The Mahler Competition 2026: no first prize awarded
Jury honours the finalists with one Second Prize and two Third Prizes, reaffirming the exceptionally high artistic standards of the international conducting competition Press Release: July 2026
● The jury of The Mahler Competition 2026 has decided not to award a First Prize. Instead, the Second Prize was awarded to Jakub Przybycień (31, Poland), while Sieva Borzak (29, Italy) and Simon Clausse (25, France) each received a Third Prize. With this decision, the internationally renowned jury reaffirmed the competition's uncompromising artistic standards.
"We are very happy to have awarded second prize in the latest edition of the
Mahler Competition to Jakub Przybycien, a wonderful young Polish colleague
who convinced the jury throughout the entire competition. The jury assessed
not only the final concert, but the whole process: his development, musicality,
potential, and ability to work with the orchestra. In this respect, second prize
was the appropriate recognition of an outstanding overall performance.”
– Jakub Hrůša, Chief Conductor of the Bamberg Symphony and Jury Member
Here's the final concert (all 4 and a half hours!):
● The Second Prize of The Mahler Competition 2026 has received €20,000, while the two Third Prizes each were awarded €10,000.
● The Audience Prize was also awarded to Jakub Przybycień, following an international online vote. Here's a documentary about this conductor, made by the International Conducting Competition Rotterdam:
● The additional Studio Recording Prize, offering a professional recording with BR-KLASSIK and the Bamberg Symphony, was awarded to Oliver Cope (27, United Kingdom).
● From 23 June to 3 July 2026, the eighth edition of The Mahler Competition took place in Bamberg, Germany.
● Organised by the Bamberg Symphony, the international conducting competition is regarded as one of the world's leading platforms for emerging conductors, bringing together outstanding young talent with one of Europe's foremost orchestras.
● The initial round comprised 24 conductors from 13 countries, including the United States, China, France, Poland, the United Kingdom and Italy, alongside participants from across Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. Competitors ranged in age from their early twenties to their mid-thirties and included 19 men and five women.
● The First Round took place from 23–26 June, followed by the Second Round on 27 and 29 June, with twelve remaining candidates. On 30 June, the jury selected three finalists from seven semi-finalists.
● At the heart of the competition was a demanding repertoire showcasing the candidates' stylistic versatility. All competitors began with excerpts from Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 5 alongside one of the selected Joseph Haydn symphonies. Subsequent rounds featured works by Béla Bartók, Arnold Schoenberg and Thomas Adès, spanning musical styles from the Classical period to contemporary repertoire. (A complete repertoire list can be found below.)
● The jury of The Mahler Competition 2026 brings together distinguished figures from the international music world representing artistic practice, management and higher education. Jury members include conductors Jakub Hrůša, John Storgårds, Pablo Heras-Casado, Sian Edwards and John Carewe, as well as composer and pianist Thomas Adès. They are joined by leading figures in music management and education, including Ara Guzelimian, Provost and Dean of The Juilliard School, and Martin Campbell-White, founder of the artists' management company Askonas Holt.
● A particularly significant role continues to be played by Marina Mahler, granddaughter of Gustav and Alma Mahler. As the competition's initiator, long-standing patron and honorary jury member, she has supported The Mahler Competition since its foundation and remains deeply committed to nurturing the next generation of conductors.
● The Mahler Competition was founded in 2004 by Marina Mahler and Ernest Fleischmann, together with the Bamberg Symphony and its then Chief Conductor Jonathan Nott. Since then, it has been held every three years.
● The list of previous prize winners reflects the competition's international prestige. The inaugural edition in 2004 was won by Gustavo Dudamel, followed by conductors including Lahav Shani, Kahchun Wong and Finnegan Downie Dear, all of whom have gone on to successful international careers as chief and guest conductors with leading orchestras. Most recently, Giuseppe Mengoli received the First Prize in 2023.
● The Mahler Competition has since established itself as a recognised launching pad for international conducting careers.
● This is only the second time in the competition's history that no First Prize has been awarded; the previous occasion was at the second edition in 2007.
● More than simply a competition, The Mahler Competition is conceived as an artistic laboratory. The intensive collaboration with the orchestra, direct feedback from the jury and significant international exposure make it a decisive milestone in the careers of young conductors.
● The complete competition can also be viewed via The Violin Channel and medici.tv.
The Mahler Competition 2026 – Repertoire
Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 5
Joseph Haydn Symphonies Nos. 86, 88 and 90
Béla Bartók Dance Suite
Arnold Schönberg Five Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 16 (1949 version)
Thomas Adès Three-piece Suite from Powder Her Face (Suite No. 1)
The Mahler Competition 2026 – Finalists
● Italian-Russian conductor Sieva Borzak (*2000) is rapidly establishing himself as one of the most compelling young conductors of his generation. Winner of the 2025 International Opera Conducting Competition at the Opéra Royal de Wallonie–Liège, he previously received First Prize at the Peter Maag International Conducting Competition (2023) and was among the six semifinalists of the 2024 Malko Competition. From 2021 to 2024, Borzak served as Conductor in Residence of the Roma Tre Orchestra, leading more than 70 symphonic and operatic performances. He also recorded the albums Elegy (2023) and French Elegy (2025) for Brilliant Classics. A graduate in orchestral conducting under Marcello Bufalini, Borzak has further developed his artistry through studies with Riccardo Muti, Daniele Gatti, and Daniel Oren. Recent highlights include his debuts with the RAI National Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra del Teatro Regio di Torino, the Orchestra della Toscana, and the Bodensee Philharmonie, as well as a new production of Mozart's Così fan tutte at the Opéra Royal de Wallonie–Liège and Bellini's I Puritani for the OperaLombardia circuit. His forthcoming engagements include debut appearances with the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and the Haydn Orchestra of Bolzano and Trento, alongside Rossini's Il viaggio a Reims at the Rossini Opera Festival.
● Winner of the 2025 Neeme Järvi Prize at the Gstaad Conducting Academy, French conductor Simon Clausse (*2000) has already appeared with leading ensembles such as the Orchestre National de Metz, Orchestre National de Lille, Orchestre National de Lyon, Orchestre National de Cannes, Orchestre Victor‐Hugo, the Gstaad Festival Orchestra, Orquestra do Algarve, the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de Picardie, Orchestre de Normandie and the Ensemble Intercontemporain. He has trained alongside renowned conductors including Mikko Franck, Jaap van Zweden, Mirga Gražinytė‐Tyla, Johannes Schlaefli, David Reiland, Domingo Hindoyan and Julien Leroy, and is currently pursuing his orchestral conducting studies at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris in Alain Altinoglu’s class. The current season marks a new milestone in his career, highlighted by his debut with the Musikkollegium Winterthur and his appointment as assistant conductor of the Orchestre Français des Jeunes.
● Polish conductor Jakub Przybycień's (*1995) impressive technique combined with an intense musical curiosity and focus has attracted much international attention in recent seasons. Jakub's 26/27 season includes his debut at Theater Nordhausen (Werther), as well as symphonic projects with Vienna Symphony, Arctic Philharmonic, Jenaer Philharmonic, Polish Radio and Borusan Philharmonic Orchestras. As Boston Symphony's new Assistant Conductor, he will assist Maestri Hrůša, Mälkki, Järvi and Nelsons in a variety of contrasting repertoire, including the Boston Symphony's forthcoming 2027 European tour. Whilst in Boston, Jakub also works with the dynamic chamber ensemble ‚Collage New Music' in a special programme of contemporary works. Recent highlights include Orquestra Sinfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya featuring soloist Kian Soltani to which he was immediately reinvited, Sinfonia Rotterdam, EUYO in Bolzano, Deutsche Philharmonie Merck with Beethoven Symphony no. 9, Arctic Philharmonic, Zielona Góra and Szczecin Philharmonic. Across the 25-26 season, Jakub also conducted performances of Daria Kuziak's 'Holos' in three different Polish cities across the season. He served as Assistant in Barcelona from 2023-25. Jakub has also worked with orchestras including London Symphony Orchestra, Balthasar-Neumann Ensembles, Luzerner Sinfonieorchester, Musikkollegium Winterthur, Orchestra 18c and Camerata Salzburg. An accomplished violinist, Jakub studied violin at the Academy of Arts in Bern and was a member of the European Union Youth Orchestra, where he worked with conductors including Manfred Honeck & Bernard Haitink. He studied conducting in Zurich with Prof. Johannes Schlaefli and Christoph-Mathias Mueller. Recipient of the 2021 Neeme Järvi Prize at the Gstaad Conducting Academy, he was also one of the six Designated winners in the 2025 Rotterdam International Conducting Competition and a finalist in the Karajan Young Conducting Award at the Salzburg Festival the same year. He is the most recent recipient of the prestigious Ernst von Schuch 'Dirigentenpreis'.