One pianist performs alone on the piano before a panel, marked out of 100 on technique, accuracy and musical expression, with classes grouped by age or grade.
Piano Solo is the plain single-player class for the piano: one pianist, one instrument, one prepared piece or short programme, and no ensemble to share the load. The player walks to the keyboard, performs, and leaves while the panel records marks. Because the piano is so widely taught, it is among the busiest items in any music section and usually has more classes than any other instrument.
On the eTalenter templates it is an individual item open to boys and girls together, with no language attached, and marked out of 100 on every template that carries it except one young musicians' festival that uses a score out of 10. Time limits grow with the class. Australian regional programmes run from about three minutes for the youngest bands up to five, eight or ten minutes for older and open classes, an English eisteddfod sets limits by grade from three minutes for the preliminary and first grades up to eight minutes for the advanced class, and a Sri Lankan school competition uses two classes, Junior Solo for ages 11 to 14 and Senior Solo for ages 15 to 18, each with a ten-minute allowance.
A round is simple to run. Entrants are called in order, each plays from memory or from the music as the rules allow, and the panel marks each performance before the next player comes up. What changes between events is how classes are cut: by age band (7 and under, 9 to 10, open), by exam grade (preliminary to advanced), or as restricted and local classes that keep the strongest players out of the beginner sections. Check which cut the organiser uses before entering.
Organisers run it because it needs only a tuned piano and a piano stool, fills a full day with a wide spread of ages and abilities, and gives learners of every level a real stage. Piano Solo is the plain item; many programmes also run style-specific variants such as baroque, romantic or jazz classes, which are separate items.
Where Piano Solo is run
On the eTalenter templates Piano Solo appears in nine events: seven Australian regional eisteddfods, an English eisteddfod, a young musicians' festival and a national school music and dance competition in Sri Lanka. The Australian programmes split it into many age bands, the English programme into exam grades, and the Sri Lankan one into two school classes. Piano is also a staple of music festivals and school programmes elsewhere in the English-speaking world, though this page only records the templates above.
- Australia
- England
- Sri Lanka
Key facts
- Individual entry, open to boys and girls together on every template; language is not set
- Marked out of 100 on most templates; one young musicians' festival marks out of 10
- Time limit rises with the class: from two or three minutes for the youngest to eight or ten minutes for senior and open classes
- Classes are cut by age band (for example 8 and under, 13 to 14, open), by exam grade (preliminary to advanced) or by school class
- Some programmes add restricted and local classes alongside the open ones, so check eligibility before entering
- Related pages: Recorder Solo and Vocal Solo are the other solo items on the Sri Lankan school template
On eTalenter, Piano Solo is filed under Music and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 9 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Piano Solo is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to 2–10 minutes where a limit is set.
What judges look at in Piano Solo
What a Piano Solo panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- Accuracy of notes and rhythm: wrong notes, stumbles and uneven timing are the first things a panel counts, and a clean piece beats a harder one played with errors
- Tone and touch: a controlled, even sound, with clear difference between loud and soft passages, and no banging in the louder sections
- Technique: even scales and runs, steady hands, sensible fingering, and good control of the pedal rather than holding it down throughout
- Musical expression: phrasing, shape of each line, and a sense that the player is making musical choices, not just reading notes
- Tempo and pulse: a speed the player can hold to the end, without rushing the easy bars or dragging the hard ones
- Where marks are won or lost: choosing a piece at the right level, finishing without stopping, and staying inside the time limit for the class
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Piano Solo under Scoring Setup, or start from the full instrumental music competition judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Piano Solo
How entrants and their teachers usually get Piano Solo right on the day:
- Choose a piece that suits the class, the exam grade or the age band and can be played cleanly at performance speed, not the hardest piece the player can attempt
- Break the piece into sections and practise the weakest passage slowly with a metronome before putting the whole piece together
- Learn the piece well enough to restart from any phrase, so a slip in performance can be recovered without stopping
- Plan the pedal and the dynamic changes in the score and mark them, so the performance sounds intended and not accidental
- Time a full run from sitting down to the last chord and keep it inside the class limit, allowing a few seconds to adjust the stool
- Rehearse on an unfamiliar piano at least once, because touch and pedal feel change from instrument to instrument
- Play to family or friends several times before the day to get used to being heard, and practise bowing and walking on and off
- After a loss, ask for the adjudicator's comments and take the lowest-scoring area, usually tone or rhythm, into the next season
Frequently asked questions
Is Piano Solo judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter's templates it's most often run as an Individual entry, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
Is Piano Solo the same as Piano?
Piano Solo is the plain single-pianist class. Some festivals list it just as Piano, and others add a style or period, such as baroque or jazz, which are separate items. Check the class title in the programme.
Do I have to play from memory?
That is the organiser's rule, not the item's. Some programmes require it for older or open classes and others allow the music on the stand, so read the rules for your class.
How long can the piece be?
It depends on the class. The templates range from two or three minutes for the youngest bands up to eight or ten minutes for senior and open classes. Follow the limit printed for your own class.
Can I enter the same piece in two classes?
Most programmes do not allow it, and some bar a piece from a previous year. This is set by the organiser, so check the rules before entering.
Want the full judging picture? Read the full instrumental music competition judging criteria guide, or browse every music competition item.
Try Piano Solo in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs Piano Solo, and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
