National Piano & Violin Competition Returns with New Audience Prize Category
For the first time, the competition introduces public voting to crown winners of its new Audience Prize.
Singapore, 5 February 2025 — The 15th edition of the National Piano & Violin Competition (NPVC) returns to the Victoria Concert Hall this year. Funded by the National Arts Council and organised by the Singapore Symphony Group, the biennial event is Singapore’s oldest and most anticipated music competition that celebrates musical excellence and identifies young classical music talents in the nation.
Held over 11 days from 20 to 30 November 2025, the NPVC comprises 24 live performance rounds from four categories of piano and violin, before concluding with a closed-door Prize Presentation Ceremony on the final evening.
The performances of the entrants will be evaluated by an adjudicating panel of six world-class musicians: Ashley Wass, Noriko Ogawa, and Ran Jia for piano, and Kaoru Kondo, Mira Wang and Erik Heide for violin. The top three winners in each category will stand to receive trophies, certificates and cash prizes. Additionally, one pianist and one violinist among the finalists will be awarded the new Audience Prize, determined by public voting. Further details of the voting process will be announced on NPVC’s official platforms.
Participants from the Senior and Artist categories for both piano and violin will perform set pieces composed by award-winning Singaporean composer Koh Cheng Jin, whose works have been featured in the Singapore International Festival of Arts, Singapore International Piano Festival, and 2024’s Asia Orchestra Week in Kyoto, Japan. In addition, Artist category finalists will be performing alongside a full orchestra.
Since its launch in 1997, the NPVC has discovered some of Singapore’s finest musicians such as SSO’s President’s Young Performers and pianists Adrian Tang and Wang Huang Hao Jia, along with international violin sensation Chloe Chua who was appointed the youngest SSO Artist-In-Residence for the 2022/23 and 2023/24 concert seasons.
Admission to most of the live competition rounds is free for the public to enjoy. The Artist Finals for both piano and violin on 29 & 30 November are ticketed at $10 each. All performances, along with the Prize Presentation Ceremony, will also be livestreamed on Singapore Symphony’s YouTube channel and remain online for viewing. Dates to purchase tickets will be announced on NPVC’s official platforms.
Registration for the NPVC 2025 opens on 5 May at 10am, and will close on 14 July at 5pm. For more information, please visit www.sso.org.sg/npvc.
APPENDIX
About the National Piano and Violin Competition
1) Started in 1997 by the National Arts Council, the biennial competition helps identify and develop young musical talents by providing them with the opportunity to perform before established local and international adjudicators. It also aims to improve musical standards and performance levels of piano and violin in Singapore. The 2025 competition will mark its 15th edition and is organised by the Singapore Symphony Group.
2) The competition is open to pianists and violinists ages 25 years and below. Registration opens on Monday, 5 May 2025, at 10am and closes on Monday, 14 July 2025, at 5pm.
Categories
1) The competition consists of Piano solo and Violin solo categories. Participants will compete in the Quarter-Final, Semi-Final and Final rounds in the following age categories:
(i) Artist — 25 years and below (born in or after 2000)
(ii) Senior — 21 years and below (born in or after 2004)
(iii) Intermediate — 15 years and below (born in or after 2010)
(iv) Junior — 11 years and below (born in or after 2014)
2) The Artist category is open to Singapore citizens, Permanent Residents (PRs) and foreigners studying, working or residing in Singapore. The Senior, Intermediate and Junior categories are open to Singapore citizens and PRs only.
3) The NPVC Orchestra, made up of professional musicians including SSO musicians, will return to the Finals of the Artist Category to provide participants with a chance to play alongside an orchestra.
Schedule of Competition Sessions
1) All competition rounds are held at the Victoria Concert Hall, with selected performances open to the public. Ticketing information will be released on the NPVC’s official platforms.
2) All competition rounds will be livestreamed for free on Singapore Symphony’s YouTube channel and remain online afterward.
20 – 29 Nov
Piano Competition
23 – 30 Nov
Violin Competition
28 & 29 Nov
Piano & Violin Masterclasses
29 & 30 Nov
Piano & Violin Artist Finals
30 Nov
Prize Presentation Ceremony (closed-door)
Awards
1) The top three winners will receive trophies, certificates, and cash prizes.
Artist
- 1st - $5,000
- 2nd - $3,500
- 3rd - $2,000
Senior
- 1st - $2,500
- 2nd - $2,000
- 3rd - $1,500
Intermediate
- 1st - $1,800
- 2nd - $1,400
- 3rd - $1,000
Junior
- 1st - $1,200
- 2nd - $1,000
- 3rd - $800
2) Honourable Mention
Finalists who are not among the top three winners in each category may be selected by the adjudicators to receive the Honourable Mention award, which includes a cash prize of $500 each.
3) Audience Prize
The new Audience Prize category has been introduced. Determined by public voting, one Pianist and one Violinist from across all categories (who have progressed to the Finals) will be awarded the Audience Prize, which includes a cash prize of $800 each.
Adjudicators
1) The Adjudicating Panel will be made up of international musicians. A panel of three adjudicators will judge each instrument category for all stages of the competition. They are:
Violin
- Kaoru Kondo
- Mira Wang
- Erik Heide
Piano
- Ashley Wass
- Noriko Ogawa
- Ran Jia
ABOUT THE SINGAPORE SYMPHONY GROUP
The Singapore Symphony Group manages the flagship Singapore Symphony Orchestra, the Singapore Symphony Choruses, the Singapore National Youth Orchestra, the SSO Chamber & Organ series, the Singapore International Piano Festival and the biennial National Piano & Violin Competition. The Group also represents the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) in Singapore.
The mission of the Group is to create memorable shared experiences with music. Through the SSO and its affiliated performing groups, we spread the love for music, nurture talent and enrich our diverse communities.
For media enquiries, please contact:
Elliot Lim
Senior Corporate Communications Executive, Singapore Symphony Group
E: elliot.lim@sso.org.sg