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Welcome to the official home page of the Manx Music Festival (The Manx Competitive Music, Speech and Dance Festival to give it its full name) or "The Guild" as it is still affectionately known on the Island. The derivation of that name can be found in the information section.
The Isle of Man has very strong musical traditions and since 1892, when it was formed, The Guild, through its competitive nature, has provided motivation to improve, initially for choirs, followed by solo singing and later to a wide range of music, spoken word and dance. The climax of the Festival occurs on the final Saturday evening with the competition for the Cleveland, Ohio (USA) Manx Society's Gold Medal, donated annually by this organisation and competed for by the winners of six Special Solo classes held during the week. The Festival is a member of the British and International Federation of Festivals.
The Festival is held annually at the end of April in the recently refurbished Villa Marina on Douglas promenade. Entries close mid-February. To see the range and size of competitions check out our results section.
Thank you for visiting If you have any questions, suggestions or comments please use the Contact facility.
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2010 Syllabus
The Festival Committee has agreed the following amendments to the 2010 Syllabus.
Class S13 - Victorian or Edwardian (in style of) Own Choice of song up to 1920. Dress optional. Time Limit five minutes.
Class S16 Popular Standard Song (Adult) - 1921 to 1979. Own choice of song from 1921 to 1979 excluding songs entered in other classes. Only one accompanying instrument permitted. Amplification not allowed.
The changes are to the dates specified for the two classes.
posted on: 24/11/2009
Syllabus download
The Syllabus for the 2010 Festival from 24th April to 1st May is now in local newsagents. Please click here to download the pdf.
posted on: 30/10/2009
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