Rules for the Trinity River Blues Society Regional Challenge 2017

Winners of the Blues Music competition will represent the Trinity River Blues Society (TRBS) at the International Blues Challenge (IBC) in Memphis, TN January 16-20, 2018. Go to blues.org/international-blues-challenge to find out more.

  1. At least one member of the act must be a Trinity River Blues Society member.
  2. Registration can be done on line or by mail, but must be submitted by July 22nd.
  3. There are two categories, band and solo/duo act.

Band – any act with three or more musicians. Vocalists are counted as musicians for this competition. Both electric and acoustic instruments are allowed.

Solo/Duo – any act with one or two musicians. Vocalists are counted as musicians for this competition. Both electric and acoustic instruments are allowed.

  1. There will be a $25 fee for all acts.
  2. All venues will be assigned randomly. The order of appearance of acts in each venue will also be random.
  3. An act cannot enter the International Blues Challenge (IBC) directly. Only a Blues Foundation Affiliate such as the Trinity River Blues Society may sponsor an act.
  4. An act is eligible if it has not ever received a Blues Music Award/ WC Handy nomination and has not participated in the IBC for three consecutive years.
  5. Preliminary competitions will be held on Sunday, August 6thfrom 3pm to 8pm andSunday, August 13th from 2pm to 7pm. The finals will be held on August 27th 2017 from 2pm -7pm. Acts will be randomly assigned to play on one of the preliminary dates. The top 2 winners of each preliminary competition will be invited to participate in the finals.
  6. The venue assignments and playing times will be announced Sunday, July 23. They will be posted on our web site and Facebook page. If you have any issues with the date call Gordon Robertson at 817-368-1604.
  7. The set for the preliminary competition will be 25 minutes. The set for the final competition will be 30 minutes. Points will be taken off your total score for going over the time allotted

Judging

Acts are judged by an independent group of qualified impartial judges who are blues professionals or aficionados with understanding and historical perspective of all blues forms. The judged categories are Talent, Vocal, Blues Content, Stage Presence and Originality.

  1. Blues Content: Everyone has his or her own interpretation of what is and is not Blues. Thus, any given panel of judges will include members with varying opinions of Blues, covering the spectrum of Blues whenever possible, from the most traditional to soul/blues and rock/blues. We are planning to have 6 judges per event. Bands should pick material carefully. At the Memphis semi-finals and finals, the judges are Blues professionals, not a bar crowd, and are likely to be unimpressed with song selections that are uninspired.
  2. Vocals: The acts’ vocal skills.
  3. Talent: The acts’ instrumental skills.
  4. Originality: Original work is encouraged. Cover tunes are allowed but playing the recorded rendition lick by lick is discouraged; will not be looked upon favorably by the judges; and will be reflected in scoring.
  5. Stage Presence: Over the years, the quality of talent has risen so dramatically that we no longer consider this an “amateur” competition. Most contestants have performed on stage enough to know that they are not simply playing music, but putting on a show. This category rates how “sellable” a band may be.

Scoring

  1. To reflect the relative importance of each category in the success of an act, an act’s score in each category is weighted. Raw scores for Blues Content is multiplied by four, Talent and Vocals by three and Originality and Stage Presence are multiplied by two. The total in each category represents the Weighted Score for that category. Total possible weighted score is 140. The weighted multipliers will be Blues content (4); talent and vocals (3); originality and stage presence (2).
  2. ActsMUSTcheck-in at the assigned venue 30 minutes before the start time. Acts are required to check in with the VENUE COORDINATOR (VC).Failing to check-in with the VC will result in point deductions.Make sure a representative is ALWAYS in the venue.If you are not ready to perform when the VC calls you, you could lose points or be disqualified regardless of the time slot you are given.
  3. An ACT will be penalized one point from its Total Weighted Score (see below) for each ten seconds that it runs overtime. There is no penalty for using less than the allotted time.
    At the TRBS’s discretion, a penalty for excessive time loading in and out may also be applied.
  4. Acts that advance to the finals will be announced within 1 hour of the end of the last actand posted on our web site and Facebook page the following day.
  5. The winners of the competition on the night of the finals will be announced within 1hour of the end of the last act. The names will also be posted the next day on our Facebook and web site.

An act will be penalized one point from its Total Weighted Score for each of the following:

  • Missing the application deadline or not completing online application completely or accurately by the deadline.
  • Each event the act neglects to check in with its Venue Coordinator at least 30 minutes before the first performance begins at the assigned venue.
  • Excessive time loading-in before and/or loading out after a competition performance
  • Each ten seconds that it runs overtime during a competition performance.
  • Showing up late or not being ready to perform on time.
  1. Final Round Structure
    Sets will be scored on the same criteria as other rounds. All Final Round judges will not have served on any previous round, so each band will be performing for a totally new set of ears.
  2. Staging and Equipment
    The Trinity River Blues Society will provide backline and sound. The setup on stage will include a drum kit with snare drum, amps, keyboards and mics. The backline in your venue will be based on your registration information. Drummers should bring their own cymbals and kick pedals. Harmonica players CAN (but are not required) bring their own harp amp. Keyboard playersare allowed(but are not required) tobring their own keyboards and keyboard amps, keyboard stands will be provided. Effects racks and other auxiliary equipment are permitted.Musicians must include on the registration form any additional or special equipment needed.

Competitors are prohibited from bringing their own GUITARamplifiers (harp amps and keyboard amps being the only exceptions). Please bring a DI (if you use one). Every effort will be made to provide suitable equipment.

  1. The TRBS reserves the right to use any contestant’s names, voices, pictures, visages and other likeness for advertising, publishing and promoting the competition or the TRBS.

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