X International Stasys Vainiūnas Competition for Pianists and Chamber Ensembles The International Stasys Vainiūnas Competition for Piano and Chamber Ensembles will take place from 20 to 28 March 2026 in Vilnius and Kaunas.

Rules of X International Stasys Vainiūnas Competition for Pianists and Chamber Ensembles

1. About the competition.

The competition will take place on 20-28 March, 2026.

PIANISTS' competition will be held in four stages:

• Pre-selection round (online);
• 1st and 2nd rounds will take place at the Great Hall of the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre (Central Building, Gedimino ave. 42, Vilnius);
• Final round will take place at the Kaunas State Philharmonic (E. Ožeškienės st. 12, Kaunas), together with the Kaunas Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Dainius Pavilionis.

CHAMBER ENSEMBLES' competition will be held in three stages:

• Pre-selection round (online);
• 1st round will take place at the Chamber Hall of the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre (Congress Hall/Building 2, Vilniaus st. 6-2);
• Final round will take place at the Chamber Hall of Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre (Congress Hall/ Building 2, Vilniaus st. 6-2).

The competition is open to pianists of all nationalities who were born in or after 1 January, 1996, and to chamber ensembles whose age average of all members combined is less than 35 years.

• The Competition is open to the following ensembles:

• The students of the jury members can take part in the competition, but those jury members are not allowed to vote for their students or to have an impact on the decisions of other jury members.

2. Registration.

• The registration to the competition will be open from June, 2025.
• Registration will be executed through the administration platform of the professional music competitions artistDB, and will also be accesible via official competition website: https://vainiunas.lt/en/a/contests.
• Participants should register online by 1 February, 2026.
• You will be able to change and update all the information you upload while registrating until the end date of the registration.

Deadlines and requirements:

• PRESELECTION ROUND VIDEO RECORDING: May be submitted, amended or modified until the end of the registration. The applicant are required to submit an active YoutTube link of the video recording of about 10-15 minutes, where he/she/they performs a free program. Pieces presented at these recordings may be repeated in the following rounds. Each piece must be recorded in its entirety, providing coherency without any editing or cutting, which is strictly prohibited, but different pieces may be recorded at different times and in different locations;
• COMPETITION PROGRAMME: Should be submitted during the registration process and can be modified and amended according to the  repertoire requirements of the competition by 20 February, 2026;
• REGISTRATION FEE: If you would like to use an early payment (50 %) discount, you should pay the registration fee by 31 August, 2025.

3. Program.

• Each participant has to prepare a programme in accordance with the competition repertoire. The selected programme should be stated in the application form.
• Applicants are required to submit a video recording on YouTube platform, providing a link with a public access (may not be included in the list), where the duration of the performance is about 10-15 minutes and he/she/they performs a free program.
• Programs of the pianists (soloists) must be performed by memory within all the competition rounds.
• Participants will be able to change their programs and performance order when logged in to their artistDB account until 20 February 2026.
• Participants will be required to perform their programs in the order of their own choice, finally made and provided in artistDB on 20 February 2026.
• The exact programme for chamber ensembles will be determined by the jury, whose decisions will be announced to the contestants before their performances.
• Jury members can stop an unprofessional performance.

4. Registration fee:

• For pianists - 100 Eur per person;
• For chamber ensembles - 150 Eur per ensemble.

• Early payment (50 %) discount will be given to those participants, who will register and pay the participation fee by 31 August, 2025.
• The fee is non-refundable. You will be able to pay by bank transfer or PayPal, more detailed information will be provided during the registration process.
• It is not necessary to pay the application fee before starting the registration, but if you would like to do so in advance, information on payment methods and bank details can be found at this link.

5. Selection of participants and evaluation.

• Received applications will be forwarded to the pre-selection committee.
• Candidates will be informed about their acceptance until 10 February, 2026.

Established numbers of participants:

• PIANISTS: at the 1st round - no more than 32; at the 2nd round - no more than 16.; at the final - no more than 6;
• CHAMBER ENSEMBLES: at the 1st round - no more than 25; at the final - no more than 9;
• The results of 1st and 2nd rounds will be announced briefly after they are over, and the results of the final will be announced during the awards ceremony;
• After the announcement of the results, those who did not make it to the next round are welcome to ask the jury for the opinion and the comments concerning their performances;
• The decisions of the jury are final and non-appealable. In the event of conflict, they take precedence over the rules presented before the competition.

6. Jury members.

7. Prizes and awards:

• The main prize fund of the competition is 35 000 Eur;
• More detailed information about possible prizes can be found at this link;
• Other concert prizes and awards, which have not been mentioned, may be set up until the end of the competition;
• According to the voting results and evaluation rules, the jury (or founder of the prize) will decide who and which prize will get;
• All the decisions of the jury (or founder of the prize), regarding prizes and awards, are final and non-appealable. In the event of conflict, they take precedence over the rules of prize distribution presented before the competition.

8. Obligations of participants.

• It is forbidden to have contact with any of the Jury members during the competition (unless the participant is a student of a Jury member).
• Chosen diploma holders and laureates of the competition are obliged and agree to take part in the final concerts of the competition without remuneration.
• All rounds and final concerts of the competition may be broadcasted on radio and television, recorded on audio, video or film tapes, CDs, and the video and audio recordings may be uploaded to the organisers' media platforms (Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, vainiunas.lt etc.) at no additional payment to the participants. The competition live streams will be available online.
• The organisers of the competition reserve a right to: publicise the participant's image in materials related to the contest (including articles and reviews in the social media); the recordings of the competition performances and the closing concerts made by any audio, video, digital or other means of recording; radio, online, TV broadcasts or other publicity of the participant's image, including commercial usage of such recordings, without any paymet to the participants.

9. Travel and accomodation.

• Neigher travel nor accommodation expenses will be covered by the organisers, so the travel to (and from) Vilnius and all the other costs of the stay during the competition are left to each competitor's personal responsibility.
• The organisers are not liable for any injuries, accidents or losses sustained by participants during the competition. Participants are advised to take out travel insurance in advance to cover possible medical expenses.
• The organisers will offer special hotel reservation prices and flexible cancellation conditions for all of the participants during their stay in Vilnius.
• The competition partner travel agency "Menų Turas" will appoint manager to help you with the travel, visa, accommodation, and other technical issues or special requests. If you will be in need of these services, please contact us via e-mail menuturas@lektuvu.lt.
• The organisers act as an intermediary for participants who need a visa to enter the Republic of Lithuania, but do not assume any financial obligations or responsibilities.
• The organisers of the competition do not accept any responsibility for the decisions of officials and authorities of Lithuania and/or outbound countries regarding travel and visa restrictions in any circumstances. The organisers will mediate and assist contestants in obtaining visas and permitions to enter the Republic of Lithuania, but the final decision on entry will be made by government authorities individully.

10. Competition schedule:

Registration to the competition will be open until 1 February, 2026;
Results of the pre-selection round will be announced by 10 February, 2026;
The participation order will be determined by the drawing of lots. This order will remain unchanged until the end of the competition;
Organisers will provide rehearsal facilities for all of the competition participants;
The auditions and the final concert are live, accesable for the audience and will be broadcasted in real-time.

2 April, 2026
The 117th birthday of the composer and pianist STASYS VAINIŪNAS

In the event of any conflict, the Lithuanian text of these rules is given precedence.
All the decisions of the jury take precedence over the rules presented before the competition.
The XI International Stasys Vainiūnas Competition for Piano and Chamber Ensembles is planned in 2030.