Prizewinners Announced at the 23rd Iturbi Piano Competition

Pianist Nabeel Hayek received First Prize of €30,000, as well as a CD recording and a concert tour

The 23rd edition of Spain's Iturbi International Piano Competition, which was hosted at the Palau de la Música de València, has recently come to a close. The competition is held every second year and offers nearly €80,000 in total prize money.

At the 2025 edition, First Prize went to Nabeel Hayek, a Christian-Arab citizen of Israel. He receives €30,000 in prize money from the Diputació de València, as well as the opportunity to make a CD recording and undertake a concert tour.

Aged just 23, Hayek has already made solo appearances with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, Israel Chamber Orchestra, Israel Symphony Orchestra – Rishon Lezion, and the Galilee Chamber Orchestra. He has also appeared at the Aspen Music Festival, the Lieven Piano Foundation in Vienna, and the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Society.

A graduate of the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel Aviv University, where he studied with Arie Vardi and Asaf Zohar, Hayek is now studying with Julian Martin at The Juilliard School.

Second Prize of €20,000 and a concert tour went to Uladzislau Khandohi of Belarus, while Third Prize of €10,000 went to Ruggiero Fiorella of Italy. Emin Kiourktchian, Eugenia Sánchez Durán, and Yungyung Guo received prizes for reaching the final round.

In 2025, the jury comprised Joaquín Achúcarro (chair), Catherine d'Argoubet, Nikolai Demidenko, Janina Fialkowska, Ana Guijarro, Paul Hughes, Jorge Luis Prats, Nicola Sani, and Didier Schnorhk.