How to Choose Your Eisteddfod Category in Perth
Every year, parents ring up teachers with the same question: which category should we enter? The North of Perth Music Festival offers piano, strings, singing, instrumentals, and speech and drama, and the right choice makes an enormous difference to how much a participant gets out of the experience. Pick a category that suits where someone actually is right now, not where they hope to be by September, and the adjudicator feedback becomes genuinely useful rather than a polite list of things that went wrong.
Start with the discipline you already practise
The festival distributes over $11,000 in prizes, gold medallions, trophies and certificates, so it is tempting to look at which categories offer the biggest awards first. Resist that. The more useful first question is: in which discipline does this person already do structured practice? Adjudicators write personal reports on every performer, and those reports only have real value when the performer has enough foundation to act on the comments. A strong match between the student's current level and the chosen category is what makes that feedback land.
What does each category actually demand?
Understanding what each stream tests helps you match the entry to the person, not just the instrument sitting in the lounge room. The festival runs five distinct streams, and each one draws on a different set of skills and preparation habits.
- Piano: Students perform prepared solo repertoire for an adjudicator who assesses technique, interpretation and musical communication. This stream suits students who already perform pieces regularly for their teacher in formal lessons and are comfortable performing alone at a keyboard.
- Strings: Bowed string instruments form their own stream. Students need enough consistent, supervised practice to hold their pitch and bow control when nerves kick in, because a shaky week of practice shows up immediately in a live performance setting.
- Singing: The singing stream spans a broad range of experience levels. Students are assessed on tone, diction, pitch and presentation. Singers who have never worked with a vocal teacher often find the adjudicator feedback confronting; even a term of lessons before entry makes the comments far easier to apply.
- Instrumentals: This stream covers wind, brass, percussion and other instruments outside strings and piano. It is a practical entry point for students in school ensembles who want an individual performance goal to work towards.
- Speech and Drama: This stream covers recitation and drama performance. It rewards students who have done speech work or drama classes, not merely students who are naturally talkative or confident in conversation.
How experience level should guide your choice
A common mistake is entering a competitive class when a preparatory or beginner class suits the student better. There is no shame in a beginner class, and for a first time competitor it is often far more valuable. The point of those classes is exactly what the festival aims for: public performance experience and constructive adjudicator feedback, not a podium finish. Entering well above your current level usually means the student leaves deflated rather than motivated. Talk to your teacher about where the student's current repertoire and skills actually sit, and let that conversation drive the category choice rather than ambition alone.
Can I enter more than one category?
Yes, and many participants do. A student who sings and also plays an instrument can enter both relevant streams. The practical constraint is scheduling: auditions are held in September and Winners Concerts in October, so anyone entering multiple categories needs to confirm they can attend each required session. Check the schedule on the festival site before committing to multiple entries, because date clashes do happen.
For a first time entrant, one category is usually enough. The nerves of a first public performance with an adjudicator present are real, and managing one category well is better preparation for future years than rushing through two.
What teachers and studio coordinators should tell students before entry
If you are a music teacher or performing arts studio coordinator, the most useful thing you can do for a student entering for the first time is to run a mock performance before the entry form goes in. Not a polished recital: a realistic simulation of standing up, stating your name and piece, and performing to the end without stopping. Students who have never done this routinely freeze on the first note in a way that does not reflect their actual playing. One practice run in front of two or three people changes that.
It is also worth telling students that the adjudicator's written report is the most lasting outcome of the day. A trophy sits on a shelf; a specific note from a qualified adjudicator about where to direct the next three months of practice is genuinely actionable.
Speech and drama entries: a note for parents who aren't sure
Speech and drama is the category parents most often overlook for children who do not attend a dedicated drama school. That is a missed opportunity. Students from regular primary and secondary schools enter this stream every year. If your child has been in a school production, done any public speaking, or attends a drama class even casually, there is almost certainly a class in this stream suited to where they are.
What the adjudicator is looking for at entry level is not polished professional delivery; it is control of voice, clarity of expression and awareness of the audience. Those are skills worth developing regardless of whether performing arts is a long term pursuit, and the feedback from a qualified adjudicator in this stream is often the most specific and actionable a student receives.
The practical checklist before you submit your entry
Before the entry form goes in, run through these points:
- Confirm which discipline reflects the student's actual current practice routine.
- Look at the available classes and identify the level that matches where the student genuinely is now, not where they hope to be by September.
- Discuss with the student's teacher whether entering more than one category is realistic this year.
- Run at least one mock performance from start to finish without stopping, including walking into a room and introducing the piece.
- Note the September audition and October Winners Concert dates, and make sure every session is clear in the family calendar before submitting.
A well matched first entry is what most often brings participants back the following year. If you want to understand what the festival experience involves before committing, the Perth performing arts eisteddfod run in association with the City of Bayswater has full details on categories, prizes and how to enter.