Young Artist Competition
The New England Philharmonic has held a Young Artist Competition each year since 1994. Each year’s winner performs with the New England Philharmonic in December. Historically, the YAC winner performs with the orchestra at its annual Family Concert at the Boston University Tsai Performance Center.
Applications for the 2025 Young Artist Competition are due by September 14, 2025
Eligibility
Each musician candidate must meet all of the following requirements:
Candidate shall not have reached their 18th birthday by the scheduled performance date.
Candidate must not have graduated from high school prior to the scheduled performance date.
Candidate must be a resident of New England.
Candidate must not have been a previous first place winner of NEP’s Young Artist Competition.
Candidate must be available for at least two rehearsals, dates to be determined, as well as the performance date of Sunday, December 14, 2025.
The Young Artist Competition is open to all orchestral instruments including piano, harp, saxophone, and percussion.
How to Take Part
To sign up for an audition, please complete the following steps:
Complete the registration form.
If you have any questions, please email the NEP General Manager.
Competition Details
Candidates should prepare and memorize a concerto, a movement from a concerto, or other piece for soloist with orchestra, not to exceed 15 minutes in length. It is unlikely that a candidate will be given the opportunity to perform the entire movement s/he has prepared. In some cases, judges will ask for specific sections from the prepared material.
Auditions will be adjudicated by a small panel composed of the Music Director and musician(s) from the orchestra. The panel will make a decision within a week following the competition, and the winner(s) will be announced at that time.
Candidates must provide their own accompanists.
Candidates must acquire approval from their teacher by providing their name and acknowledgment on the application form.
A $30 non-refundable application fee is required with the application. Requests for fee waivers are graciously considered.
All applications and fees need to be received by 9/15/25
Auditions will not be scheduled until the $30 application fee is received.
Audition times will be scheduled based on included availability to the best of our ability. Please note that we can not guarantee a specific audition time. Please include special requests in the application where space is provided.
Please subscribe to our mailing list to be notified of future competitions.
