NORTHERN IRELAND INTERNATIONAL ORGAN COMPETITION 2026 ANNOUNCES DATES AND JURY

The Northern Ireland International Organ Competition (NIIOC) will take place from Monday 17 August to Wednesday 19 August 2026 in Armagh. This year’s jury will be chaired by the South African organist Liesbeth Schlumberger, now based in France, where she is Professor Assistant in the organ department at the Conservatoire National Supérieur Musique et Danse in Lyon. She will be joined by Peter Holder, Organist of Christ Church, Oxford, and by David Hill, artistic director of the Bach Choir, London and of the Charles Wood Summer School, which runs concurrently with the organ competition.

The upper age limit for competitors is 21 on Monday 17 August. The Senior competition for players of post-Grade 8 standard and Intermediate category for players of Grades 6–8 standard take place in St Patrick’s Church of Ireland Cathedral, Armagh. 

The first prize in the Senior competition, supported by the John Pilling Trust, will be £4,000 plus, new for 2026, the Dunleath Scholarship of £1,000 and a $100 Leupold Foundation Gift Certificate for a one-time purchase on its website, from either Leupold Editions (new organ publications), The Leupold Archives, or Leupold Music (pre-owned organ music), together with several prestigious recital dates. The winner of the Bach Prize will receive £300 and a $100 Leupold Foundation Gift Certificate for a one-time purchase on its website of Bach organ works from Leupold Editions. The Dame Gillian Weir Medal will be awarded by the jury for the performance of a single work which they consider the most outstanding in the Senior category.

The first prize in the Intermediate competition, supported by the John Pilling Trust, will be £1,000 plus a $100 Leupold Foundation Gift Certificate for a one-time purchase on its website, from either Leupold Editions (new organ publications), The Leupold Archives, or Leupold Music (pre-owned organ music). New for 2026 will be an award of £200 for the standout performance of a single work in this category.

In a change to the competition arrangements, a Celebration Day for Junior and Adult Organists performing at a level of Grade 5 and under will be held in the autumn. 

Full details of the portfolio of prize recitals will be announced in mid-May.

Richard Yarr MBE DL, chair of the NIIOC Board, said: ‘We are very much looking forward to welcoming competitors and our distinguished jury members to Armagh this summer. NIIOC is firmly established as the go-to competition for young organists, and we are delighted that our roster of former winners includes so many players who have gone on to achieve great success in other competitions and in their professional careers. This year’s package of monetary prizes and recitals is better than ever.’

Entries for the competition are now open, and the deadline for submissions is Friday 10 July 2026 at 12 noon.