National Concerto Competition

The talents of tomorrow. Who will win?

See New Zealand’s best young musicians go head-to-head at the grand final of the 54th National Concerto Competition.

Feel the artistry come alive at the James Hay Theatre as three exceptional finalists each perform a solo concerto with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra.

The National Concerto Competition offers more than $15,000 in awards, with a careerlaunching $10,000 first prize.

Prestigious previous winners have included Michael Houstoun, Christopher Norton, Mark Menzies, Santiago Canon-Valencia, Ashley Brown and Amalia Hall.

This year’s impeccable finalists are:
April Ju, Christchurch (violin) playing Sibelius
Hyein Kim, Auckland (cello) playing Prokofiev
Catherine Kwak, Auckland (cello) playing Dvorak.

Background
In December 2020 the Preliminaries of the 54th National Concerto Competition (Instrumental) were held in The Piano, Christchurch. Over two days, audiences and judges Roger Brown (Cello NZSO), Robert Orr (Principal Oboe NZSO) and Malavika Gopal (First Violin NZSO) witnessed performances from 37 aspiring young musicians, with six advancing to the semis-finals.

The National Concerto Competition Grand Final is thrilled to return to the fully restored James Hay Theatre for the first time in 10 years. This promises to be a very special evening