The final rounds of the 2025 Tertis and Aronowitz International Viola Competitions concluded on 25 January at The Glasshouse International Centre for Music in Gateshead, UK.

The Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition was open to violists aged 19–30, and awarded its first prize of £5,000 to US violist Sam Rosenthal, along with the option of borrowing a fine viola for a year through the Beare’s International Violin Society. The second prize of £3,000 was won by French violist Nicolas Garrigues, and the third prize of £2,000 by Swedish violist Ami-Louise Johnsson. The £1,000 prize for the best performance of the commissioned work by Garth Knox was awarded to US violist Rebecca Benjamin, the £1,000 John White Award for the best performance of a work by a British composer to Chinese violist Wanxinyi Huang for her performance of the Viola Sonata by Arnold Bax, and the £250 Karl Doktor prize for the best performance of a work from the Austro-German tradition to US violist Stephen Savage for his performance of the Viola Sonata in E-flat by Brahms.

The Cecil Aronowitz International Viola Competition was open to violists up to the age of 18. The first prize went to Chinese violist Xunyu Zhou, receiving £5,000 and a Robert Shallock bow. The second prize of £3,000 was awarded to South Korean violist Jaeyun Han, along with the £1,000 prize for the best performance of the commissioned work by Kathy Tagg, and the third prize of £2,000 to US-Canadian violist Jackson Hill. All finalists also received Pirastro viola strings and rosin.

Rosenthal and Zhou each receive a recital at the Hartlepool Town Hall Theatre, in memory of Lionel Tertis in his hometown, and a shared recital at Wigmore Hall. One of the winners will also be selected to record a debut album with Champs Hill Records

Rosenthal is a graduate of the Juilliard School, where he is currently pursuing an Artist Diploma, and has studied with teachers including Jeffrey Irvine, Heidi Castleman, Hsin-Yun Huang, and Misha Amory. In addition to attending programmes such as the Cleveland Institute of Music’s Young Artist Program and the Perlman Music Program, Rosenthal has won prizes at the Primrose International Viola Competition, the Johansen International Competition, and the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition as part of the Razumovsky Quartet.

Sixteen year-old Zhou is currently pursuing her bachelor’s degree at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Frankfurt with Tabea Zimmermann, having previously studied with Liu Nian at the Affiliated Middle School of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. She has won the grand prizes at the Guiseppe Raciti International String Competition and the Valsesia International Youth Music Competition, was a semi-finalist in the Primrose International Viola Competition, and is a laureate of the Oskar Nedbal International Viola Competition.

The jury for the Tertis competition comprised Thomas Selditz, Robin Ireland, Lilli Maijala, George Caird, and Francoise Gneri, while the Aronowitz competition jury comprised Thomas Riebl, Li Sheng, Jo Cole, Garfield Jackson, and Ásdís Valdimarsdóttir.

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Here is a taste of the 2014 event