George Roberts Bass Trombone Competition

sponsored by 

For trombonists ages 20 and under (birth date of January 1, 2002 or later)

First Prize – TBD

General Requirements

Recording Guidelines

Competition Rules

  • Live piano accompaniment is required. While live, in-person collaboration is still preferred, a pre-recorded piano accompaniment will be allowed for the 2023 competitions cycle in the event that restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic do not make a live performance possible.
  • The required repertoire should be recorded as one complete, unedited take, and submitted as a single video file, recorded from a single, uninterrupted camera angle. Accepted file formats include: MP4, MPEG, MPG, MOV, AVI, WMV, M4V, FLV, WEBM, M2V
  • No editing of either video or audio is allowed.
  • No written signs, name tags or other written material is to be visible in the video.
  • Both performers should be clearly visible in the video throughout the performance, with the trombonist as the focal point. In the event both performers do fit in the frame, due to social distancing or use of pre-recorded piano accompaniment, the trombonist must still be completely visible throughout the performance.
  • The submitted file must not contain any identifying information. The video file should be named: “RobertsEntry.mov” (.mp4, etc.)
  • Past winners of the George Roberts Bass Trombone Competition are not eligible to enter the 2022 Roberts competition.
  • Co-Winners from the 2020 George Roberts Bass Trombone Competition are eligible to enter if still meeting age and other requirements.

Repertoire Requirements

Preliminary Round:

Elizabeth Raum – Concerto for Bass Trombone, movements 2 and 3 (Cherry Classics)*

*There are two editions published by Cherry Classics. Either will be accepted without penalization.

Final Round:

Marcus Wilcher – Shades (American Composers Alliance)

Past Winners

Year Winner School
2007 Thomas Knapp Texas Christian University
2008 Steve Warren Oklahoma State University
2009 Zachary James University of Southern Mississippi
2010 Caleb Ketcham Oklahoma State University
2011 Derek Lyp Western Michigan University
2012 Freddy Oulette University of North Texas
2013 Riley Giampaolo Oak Ridge High School
2014 Joshua Cirtina Royal Northern College of Music, United Kingdom
2015 Daniel Vaitkus Boston University
2016 Joaquim Rocha Escola Superior de Musica e Artes de Espectáculo
2017 Giuseppe Fu Leman Manhattan Preparatory School/Juilliard Pre-College
2018 Changwon Park New England Conservatory
2019 Riley McGinn University of California, Los Angeles
2020 Co-Winner Ivan Cheung Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts
2020 Co-Winner Joao Cunha Zurich University of the Arts
2020 Co-Winner Pelle van Esch Royal Conservatory of the Hague
2021 Chance Gompert Indiana University
2022 Wojciech Gilka The Karol Lipiński Academy of Music in Wrocław