IV INTERNATIONAL PIANO COMPETITION „NERAVNODELNO“

November 29–30, 2025

On November 29 and 30, the International Piano Competition „NERAVNODELNO“ will take place with the support of the National Culture Fund. The competition will be held in person and online. Children and young people aged 5 to 19 can participate in person or online, divided into 5 age groups and 2 categories: soloists and duets.

Students from various music clubs, children taught by private teachers, and children from music classes in state non-music schools in the country are eligible to participate.

Pianists from music schools in Bulgaria and children who study piano in music schools abroad are not eligible to participate. (in online format). The full list of participants with audition times will be published on the Competition’s Facebook page and on the website www.neravnodelno.com. The final gala concert and awards ceremony will take place on November 30, 2025, at 3:30 p.m. in the City Mark Art Center hall.

The „NERAVNODELNO“ competition aims to promote Bulgarian irregular rhythms and Bulgarian piano music among young pianists who are not professionally trained in music schools. At least one of the pieces performed must be in an irregular meter or by a Bulgarian composer! There is no limit to the number of pieces that can be performed.

The distribution by category and age group (in person and online) will be as follows:

• 5-7 years old, program up to 4 minutes
• 8-10 years old, program up to 6 minutes.
• 11-13 years old, program up to 8 minutes.
• 14-16 years old, program up to 10 minutes.
• 17-19 years old, program up to 12 minutes.

Participants may compete in a higher age category, but not in a lower one!

Children/young people who have won the GRAND PRIX in a previous edition are not eligible to participate in the competition!

Piano duos (online and in person) must consist only of young people up to 19 years of age. They will be divided into two age groups:

First group up to 13 years of age inclusive and up to 10 minutes duration of the pieces.

 Second group: 14 to 19 years old inclusive, with a maximum duration of 15 minutes for the pieces.

(To calculate which age group the piano duo falls into, the ages of the two participants must be added together and divided by 2).

4. The audition will be held in one round. The order of performance of the pieces is free. All auditions will be public.
5. Registration for in-person participation in the competition can be done by filling out an online form (it will be active from October 15, 2025) until November 21, 2025, or until the places for in-person participation are filled.
6. Registration for online participation in the competition can be done by filling out an online form (which will be active from October 15, 2025) until November 28, 2025, and payment for online participation must be made by November 24, 2025.
7. The donation for in-person participation in all age groups in the soloist category is BGN 60 (EUR 30) for Bulgarians and EUR 30 for foreigners in the soloist category.   In the category of in-person duets from Bulgaria, the donation for participation is BGN 70 (EUR 35) per duet, and for foreigners it is EUR 35 per duet.
8. The donation for online participation is BGN 40 (EUR 20) for Bulgarians and EUR 20 for foreigners in the soloist category.

In the online duets category from Bulgaria, the participation fee is BGN 60 (EUR 30) per duet, and for foreigners it is EUR 30 per duet.

The participation fee must be paid into the following bank account:

NERAVNODELNO Foundation

Reason: <full name of participant>, <age>, COMPETITION 2025

The fee will not be refunded to competitors who do not show up!

9. Applications after this date may be accepted on an exceptional basis.
10. The deadline for submitting online recordings is November 28, 2025. They can be in the form of a link to a video uploaded to a platform such as YouTube, or a link to download the video from file transfer programs (Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.). The video must show the participant and the piano keyboard. The results of the online form will be published by December 12, 2025. Participants in the online form of the competition will not perform at the Gala Concert. The award ceremony for the winners of the „NERAVNODELNO“ Competition will take place in person only at the Gala Concert. The cost of sending medals and certificates will be borne by foreign participants, which will be specified in further correspondence.
11. The schedule for participation will be published by November 25, 2025.
12. The jury consists of distinguished professionals – pianists and composers.

The evaluation will be carried out as follows:

• From 98 to 100 points – GRAND PRIX – THE GRAND PRIZE, a cash prize of BGN 200 (EUR 100), a trophy, a diploma, and a prize (awarded only in the presence format of the competition).
• From 95 to 97 points – FIRST PRIZE – diploma, medal, and prize.
• From 90 to 94 points – SECOND PRIZE – diploma, medal, and prize.
• From 85 to 89 points – THIRD PRIZE – diploma, medal, and prize.
• From 80 to 84 points – ENCOURAGEMENT PRIZE – diploma and prize.

A prize will also be awarded to the youngest participant! (in the presence format of the competition)

In case of a tie, more prizes from the same category may be awarded.

All competitors who are unable to attend the Final Concert will receive their diplomas by email in electronic format.

The prizes are: prizes, trophies, medals, and certificates.

13. The jury reserves the right to request a reduction in the performance or repetition of the program or part thereof, or not to award prizes if it considers that the level of performance does not meet the criteria.
14. At the Final Gala Concert, the jury will decide which of the award-winning participants will perform and which pieces.
15. The teacher who has presented the most award-winning students will be awarded a certificate!
16. The organizers reserve the right to make changes to the rules if necessary.
17. The Final Concert will be recorded, and the organizers reserve the rights to publish and distribute the material.
18. The organizers are not responsible for damage or injury to persons or property during the competition. The organizers are not liable for indirect or consequential losses resulting from the participant’s participation in the competition. The organizers are not liable for loss, theft, and/or damage to participants’ personal belongings.
19. Participation in the Contest implies unconditional acceptance of these rules. Refusal to accept even part of these rules will result in the candidate’s disqualification, without the right to a refund of the participation fee.
20. Each participant is required to complete a declaration of consent (found in the electronic registration form) for the collection, use, and processing of personal data, for the transfer of copyright for recording, filming, and advertising during the competition of all audio, video, and photographic materials to the organizer.
21. Participants from other locations outside Sofia are responsible for their own travel and accommodation expenses.
22. For more information and inquiries, please write to the following email address:  music@neravnodelno.com or  call +359 899 821 457. (mobile, Viber, WhatsApp )