Beginning today, over 100 University student musicians will begin competing throughout the week for an opportunity to perform with the Philharmonia, BGSU’s student orchestra.

Now in its 38th year, the BGSU Competitions in Music Performance will award two graduate and undergraduate students with featured positions in the student orchestra this February.

To play with a full orchestra is an opportunity that most music students are rarely offered, and according to University senior Jonathan Kampfe, it could open up future career opportunities.

“I’ve never had the opportunity to play with an orchestra before,” Kampfe said. “It’s an honor, and it may help me in approaching future auditions.”

Over the course of the week musicians will progress through preliminary rounds by performing a major solo composition from memory before a panel of judges. By the end of the week 20 students will be selected for the semi-finals on Saturday morning.

Four undergraduate and four graduate students will then be selected to move on to the finals, which will be held on Saturday night at 8 p.m. in Kobacker Hall.

The semi-finalists and eventual winners have been split into graduate and undergraduate divisions to keep the competition fair, according to Richard Kennell, dean of the College of Musical Arts.

“It’s a matter of maturation,” Kennell said. “If we left it to just the top eight overall, graduates would most likely win because of their experience.”

Musician Ken Wendt, senior, believes that an annual competition like this — requiring pieces performed by memory — helps to bring out the very best musical talent at the University.

“It brings out more musicianship because you aren’t reading it,” Wendt said. “Like when listening to someone telling a story, it means a lot more when they can recall it from memory, rather than reading from a book.”

Senior violinist Aaron Jacobs said that even with pressure from other classes and final exams two weeks away, those competing practice long and hard to prepare for their solo in front of the judges.

“I’d say that three hours [of practice] per day is my goal,” Jacobs said. “I’d really like to do as best as I can to show how hard I’ve worked.”

David Babich, a junior and saxophonist, believes that competitions like these help shine a light on traditionally underrepresented talents that can emerge from the University.

“This totally let’s people know there are talents on campus other than hockey or football,” Babich said. “Some of these people competing will be professors some day, and this is just the beginning for them.”

An interesting part of Saturday night’s final round will be the chance for audience members to reward their favorite finalists with a $500 scholarship prize. Those in attendance will be given paper ballots to rank the performances of both the graduate and undergraduate finalists, with awards going to those who receive the most votes from each division.

Flute player Blake Bard, sophomore, appreciates the different aspect of performance that a voting audience may focus on, as opposed to the panel of judges who choose the four invited to Philharmonia.

“I think that showmanship is the most important aspect of performance overlooked by judges,” Bard said. “That is also not necessarily taught.”

Jacobs agrees that an audience’s differing opinion would be much appreciated by the performers.

“The judges are looking for perfection, accuracy and clarity,” Jacobs said, “while audience may be affected by what the performer does on stage. That may not necessarily have to do with precision as much as the communication of their music.”

While only four student-musicians will ultimately be invited to perform with the Philharmonia, Kennell said all who participate throughout this week should be congratulated.

“This [competition] should be a celebration of student success,” Kennell said. “All those who compete are winners.”

Attendance will be free and open to the public for both the preliminary rounds throughout this week, as well as the final competition on Saturday night. All performances will be held in Kobacker Hall of the Moore Musical Arts Center.