Contestants area

Contestant Calendar        

Convention 2026
Competitor paperwork and information

 
Contest entry forms will be available soon. Scroll down for details of contest entry classes (competitor, singing for evaluation only, singing for joy).

Other Useful Resources for contestants
 

Quartet Prelims 2026

20th/21st June
Contest venue: Blue Coat School, Coventry

 

HQ Hotel: Holiday Inn, Hinckley Road, Coventry CV2 2HP


Contest Entry

The contest entry form for Quartet Prelims will be available soon. The entry deadline is Sunday 1st March, which is the date that will be the same each year going forward.

Contest entry is invalid if your quartet is not registered for that year. Make sure your quartet is registered with LABBS - which is an ANNUAL process! If you registered last year, it no longer counts... go to the members forms page to register.

Past Champions (QCs) of the Women's or Mixed Quartet contest (LABBS/BinH) please see the bottom of this page for more details about entry for nomination for international score, which is also required by the deadline although there is no participation in prelims.  The same quartet registration rules apply as above, since you need to be registered and also all be full members of LABBS in order to be eligible as a representative LABBS competitor at the BHS International contest, however QCs do not pay a registration fee.

Eligibility

Except where entering the Open Youth contest, in order to be eligible for entry the quartet must be registered with LABBS. For LABBS Women's Quartets, the annual quartet registration form must be submitted and fee paid by the contest entry closing date. All registered quartet members must be paid up full members of LABBS (see the contest rules for more details).

Mixed Quartets also need to register, via the form on the quartets page which includes individual "MQ" membership of LABBS, conferring the right to compete, only. Members of Mixed Quartets who think they may qualify for international need to upgrade their individual LABBS memberships to "full" in order to be eligible for nomination as a LABBS representative.

Information for Quartet contest participants - key points

  • All quartet contests are part of the same prelims draw. Depending on the number of entries, we may need to conduct the contest over 2 days.
  • Relevant full information and paperwork to be returned will be posted on this page, so please check back regularly to make sure you've done everything in good time before each round in the contest cycle.
  • The results and draw for quartet semi-finals will take place shortly after the close of the prelims contest.
  • Coaching sessions for Quartets with a place are likely to take place on Sunday 21st June, the contest timetable will be drawn to allow for this.

Other Information

  • We expect contestants to be familiar with the contest rules (note that an update will be published for the 2026 contest cycle by the end of February). 
  • Contestant classes include: (see prelims page for more details and eligibility criteria):
    • LABBS Women's Quartets competition, which serves as a qualifying round for convention
    • LABBS Mixed Quartets, in collaboration with BABS and SA Reg31, which serves as a qualifying round for convention
    • LABBS Novice Quartets (Awarded at Prelims)
    • LABBS Senior Quartets (Awarded at Prelims)
    • Open Youth Quartets (Awarded at Prelims)
  • Non-contestant classes:
    • Perform for unpublished score and evaluation only
    • Sing for the joy of performing to an audience (no score or eval given)

Contest Rules

Contest rules - these will be updated for the 2026 contest cycle by the end of February, please check to see if any changes affect you!

Contest & Judging Handbook - Including category descriptions detailing what judges are looking for. 

It is also recommended to check your songs are in line with the advice on the Good Taste page, provided by the Performance Category.

Contest Entry Classes

Choruses
Sing for Joy
Sing for Joy contestants will be included in the contest draw, and will perform two songs for ‘the joy of performing for the audience only.’ The judges will put down their pens, sit back, and enjoy your performance. The songs you perform need not be completely within the rules, but should be a capella. No score or evaluation will be given. There is a 20% discount on the contest entry fee for choruses opting to 'Sing for Joy'.

Sing for Evaluation
Evaluation only contestants will be included in the contest draw, but will not be shown on any scoresheet. An evaluation will be provided in the same manner as competing contestants. Songs need to be within the contest rules.

Quartets

Details as on the Prelims page, Quartets may also opt to Sing for Evaluation, or Sing for Joy as above, at Prelims, Plus:

Past gold medallists
Women’s and Mixed Quartets will be able to apply to sing for a score for nomination to BHS in 2026. These quartets will sing 4 songs in 2 rounds at Convention, but need you to register and enter contest at the same time as other contestants, so we can plan for Convention. You should have a reasonable expectation of achieving the qualifying score which is currently 78% but is subject to annual review by the BHS.

Other convention-related forms and useful information for LABBS members

Score histories - Look up what you scored in previous years and track your progress (or use to look for song ideas!).

Scoring summaries - Written by LABBS judges, a handy guide to skillsets usually experienced at each level and what you might need to work on and improve, to become better singers and performers and score higher in contest.

Trophies & Awards - A guide to the trophies and awards on offer in LABBS contests and the criteria for each.
 


Is this page missing some vital information? Let us know... email web@labbs.org.uk