The stakes are high: top prize is $40,000, a recording session for a CD and a winner's tour next year.
But first the violinists must impress the panel of six international judges, chaired by New Zealander Dr Robin Congreve, in the Queenstown Memorial Hall.
Playing her own 143-year-old violin, Arianna Warsaw-Fan (24), of New York, was all set to perform Bach's Adagio and Fugue from Sonata No 1 in G minor and Mozart's Allegro from Concerto No 3 in G major KV 216, in the first round of the semifinal tomorrow.
"This is one of the competitions we all know about at Juilliard [school] and all the conservatories, and definitely one we all apply for," Miss Warsaw-Fan said yesterday.
Nadir Khashimov (20), of Philadelphia, said the past two winners of the competition studied at his school, the Curtis Institute of Music.
"I'm very excited: the atmosphere, the people, my host family. I'm looking forward to it; I can't wait."
The finalists from Russia, the United States, Canada, Germany, China, Uzbekistan, Korea and Poland compete in Queenstown in two rounds of competition, spread over the weekend and Monday.
Six violinists will compete in the third round, in Auckland, on Wednesday and Thursday, and then the top three will vie for glory in the final round, with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, on Saturday, June 11.
This year's competition also features an Insiders' Guide hosted by New Zealand violinist Justine Cormack (NZTrio), in Queenstown, which aims to provide insights into the contest for the audience.
