The National Concerto Competition is New Zealand’s most distinguished classical competition for talented musicians who are under the age of 25 years. The Competition provides an opportunity to perform, a place to celebrate talent, and a platform to launch national and international careers.
The finalists and adjudicators for the National Concerto Competition 2026. L - R: Mark Walton, Ryan Yeh, Wilma Smith, Lorna Zhang, Hayden Chiu, Donald Maurice. Photo: National Concerto Competition
The three finalists have the opportunity to perform their chosen work in a public performance, accompanied by an orchestra. Running since 1967, the Competition has provided a launch pad for numerous young Kiwis to establish national and international careers in performance music.
The 2026 Instrumental Finalists are:
Hayden Chiu (AK) - Violin Concerto No 2 in D minor, Op 22; Henryk Wieniawski
Ryan Yeh (AK) Variations on a Rococo Theme for Cello; Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Lorna Zhang (AK) Violin Concerto No 1 in A minor, Op 77; Dmitri Shostakovich
Highlights from the Finals of the National Concerto Competition 2026 will be broadcast at 7pm, Friday 10 April during Music Alive on RNZ Concert.
The adjudicators for the 2025/2026 National Concerto Competition are:
Mark Walton, a highly respected and popular figure in the Australian and New Zealand musical scene and widely acknowledged as a virtuoso clarinet and saxophone performer, and inspiring teacher.
Wilma Smith, who has had a long and celebrated orchestral career as Concertmaster of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and then the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Currently, Wilma is Second Violinist of the Flinders Quartet, curator/violinist of her own chamber music series, Wilma & Friends, and Musica Viva Australia’s Artistic Director of Competitions, overseeing the Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition and Strike A Chord, the Australian national chamber music competition for school-aged students.
Donald Maurice, an Emeritus Professor of Victoria University of Wellington.
The Final of the 2025/2026 National Concerto Competition is in the Douglas Lilburn Auditorium, Christchurch Town Hall on Saturday 7th March 2026 at 7.00 p.m., with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, and conductor James Judd.
Cellist Ryan Yeh, finalist in the 2026 National Concerto Competition. Photo: Supplied / Ryan Yeh
Violinist Lorna Zhang, finalist in the 2026 National Concerto Competition. Photo: Supplied / Lorna Zhang
Violinist Hayden Chiu, finalist in the 2026 National Concerto Competition. Photo: Supplied / Hayden Chiu
