2026 EGSOGL Pre-College Piano
Competition
Held as Part of the 2026 Conference "Edvard Grieg & the Schumanns"
Goshen College (Goshen, IN)
​​Friday, May 8 & Saturday May 9, 2026

Rieth Recital Hall, Goshen College Music Center

LINK TO Application Form
DEADLINE EXTENDED To 4/13!

(Google Form with Paypal LINK)

Purpose of the Competition

EGSOGL would like to encourage young pianists to explore the wide repertoire of Edvard Grieg, to celebrate his place in the piano literature, and to help spread knowledge of his lesser-known works. The required repertoire for this competition (which is the first of many) coincides with the theme of the 2026 Conference: works by Edvard Grieg and Robert and Clara Schumann!

Location and Dates

All competitions will take place live in Rieth Recital Hall at the Goshen College Music Center.

Tentative Scheduling
Friday May 8 (afternoon): "Arrangements" and Junior Divisions
Saturday May 9 (evening): Senior Division

Application Deadline and Fee

Application with $25 fee is due April 13, 2026. Notification of competition time will occur on or by April 25, 2026. Application is online, with link in button above, and fee may be paid online through PayPal or by sending a check (EGSOGL Piano Competition, 502 S 5th St Goshen IN 46526. Due by April 13.)

Divisions, Prizes, and Eligibility

Eligibility: Open to pre-college students ages 18 and under. Entrants and their teachers must  reside in the United States. 

"Arrangements" Division (ages 13 & under):

• Multiple $25 awards at discretion of judges
• Potential performance award(s)*

Junior Division (ages 13 & under):

• $300 first prize and performance award*
• $200 second prize
• $100 third prize

Senior Division (ages 14-18, pre-college):

• $500 first prize and performance award*
• $300 second prize
• $200 third prize

**Performance award: First place winners will be recognized on the Winner's Showcase at the Saturday May 9 concert at 5:00 p.m. and have their performances uploaded here on the EGSOGL website.

For More Information

Complete Rules and Regulations
​

Basic Requirements

Required Repertoire:

• 1 piece* by Edvard Grieg
• 1 piece by either Robert or Clara Schumann

For "Arrangements" Division: only published arrangements will be accepted (for one or both pieces by the required composers).
For Junior and Senior Divisions: Only complete, unabridged, original compositions for solo piano by the composers are allowed. (This includes solo piano arrangements by the composer of his own music, i.e. Grieg’s Op. 41 and Op. 52). 

Other Repertoire Requirements:
A movement of a multi-movement work is considered one piece. All selections must be memorized. No cuts are permitted; Repeats are at the discretion of the applicant/teacher. Special consideration will be shown to contestants who choose lesser-known works of Edvard Grieg (i.e. pieces from Op. 17, Op. 41, Op. 52, Op. 66, Op. 72, and lesser-known Lyric Pieces.)
 
      * NOTE: Due to the brevity of pieces from Op. 17 and Op. 66, applicants may inquire about offering a small grouping of pieces from either of these two sets in lieu of a longer selection

For any questions regarding the eligibility of repertoire requirement, please contact Dr. Mary Rose Norell at [email protected].

​
For all competition rules and regulations, please see "Complete Rules and Regulations" (button located above).

Adjudicators

Sylvia Eckes
​Sylvia Reynolds Eckes, DMA, is Professor Emerita of Piano, at Ohio University and Past President of the Edvard Grieg Society of America, Inc. She has been appointed Officer, Knight First Class, of the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit for her promotion of Grieg in the United States.
https://www.norwegianamerican.com/grieg-in-america/

Other adjudicators to be announced in March