Beatrice Colombis wins Michael Hill International Violin Competition 2026
Australian violinist Beatrice Colombis has won first prize - worth NZ$40,000 - at the 2026 Michael Hill International Competition in New Zealand. The prize includes a recording contract with the Atoll label, as well as a concert tour with Chamber Music New Zealand and the Auckland Philharmonia. Beatrice Colombis has been studying with Suyeon Kang at the Eisler since the 2025/26 winter semester.
The third prize also went to an Eisler student: Jakow Pavlenko, a student in Prof. Antje Weithaas’s class, was additionally awarded the prize for the best performance in the chamber music round of the semifinals. Eisler student Xunye Zhang, who studies with Prof. Stephan Picard, was awarded 6th prize.
The 2026 Michael Hill International Violin Competition in Auckland, New Zealand, celebrated its 25th anniversary this year since its founding by the late Sir Michael Hill. The 2026 international jury included James Ehnes, VC Artists Geneva Lewis and Josef Špaček, Ed Dusinberre, Vera Tsu Weiling, Andrew Beer, and Natsuko Yoshimoto.
The Sheila Smith Prize, a three-year loan of a valuable Domenico Montagnana violin administered by Rare Violins of New York, went to Beatrice Colombis. She also received the Audience Award and the prize for the best performance of the set piece “Chasm” by Salina Fisher in the competition’s quartet final.
Beatrice Colombis is a graduate of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, where she studied with Professor Goetz Richter. For her master's degree, she moved to Berlin to study in Suyeon Kang's class.