The 1st Musikene International Competition for Young Accordionists, which will take place in Donostia/San Sebastián, Spain, from 30 April to 2 May 2027

The competition aims to promote young accordion talent internationally and to support the artistic development of the next generation of accordion performers between the ages of 14 and 17 with the aim of facilitating access to an official Bachelor’s degree in Music.

The award was created as a platform to promote emerging talent. It not only recognizes artistic excellence but also creates opportunities for learning and development within the artistic scene. The prizes awarded therefore offer the possibility of training and public performance through a concert tour.

The competition consists of one round with a free-choice program lasting between 15 and 25 minutes.
The program must include:
– At least one baroque work
– At least one original work for accordion
Failure to comply with these requirements may result in penalties or point deductions.
Contestants may perform from memory or with the score.
Participants may use any accordion system, including “Free Bass” or “Standard Bass”.

PRIZES

A bridge between talent and professional development, offering the next generation of accordionists the opportunity to showcase their artistry on an international stage.

The prizes include:

Concert tour:
A minimum of three concerts, with all expenses covered, providing young performers with the opportunity to reach new audiences and perform in prestigious venues.

Access to higher education:
A scholarship to study at Musikene – Higher School of Music of the Basque Country during the first academic year, with full tuition fees covered.

Participation in specialised courses and programmes:
Supporting artistic and technical development through an educational scholarship offered by Musikene to both the winner and their teacher. The scholarship provides one week of free attendance in all accordion-related subjects, including; Main instrument studies, Chamber music and ensemble performance, Accordion mechanics and maintenance, History of accordion repertoire, Traditional music
Sight-reading, Accordion pedagogy, and Transcription.

Sheet music collection: A selection of scores published by HAUSPOZ.

The first three prize winners will receive a trophy, and all participants will receive an official participation diploma.

The application deadline is 31 January 2027

1. Rules and regulations of the 1st Musikene International Competition for Young Accordionists – available here
2. Application Form – available here

The competition is organised by Miren Iñarga Echeverria, Iñaki Alberdi & Marko Ševarlić:

Since 2014, Miren Iñarga has been General and Academic Director of Musikene, High School of Music of the Basque Country, after having served there as Deputy Director for Teaching Planning and Director of the Keyboard Department. She has been a subject teacher in the accordion discipline at Musikene since 2004. She is a member of the Higher Council for Arts Education at the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports of Spain and of its Permanent Bureau, as well as of the Music Council of the Basque Government and the Artistic Council of the Youth Orchestra of Euskal Herria. She is part of the board of directors of the Spanish Association of Higher Centers for Art Education.

Professor Iñaki Alberdi was awarded first prizes at the Coupe Mondiale (Colmar, 1994), the International Accordionist and Bayanist Competition (Moscow, 1995) and the Music Competition for Youth (Valladolid, 1996). He was recently nominated for the Gramophon Editor’s Choice Award for his monographic record on Sofia Gubaidulina and has recorded for Stradivarius, Kairos, Verso, Et’Cetera, and the National Spanish Orchestra labels. One of Iñaki Alberdi’s constant focuses as an accordion player has been to provide the instrument with a repertoire that it lacked, given its recent incorporation into the world of academic concerts.

Marko Ševarlić is a professor at the University of Music in the Basque Country, “Musikene”, in Spain and has also worked as a teacher in Germany for many years. A prize winner of the prestigious Arrasate Hiria International Accordion Competition, he is dedicated to further developing the accordion repertoire and strengthening the instrument’s place within art music. Through collaborations with composers including Torres, Sánchez-Verdú, Fedele, Goebbels, Ginzel, Majkusiak, Genin, Bona, Babajanyan, and Onishi, he has contributed to the creation of dozens of world premieres and the expansion of contemporary accordion literature.

The competition is proudly supported by Musikene, Pigini Accordions, and Hauspoz (Hauspoz Euskal Herriko Akordeoi Elkartea – Basque Accordion Society).