Arrowtown entrepreneur Sir Michael Hill announced this week the launch of the seventh biennial competition, its eight-member judging jury and a multi-year partnership with the Harris Theatre in Chicago.
The jury features Austria's Christian Altenburger, Grammy-award winning violinist James Ehnes from Canada, Armenian American Ida Kavafian, Australia's Dene Golding, Anglo-Russian Dmitry Sitkovetsky, New Zealand String Quartet violinist Helene Pohl and 2005 competition winner Ning Feng, with chairman Dr Robin Congreve.
Sir Michael said he was delighted the collaboration between the contest and the Harris Theatre would see competition winners perform alongside artists from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Centre and other distinguished ensembles in concerts at the theatre's Millennium Park.
Applications for the 2013 competition are open until November 30. The contest is open to violinists of all nationalities born after June 1, 1985 and before June 1, 1995.
A panel of leading New Zealand and Australian violinists convene in person to select the 18 semifinalists who will compete live in Queenstown and Auckland in three rounds and in a final in June 2013. The semifinalists will be announced in December.
As well as a cash prize of $40,000, the contest winner tours with Chamber Music New Zealand and the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra.
Russian violinist Sergey Malov won the competition last year, and has just completed his tour.
