isa26 Awards
Two awards are presented at isa26 in recognition of outstanding artistic achievement. The competitions give students of the isaMasterclasses the opportunity to present their interpretations to an audience and a panel of expert judges.
Each category carries a prize of €1,000. In justified cases, the jury may decide to divide a prize among several winners.
Results 2026
Exilarte Award 2026
First Prize
Duo Jiayi-April
Jiayi Chen Violin
April Siyue Zhang Piano
Work:
Arnold Schönberg- Phantasy for Violin with Accompaniment of the Piano op. 47
Second Prize
Naz İrem Türkmen Violin
Work:
Franz Waxman- Carmen-Fantasie
Third Prize
Aleksandra Bartuś Klarinette
Work:
Mieczysław Weinberg- Sonata for Clarinet and piano
Preis Wiener Musik 2026
First Prize
Cuore Piano Trio
Zuzanna Budzyńska Violin
Szymon Ogryzek Piano
Johanna Vocetková Violoncello
Work:
Ludwig van Beethoven- Klaviertrio c-Moll, op. 1,3
Second Prize
Duo Jiayi-April
Jiayi Chen Violin
April Siyue Zhan Piano
Work:
Franz Schubert – Sonate A-Dur for Violin and Piano „Grand Duo“ D 574 “Gran Duo”
Third Prize
Theresa Praxmarer Voice
Work:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – „Giunse al fin il momento / Deh vieni, non tardar“
Exilarte Award 2026
The Exilarte Award is dedicated to works by composers who were persecuted, displaced, or murdered during the Nazi regime. The award aims to encourage young musicians to engage artistically with suppressed musical heritage and with themes such as exile, memory, and cultural loss.
Applicants may submit a work by any composer affected by the Nazi regime – the selection is not limited to the Exilarte archive. However, the Exilarte archive is available as a valuable resource: information on estates and composers can be found at www.exilarte.org.
Preis Wiener Musik
The Preis Wiener Musik recognises outstanding interpretations of works connected to Vienna – from the Viennese Classical period to musical modernism and contemporary music.
Eligibility
The competitions are open to all instrumentalists, singers, and chamber music ensembles participating in isa26.
Applications for both categories are welcome. However, a different work must be submitted for each category.
One work of a maximum duration of 10 minutes may be submitted per category. The submitted work must be used for both the online pre-selection and the final round.
Application
Application period: June 17 – June 30 2026
Please send your application by email to isa-music@mdw.ac.at and include the following information:
- Competition category
- Composer (first and last name)
- Title of the work
- Movement (if applicable, e.g. 1st movement: Allegro)
- Link to video recording
Artistic quality of the interpretation is the primary criterion. The video does not need to be professionally produced.
Selection Process
An independent jury will select the finalists based on the submitted videos. Results will be announced no later than 10 days before the start of the course.
Final Rounds
Exilarte Award: 26 July 2026
Preis Wiener Musik: 28 July 2026
The final rounds will take place as public concerts as part of the isaFestival 2026.
For the final round, instrumentalists may perform with the accompanist of their isa masterclass.
The jury for the final rounds will be composed of faculty members from various isaMasterclasses.