German-speaking musical artist or group, which may include rap (must be school
appropriate). Lyrics must be predominantly sung in the German language and be
memorized. Contestants may sing a cappella, with pre-recorded
accompaniment, or with one or more group members playing instruments live
(acoustic or electric). However, no playback devices, microphones, speakers, or
instruments will be provided at the contest site; contestants are responsible
for providing their own equipment and instruments. Two copies of the lyrics must
be provided for the judges.
Download critique sheet.
Folk Dance - Einzeltanz
(Couple Folk Dance):
We are in the process of
creating a four-year rotation of dances for Einzeltanz. The first dance, a
Plattler, was used for the first several years that the event existed.
A second dance, a Schottische, was introduced in 2019, and a third dance,
a Ländler, was introduced in 2020 (the links below are for that dance).
Folk
Dance and Einzeltanz will not be offered in 2021 due to COVID-19, but in
2022, we should introduce the fourth and final dance in the rotation, probably a
Mazurka, before starting the rotation over again in 2023 with the
Plattler.
Schools may enter
both the Einzeltanz and group competitions, the Einzeltanz competition only, or
the group competition only. If a school enters both competitions, the dancers in
the Einzeltanz competition may be, but do not have to be, in the group entered
in the group competition.
Entry
Limit:
1 couple per school
Selection of Dance: You must check the website
for the current year's dance!
All couples dance the same dance, which will be
posted on the website by early fall of each school year. Couples DO NOT need to
provide dance notes or music, as judges will already have dance notes. The same
recording from the website will be provided at contest. Only one couple will
dance at a time, and the boy and girl will be judged/critiqued separately, i.e.,
one or more judges will judge the boy, and one or more different judges will
judge the girl. The boy's points and the girl's points will then be added
together to obtain the final score for the couple. See the critique sheet for
the specific judging criteria.
In years when the dance is an Einzelplattler,
the dance will take place inside a four-meter circle marked on the floor, with
an X marked in the middle. In other years, there may not be a circle. Dance must
follow posted documentation. After being introduced, the couple will walk to the
middle of the circle (or middle of the dance floor). The boy will be asked
"(Name), are you ready?" When he replies yes, the music will begin.
Costumes (Tracht):
Tracht comes from the word tragen
meaning "to wear." Thus, Tracht means that which one wears. As each
region has its own distinctive Tracht, and Trachten are far too
diverse to describe in just a few short sentences, Tracht will not be
judged as to whether it is worn properly or authentically, only whether it is
worn uniformly.
Download the dance notes
(instructions).
View a video of the dance on
SafeShare (no ads, suggested videos, etc.).
View the
same video of the dance on YouTube.
Download the music for the dance.
Download
critique sheet.
Folk Dance - Group:
Entry
Limit: 1
entry per school.
Total
Group Size: minimum 6 dancers, no maximum.
Active Dancers on the Floor at Any Time: minimum 4 dancers performing,
maximum 16 dancers performing.
Dance Limits:
4 dances minimum, 5 dances maximum.
Time
Limits: 10 minutes minimum, 15 minutes maximum,
including entrance, exit, and
transitions, with a 30-second grace period. There is a 10-point penalty for
going under the minimum time limit or over the maximum time limit.
There is no required dance. Dancers must provide their own music,
music-player, and extension cord, if needed. The group must provide at least 3
copies of the following: a list of the dancers' names and documentation of each
dance, including the categorization (Level I, II, III) of the dance and the
region of origin of the dance. Points will be deducted from "Authenticity" if
documentation is not provided. Dances not already categorized on
this
website must be submitted to the regional director by
November 1 so that they can be categorized by an expert panel.
Download
critique sheet.
Polka Band:
Entry Limit:
1 band per school: 5-12 musicians + 1 director (i.e., max. 13 members); 2
members may be students who have never been enrolled in German.
Time Limits:
5-10 minutes, with a 30-second grace period (over or under).
All
pieces of music must be by German-speaking composers. No electric instruments
are allowed. No music stands will be provided at the contest site.
If a
non-German student is included in the band, this information must be given to
the judges. Two copies of the sheet music must be provided for the judges.
Download critique sheet.
Vocal Solo:
Entry Limit:
2 soloists per school (no advantaged speakers).
Time Limits:
2-5 minutes, with a 30-second grace period (over or under).
The contestant must sing a recognized classical or folk song from
a German-speaking composer. The song must be sung in German and must be
memorized. The soloist is responsible for his/her own accompaniment, whether
recorded or live, or may sing a cappella. No instruments or
audio-players will be provided at the contest site. Two copies of the sheet
music (notes and lyrics) must be provided for the judges.
Download critique sheet.
|
When is the next Houstonfest?
Saturday,
February 6, 2021 Where
is Houstonfest?
Due to COVID-19, the 2021 contest will be conducted entirely REMOTELY.
Link to Texas
State German Contest
Texas
State German Contest on Facebook |