2027 UTA Jazz Festival and Combo Competition

Festival Director:

Tim Ishii, Director of Jazz Studies (817) 272-1205

tishii@uta.edu  

Festival Coordinator:

Vincent Tran (817)-513-2629

vincent.tran3@uta.edu

The 2027 UTA Jazz Festival and Combo Competition will be taking place in Texas Hall on April 9th-10th. Registration is now open! The Registration deadline is March 1st!

April 9th: Middle School, 3A, 4A, Combo Contest

April 10th: 5A, 6A, Combo Competition

This year's featured guest artist is vocalist Kira Goidel.

Big Band Competition Rules:

Eligibility:  

• Bands must be composed of students from the entering school and be represented and sponsored by the school band director.  

• All students must be "eligible" to perform in accordance with state U.I.L. rules. 

• The director may only conduct, but not play, in the band.  

• An ensemble may enter for comments and feedback only, thereby relinquishing all rights to receive group awards (does not apply to solo awards/certificates).  

*A student may not perform in more than one ensemble without prior consent from the festival director. 

Competition:  

Classification will be based upon Texas U.I.L. enrollment criteria. All bands must perform/compete with other schools in the same class.  

• Middle School 
• 3A 
• 4A I & 4A II 
• Community College & Junior College Jazz Bands (non-competitive)
• Combos 
• 5A I & 5A II 
• 6A I & 6A II 
• Second Big Band Groups will compete in one class lower than their school's classification. If three or more second bands enter from the same classification, a new, separate classification will be formed. Schools are only allowed to bring MAX 4 GROUPS (2 Big Bands and 2 Combo) 
• Combo Competition is Open Class 
• If there are fewer than 3 bands in one classification, we reserve the right to move all bands in that class down a classification 

Time Limits:  

• The total time of all selections combined should NOT exceed 25 minutes. 

• Bands exceeding the allotted time may be penalized by 10 points by each competition judge. 

Music:  

• Each band may perform a maximum of 3 selections in various styles (ballad, swing, Latin, funk/rock, etc.), keeping in mind the 25-minute time limit. 

• A copy of the score for each selection is required for each judge. 

Feedback:  

• Following their performance, each band will receive a 20–25-minute clinic from a feedback clinician.   

• The feedback clinician's comments are for educational purposes only and have no bearing on the judges' scoring. 

Equipment:

• Warm-up rooms: UTA will provide Music stands, chairs, a keyboard, a bass amp, a guitar amp, and a drum kit.

• Stage: UTA will provide: Drum kit, bass amp, guitar amp, and a keyboard.

• Bands will need to provide their own cymbals, hi-hat clutch, bass drum pedal, and aux percussion/vibraphone.

• Feedback room: UTA will provide Music stands, chairs, a bass amp, a guitar amp, a drum kit, and a keyboard.

Adjudication: 

• Each band will receive written critiques in which division ratings will appear. 

• Awards are given by the judges' consensus. 

• Winners will be announced at the evening awards concert, and packets will be mailed shortly thereafter. 

Awards:  

• Awards will be presented to the first- and second-place winners in each class. If more than 5 bands enter one class, a third-place trophy will be awarded. 

• Outstanding student musicians will be recognized at the judges' discretion. 

• Each day, judges will select one student from each instrument category (woodwind, brass, rhythm section) to receive an Outstanding Student Musician award. Judges will also select an Outstanding Director award. 

• The judges will select one band to win the "Outstanding Band" Award. The recipient of the "Outstanding Band" award will be ineligible to compete the following year but will be invited back to perform at next year's Awards Concert. 

Awards Concert:  

• The UT Arlington Jazz Orchestra, last year's winning big band, and the winning jazz combo will perform at 7:30 PM at the evening awards concert in Texas Hall.   

• This year's UTA Jazz Festival guest artist will perform with the UT Arlington Jazz Orchestra during the evening awards concert. This year's artist is vocalist Kira Goidel.

• All participating groups are welcome to attend for free; all non-participants who would like to attend may purchase tickets at the door or online at utatickets.com.

ENTRY DEADLINE: Entries are limited by space availability and accepted on a first-come basis. Entries will be accepted on a space-availability basis after the deadline date. March 1st, 2027 ***Entry fees are non-refundable after the deadline date.  

SPECIAL NOTE: 

Entry reservations will not be held without receipt of the entry fee. If you prefer to guarantee your band a place, your personal check will be held until the deadline date or until official written notification of intended payment is received from your school's business office or principal verifying a check is forthcoming.