Dunedin Concerto Competition

13/07/2026

🏆 Over $22,000 in prizes await the next generation of outstanding young musicians!

The 2027 Dunedin Concerto Competition offers:

🥇 1st Prize – $10,000
🥈 2nd Prize – $5,000
🥉 3rd Prize – $3,000

Plus a range of special awards, made possible through the generosity of our prize sponsors.

👉 Swipe to see all the prizes.

Applications open 2 September 2026.

🔗 www.dunedinconcerto.com

12/07/2026

🎉 BREAKING NEWS! 🎻
We’re delighted to announce the adjudicators for the 2027 Dunedin Concerto Competition.

Our 2027 panel brings together three outstanding musicians whose international performing and teaching experience will help inspire and assess the next generation of young artists.

Visit our website to learn more about each adjudicator and read their full biographies:
🌐 www.dunedinconcerto.com
Applications open 2 September 2026. Now is the perfect time to choose your repertoire and start preparing!

10/07/2026

🎻 The countdown begins!
Applications for the 2027 Dunedin Concerto Competition open on 2 September.

If you’re a young classical musician from Otago or Southland, this could be your opportunity to perform with a full orchestra, compete for substantial prizes, and take the next step in your musical journey.

Think you’ve got what it takes? Check the eligibility criteria and start preparing your application now.

📅 Applications open: 2 September 2026
📅 Applications close: 2 December 2026

Visit the competition website for eligibility, rules and application details.

23/05/2026

Congratulations to the Dunedin Youth Orchestra on your awesome Mix Tape concert at Knox Church! Special congratulations to trombone soloist Ben Walker for a brilliant rendition of Grøndahl’s Trombone Concerto. Well done to everyone involved in a fantastic concert under the baton of David Burchell. The future of music in Dunedin is looking bright — can’t wait for the 2027 Dunedin Concerto Competition! 🎶👏

21/05/2026

Congratulations, Cameron! Cameron was a competitor in our 2019 competition and a finalist in our 2023 competition. We are so proud of you, Cameron!

Congratulations to Cameron Monteath, who we're announcing today as the recipient of The Piano Christopher's Classics Commission. Alongside our friends at The Piano, we're really looking forward to hearing what Cameron comes up with. His new work, 'Recollection', will take harmonic and sound-world influences from wind and piano works by Mozart and Walter Gieseking, which will be performed alongside Cameron's piece by some of Ōtautahi's finest wind players. ⁠
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Head to our website to learn all about Cameron and his plans for a new clarinet, bassoon and piano trio inspired by childhood memories of rural Canterbury! https://sounz.org.nz/news/cameron-monteath-piano

22/04/2026

🎻 The Dunedin Concerto Competition returns in 2027
If you’re a young musician, this is your stage — and planning starts now.

With increased prize money, expanded eligibility, and more flexible repertoire, the 2027 competition offers a major opportunity to perform with orchestra.

📄 Full rules + details: www.dunedinconcerto.com

06/11/2025

🎶 Congratulations to cellist Portia Bell, runner-up in our 2025 Dunedin Concerto Competition, for being awarded the Dunedin Symphony Scholarship for Orchestral Performance! 🎻👏

Portia is a first-year student at the School of Performing Arts, University of Otago, and we’re delighted to see her talent and dedication recognised in this way.

Dunedin Symphony Orchestra

03/11/2025

🎶 Celebrating Young Talent! 🌞 We attended the 2025 Sunshine Concert, presented by the Classical Performance students of the School of Performing Arts, University of Otago, yesterday. It was wonderful to see so many familiar faces — many of whom also took part in the 2025 Dunedin Concerto Competition.
✨ Congratulations to all the students, and in particular to Orla Dunlop (violin), Portia Bell (cello), and Roy Zhang (piano), who received the 2025 Sunshine Awards. We’re so proud that all three were competitors in this year’s Dunedin Concerto Competition! 👏🎻🎹

20/09/2025

✨ Congratulations to the Dunedin Youth Orchestra for their fantastic concert 'War and Peace' last night! It was heartening to see so many DYO players who also competed in the 2025 Dunedin Concerto Competition.

👏 Special congratulations to Callum Fotheringham for his exquisite oboe performance of Hummel’s 'Introduction, Theme and Variations, Op. 102'. Callum was also awarded the Best Woodwind Player Prize in the 2025 Concerto Competition.

🎶 Congratulations as well to Ben Walker and Dan Walker, recipients of the 2026 DYO Young Musicians Awards. Both were competitors in our 2025 Competition, with Ben also receiving the Best Brass Player Award at the Competition.

We’re so proud to see these young talents continue to shine! 🌟