Organizers have announced that applications for all six of its pre-selection competitions are officially open

Open to participants of all ages and nationalities, the Classic Violin Olympus International Competition will host six competitions throughout the course of 2024.

The first contest to be held will be the Tokyo Classic Violin Competition, at the Tokyo University of the Arts from March 17-21, 2024. This will be followed by the Vienna Competition at the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna from April 1-5, before further competitions at New York’s Manhattan School of Music between May 27-31, and London’s Royal College from August 26-30.

Two final contests in September will round up the pre-selection stage, with the Paris Classic Violin Competition coming to the École normale supérieure from September 9-13, and the Tel Aviv Classic Violin Competition taking place at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music from September 22-26.

Each of these competitions will carry with them a total prize fund of €35,000 as well as a special invitation to the two top-ranked competitors to travel to Dubai in April 2025 and participate in the culminating Classic Violin Olympus itself, with all expenses paid.

With Artistic Director Pavel Vernikov and President Konstantin Ishkhanov, the competition will invite 12 talented violinists to this Grand Finale in Dubai.

The Classic Violin Olympus Grand Finale will consist of two rounds of performances alongside a symphonic orchestra. The First Prize winner will be awarded €200,000 out of a total prize fund of €310,000. In addition to the monetary prizes, the 23-member jury board, which will be exclusively made up of preeminent conductors and directors of acclaimed orchestras, festivals, and concert series, shall each offer a number of finalists the unique opportunity of performing live on stage at one of their upcoming concerts.

To register, applicants must visit the website of their desired contest, fill in the registration form, and submit their video application for the audition stage. 

Moreover, in addition to its unprecedented international scope, the decision has also been made to remove all age restrictions from the registration criteria. This decision has been motivated by an overwhelming interest from violinists all over the world, as well as the desire to ensure that Classic Violin Olympus will discover the best violinists of our time, irrespective of all other factors.

For more information about Classic Violin Olympus and links to each of the pre-selection contests, please visit the official website here.