We are delighted to announce the selection of organists from around the world to take part in the 32nd St Albans International Organ Competitions – celebrating 60 years.
Competitors were selected by the pre-selection jury, who in a fully anonymised process considered a large number of excellent submissions from organists of many nationalities, all born after 14 July 1990.
The sixteen Interpretation competitors will be:
Julian Emanuel Becker🇩🇪
Ben Bloor🇬🇧
Jerrick Cavagnaro🇺🇸
Quentin du Verdier🇫🇷
Samuel Gaskin🇺🇸
Kasumi Hamano🇯🇵
Himawari Honda🇯🇵
David Kiefer🇩🇪
Johannes Krahl🇩🇪
Hyelin Lee🇰🇷
Charles Maxtone-Smith🇬🇧
Magdalena Moser🇦🇹
Sunkyung Noh🇰🇷
Joshua Simões🇬🇧/🇵🇹
Lars-Simon Sokola🇩🇪
Alden Wright🇺🇸
The Interpretation Competition will include a new commissioned work by the celebrated British composer Judith Weir CBE, Master of the King’s Music.
The five Improvisation competitors will be:
Julian Emanuel Becker🇩🇪
Samuel Gaskin🇺🇸
Bernhard Hauk🇩🇪
Niklas Jahn🇩🇪
Jakob Schönborn-Dietz🇩🇪
The Improvisation Competition (Tournemire Prize) has been substantially redesigned for 2023 and will provide a fascinating test for all creative and fast-thinking improvising organists.
Prize money for 2023 has been significantly increased since the 2019 Competitions. The First Prize and Gold Medal (sponsored by Williams Church Music Trust) will be £12,000 and the Tournemire Prize for Improvisation will be £8,000, with both also being rewarded with recital engagements.
Further prizes are Second Prize (sponsored by Amphion Fund) of £5,000, the Peter Hurford Bach Prize (sponsored by Mrs Elisabeth Wells) of £1,000, the Audience Prize (sponsored by Mr Andrei Lussmann) of £1,000, the Judith Weir Prize (sponsored by Martin Owen) of £1,000 and the Douglas May Award of £800.
