Switzerland’s International Tibor Junior Violin Competition Names 2024 Candidates

Open to musicians aged 14 to 17, this year’s competition will be held in August 2024

The International Tibor Junior Violin Competition, which is run by the Tibor Varga International Violin Competition, will take place in Sion, Switzerland, from August 19–24, 2024. 

In total, 14 candidates have been chosen for the opportunity to perform with orchestra at each stage of the competition. 

Three finalists will perform at the Théâtre de Valère alongside mezzo-soprano and jury member Marie-Claude Chappuis, and the South Czech Philharmonic conducted by Jan Talich.

Candidates selected for the Tibor Junior Competition 2024 include:

• Emma Bischoff, 17, Switzerland
• Diana Chausheva, 16, Bulgaria
• Corina Deng, 16, Canada
• Natalia Dragan, 15, Poland 
• Joan Esteve Melero, 17 Spain
• Elina He, 15, China
• Neal Kotamarty Eisfeld, 15, USA
• Norimi Lemaire, 17, France 
• Juan José Peña-Aguirre, 14, Colombia
• Elizabeth (Poppy) Song, 14, USA
• Viktor Vasilev, 17, Bulgaria
• Jinan Laurentia Woo, 16, South Korea
• Qingyuan Yang, 14, China/United Kingdom
• Mingnan Yue, 17, China

First Prize is awarded with 5,000 CHF, and Second and Third Prize are worth 2,000 CHF and 1,000 CHF, respectively. 

Special prizes at 500 CHF each include those for the best interpretation of the commissioned work, and the Audience Prize. Other awards include the one-year loan of a Nicola Gagliano c.1735 violin from Atelier Schilbach.

The 2024 jury will comprise Pavel Vernikov (President), Marie-Claude Chappuis, Mario Hossen, Fumiaki Miura, and Eduard Wulfson.