APPLICATIONS FOR 2026 MICHAEL HILL INTERNATIONAL VIOLIN COMPETITION OPEN 1 SEPTEMBER NZST
New Zealand’s lauded global music competition celebrates 25 years in 2026
Sixteen of the world’s best 18 to 26-year-old violinists will compete in Queenstown and Auckland for a NZ$100,000 prize pool
New Zealand’s globally-regarded Michael Hill International Violin Competition, generously supported by the Hill Family Foundation for Arts and Music, returns to Queenstown and Auckland from 29 May to 6 June 2026.
2026 marks 25 years since the late Sir Michael Hill had a vision to create a competition that would launch the careers of young violinists. In the now triennial event, widely considered a ‘bucket list’ competition, 16 of the very best 18 to 26-year-old violinists from across the world battle it out in New Zealand.
“The ‘Michael Hill’ has been a platform for some of the world’s most successful contemporary soloists, teachers, concertmasters and ensemble players in the world,” says Executive Director, Anne Rodda. “The Competition takes very seriously the responsibility of setting the world’s best violinists on their career paths. As such, judges consider all aspects of the competitor’s presentation – technique, musical knowledge and maturity, as well as their audience engagement, and communication skills.
“This year’s competition – also a quarter-century celebration – will be particularly poignant with the recent passing of our founder, Sir Michael Hill. We will certainly miss seeing him in the front row of every performance, but will be taking the opportunity to honour him and his vision,” Rodda says.
Making the initial selection of 16 quarter-finalists are Andrew Beer (Concertmaster, Auckland Philharmonia), Amalia Hall (Violinist, NZTrio), Nikki Chooi (2013 winner and Concertmaster, Buffalo Philharmonic and Santa Fe Opera Orchestra), Mark Menzies (Professor of Music at University of Canterbury, New Zealand) and Vesa-Matti Leppänen (Concertmaster, NZSO). The selection panel, which convenes in person to judge the selection rounds, hears only applicant recordings for the first two rounds to ensure the selection process is non-biased and inclusive. Video analysis takes place in the third and final selection round only.
The international judging panel for the 2026 competition is a line-up of titans of the violin world – in-demand soloists James Ehnes (Canada/USA), Geneva Lewis (NZ/USA) and Josef Špaček (Czech Republic, also winner of the 2009 Competition), leading pedagogue Vera Tsu Weiling (Adjunct Professor at the School of Music, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen), first violinist for Takács Quartet, Ed Dusinberre (UK/USA), Concertmaster for the Auckland Philharmonia, Andrew Beer (Canada/NZ), and concertmaster for the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Natsuko Yoshimoto (Australia).
Following Queenstown’s quarter-finals, six competitors are then selected by the esteemed panel of international judges to move on to the semi-finals in Auckland. Their goal is to make it into the top three, to perform in the prestigious grand final with the Auckland Philharmonia at Auckland’s Town Hall on 6 June 2026.
The winner of the Michael Hill International Violin Competition receives NZ$40,000, a recording contract with the Atoll label and a multi-centre Winner’s Tour with Chamber Music New Zealand. There are a number of other prizes, too, with the total prize pool over NZ$100,000. This includes the coveted Smith Prize – a three-year loan of a Domenico Montagnana violin facilitated by Rare Violins of New York.
Entries open 9am Monday 1 September 2025 and are due no later than 5.00pm, 20 November NZDT. Keen competitors need to visit www.violincompetition.co.nz for all application information and links.
For more information, please visit www.violincompetition.co.nz or the Competition’s Facebook page.
For further media information, images and interviews, please contact Siobhan Waterhouse, Media and Communications, on +44 (0)7 884 598 345 or siobhan@siobhanwaterhouse.nz (UK-based).
About the Michael Hill International Violin Competition
Beautiful music in the most beautiful place on earth…
On a triennial basis, 16 outstanding young violinists, who are selected by audition, travel to Queenstown and Auckland, New Zealand, where they are wholeheartedly embraced by local audiences who journey with them through the highs and lows that come with a competition of this calibre. The “Michael Hill” remains a favourite on the competition circuit, not just for its prestigious prize package, esteemed judging panel and career-launching opportunities, but also for the warmth and heart that greets every competitor from the moment they touch down in Aotearoa New Zealand. For the rest of their careers, competitors remain connected to this small, creative country in the heart of the South Pacific.
Previous winners are Joseph Lin (2001), Natalia Lomeiko (2003), Ning Feng (2005), Bella Hristova (2007), Josef Špaček (2009), Sergey Malov (2011), Nikki Chooi (2013), Suyeon Kang (2015), Ioana Cristina Goicea (2017), Anna Do Gyung Im (2019) and Yeyeong Jin (2023).
