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Concerto competitions for a variety of instruments are common and have special problems to overcome. I just judged one here at Arizona State. To win a competition of this type there are several things you need to keep in mind, presented below in no particular order.
1. Play a great piece. This can be a big challenge if you play one of the less popular solo instruments. Talk it over clearly with your teachers and mentors.
2. Memorize. You have to do it. Even if the rules don’t require memorization, really it is required if you want to win.
3. Play perfectly in tune with a great tone. This is easy to do on piano which is why it is hard to beat a pianist. I should add though that on string instruments my observation is that many judges will accept a somewhat out of tune performance—but, again, only on strings.
4. Don’t miss any notes. This makes it really tough for the brass players in particular where a chip is counted as a miss, while on strings a near miss can make it by, as noted above. Some judges will think that any miss is more related to your “inner game” than anything else.
5. Look great while you play. Dress appropriately, enter and exit well.
6. Play dynamics. Dynamics that would fill a hall well and match the orchestra.
7. Don’t sound boring. Partially this is a function of the work you are playing and a function of how you play it. Some works, no matter how beloved they might be on your instrument, really are when you get down to it a bit boring. If it is really all that you have to play be very sure to make the most of it.
In terms of myself, I did win twice in competitions of this general type at my undergraduate school, Emporia State University, in a competition similar to the ASU competition with multiple winners (F. Strauss mvt. 1 and Strauss I mvt. 3). I also was the highest rated brass player in the concerto competition at Eastman in 1986 (I read my work, Strauss 2, with the Rochester Philharmonic as a consolation prize) but that competition had as of that time only been won by a brass player a couple times ever, as they chose only one overall winner a year among all the instruments.
The situation is a little fairer if it is competition against instruments of the same family. I won the brass concerto competition at Indiana University as a Doctoral student with the Gliere Concerto, a piece I would love to play again. Pretty much every other solo competition I entered as a student was for horns only. Which is in a way ideal, the playing field is the most level, but reality is we have to compete against other instruments and do our best in a less than ideal situation.
