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Official Contest Rules

1. Writer-performers must send Tidewater Arts Outreach (TAO) recordings of two original songs prior to the submission deadline. The submission must be made under the name of a solo singer-songwriter only, LIMIT ONE ENTRY (two songs) PER SONGWRITER PLEASE. The writer retains all rights to the songs.
2. All entrants shall be amateur performers living within a 100 mile radius of Norfolk, VA. For the purposes of this showcase, amateur performers are defined as artists who have not released commercially distributed, full-length recordings of their own material. Full-length releases are defined as those containing 6 or more.
3. Entrants must not be relatives, board members, or employees of TAO or any of the showcase day judges. Past winners of this showcase are not eligible to participate.
4. No Bands Please. Submissions must be performed by the writer alone, self-accompanied.
5. The total time for both songs must not exceed 8 minutes. The recording quality must be sufficient to adequately represent the contestant’s live performance. Audio components of the recordings may be processed (e.g. delay, reverb, etc) but not artificially created (e.g. harmonizers, computer sequencers,
6. A judging committee will select ten semifinalists based on committee consensus. If selected as a semifinalist, you will perform your choice of one of the two songs originally submitted for the festival audience and judges at the Sea Level Singer-Songwriter Emerging Artists Showcase Contest on the showcase date.
7. The semifinalist must perform one of the two songs originally submitted at the showcase venue on the day of the showcase- no other songs are permitted. The song’s performance must reflect the arrangement as submitted and the artist must self-accompany; no musicians or computer devices may augment the performance.
8. If chosen as one of three finalists, you will play the second song under the same restrictions as a semifinalist on your subsequent performance for the final judging.
9. To qualify for consideration, each entry will require the submission of four files through the showcase website at http://www.twartsoutreach.org/ssfl/contest/entry.html. Two MP3 files (between 128-192 kbits/s), each containing a song recording, and two text files (Adobe pdf or Word equivalent), each containing a song’s lyrics, title, and writer must be uploaded using the showcase website. A short biography must be typed into the text field of the website entry form and there is a donation payable through the showcase website. All entrants must apply through the showcase website using the instructions provided on the site.
10. Submission Deadline: Only the first 100 entries received between January 1, 2013 and midnight, March 15, 2013, will be accepted. Entries received after the deadline will be ineligible to compete and the donation returned. Once the number of entries reaches 100, we will post a note closing showcase entry on this website.
11. A panel of judges will choose one of the three finalists as the overall winner on the day of the showcase. The judge’s decision will be based on a consensus of the quality of the performances and the originality of the songs. The decision of the judges is final.
12. All performances will be supported by two microphones, a vocal mic and an instrument mic
13. The winner of the showcase will be celebrated as the best emerging singer/songwriter and will be invited to perform live on Public Radio’s Out of the Box with Paul Shugrue and Hunter Hughes’ Hunter at Sunrise. The winner will also be given a slot on the line-up for the next years' Sea Level Singer/Songwriter Festival.
14. Any rules that are misprinted or incompletely printed in other publications are not official and we take no responsibility for any disqualification resulting from not following the complete instructions listed above.
15. Proceeds from the event will be used to support Tidewater Arts Outreach.
16. By submitting your entry you acknowledge that you understand and agree with all of the rules of this showcase, and further that you will abide by any and all of the decisions made by TAO and/or the showcase judges. All decisions of TAO and/or or the showcase judges (specifically, but not exclusively, to include interpretation of the rules) are final in all regards.