Woodwind Solo Competition: What It Is, Where It’s Run and How It’s Judged

One player performs a prepared solo on a woodwind instrument such as flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon or saxophone, entered by standard or age band and marked out of 100.

Woodwind Solo is the general class for a single player on a wind instrument that makes its sound with a reed or across an edge: flute, piccolo, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, saxophone and their relatives. The entry is one performer, one instrument and one prepared piece or short programme, with or without a piano accompanist. The class title does not name an instrument, so a flautist and a clarinettist compete on the same scale, which means the panel judges the quality of the playing rather than the traditions of any one instrument.

How the class is divided depends on the event. The British template splits it by exam standard, from a prep or initial tier up to Grade 7 and above, with time limits rising from three minutes to ten. The two Australian templates split it by age instead: one uses beginners, twelve and under, fifteen and under and open, the other uses 6-9, 10-13, 14-18 and open. A fourth template, a US national fine-arts programme, runs a single participant class with a five-minute limit.

A round is short and orderly. The entrant is called, assembles or checks the instrument, plays, and leaves while the adjudicator writes a comment and a mark. The time limit covers the performance, so a movement with every repeat taken can overrun where a shorter, well-chosen piece finishes cleanly. It is an individual item, open to boys and girls together, with no language attached.

Organisers add the class because wind instruments are widely taught in schools and teachers’ studios, and one open class lets a coordinator put every woodwind pupil on a single scoring scale. It sits naturally beside the string, brass and piano solo classes in a music section.

Where Woodwind Solo is run

Woodwind Solo appears on four eTalenter templates: a British children and young people’s music, speech and drama eisteddfod, two Australian regional eisteddfods, and a US national fine-arts programme. The British template grades it by standard, the Australian ones by age, and the American one runs it as a single class. Solo wind classes are a familiar part of music festivals across the English-speaking world, but this page records only those four templates.

• United Kingdom
• Australia
• United States

Key facts

• Individual entry, open to boys and girls together; no language is set
• Any woodwind instrument can be offered; the class title names none, so check your organiser’s list for exclusions such as recorder, which some events class separately
• Graded by standard on the British template (prep or initial up to Grade 7 and above) and by age band on the Australian ones
• British time limits run 3, 4, 5, 6 and 10 minutes from the lowest tier to the highest; one Australian template sets 3, 5 and 10 minutes for its upper tiers; the US template allows 5 minutes
• Marked out of 100; the sources print no judging criteria for the class, so none are assumed here
• Different from the separate woodwind concerto, repertoire and duet classes some of these events also run

On eTalenter, Woodwind Solo is filed under Music and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 4 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.

Across the templates that use it, Woodwind Solo is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to 3–10 minutes where a limit is set.

What judges look at in Woodwind Solo

What a Woodwind Solo panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:

• Tone production: a steady, centred sound from the reed or embouchure, even across the instrument’s registers and at quiet and louder levels
• Breath control and phrasing: breaths placed so the musical line is not broken, and long notes held without wavering or fading early
• Intonation: playing in tune with the accompaniment and with itself, particularly in the extremes of the range where wind instruments drift
• Articulation and fingering: clean tonguing and accurate, even finger work, with fast passages even rather than rushed
• Musical shape: dynamics, style and a clear idea of the piece, so it sounds chosen rather than merely learnt
• Time discipline and stage manner: finishing inside the limit for the tier, with a calm entrance, a settled start and a tidy exit

Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Woodwind Solo under Scoring Setup, or start from the full instrumental music competition judging criteria guide.

How to prepare for Woodwind Solo

How entrants and their teachers usually get Woodwind Solo right on the day:

• Choose a piece that fits the tier’s time limit and your current standard, and time the whole performance including setting up and the walk-on
• Rehearse with the piano accompanist, if one is used, at least two or three times so entries, tempo and breath points are agreed
• Mark the breaths in the copy before you practise, then play the piece without the accompaniment so the phrasing holds by itself
• Warm up the instrument before you are called; cold wood and brass-lined bores play flat and reeds respond slowly in the first minutes
• Bring a spare reed or two (reed players), a cloth or swab, cork grease and a music stand if the venue does not supply one, plus a copy of the music if requested
• Run the piece standing for a listener at least twice, and fix the passages where nerves tighten the breath or the fingers

Frequently asked questions

Is Woodwind 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.

Which instruments can I enter?

The class title says only Woodwind Solo, so flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon and saxophone are the usual entries. Check your organiser’s own rules, because some events place recorder or brass in separate classes.

How long is a Woodwind Solo?

It depends on the tier. On the British template it runs from 3 minutes in the lowest tier to 10 minutes at Grade 7 and above. The Australian templates use 3, 5 and 10 minutes where a limit is set, and the US template allows 5.

Do I have to play an exam piece?

The templates do not require one. On the British template you enter the class for your current standard whatever your age, and the sources do not tie the piece to an exam list.

Is it judged individually or as a team?

It is an individual item: one player per entry, open to boys and girls together, and marked out of 100. Duets are a separate class.

Want the full judging picture? Read the full instrumental music competition judging criteria guide, or browse every music competition item.