24 violinists have been selected following a live pre-selection process held between April and May in five cities around the world
24 violinists have progressed to the final rounds of the 58th Premio Paganini International Violin Competition, which will be held in Genoa, Italy, from 14 to 26 October 2025.
107 violinists competed for a place at the pre-selection rounds, which were held in Genoa, Guangzhou, Seoul, New York and Berlin throughout April and May. 15 candidates were chosen from the pre-selection rounds via the panel, chaired by artistic director Nicola Bruzzo and comprised Alexandra Conunova, Andrea Obiso, Bin Huang, Min Kim, Timothy Chooi and Natalia Prishepenko.
Nine candidates gained direct access to the competition, bypassing the pre-selection stage, having recently won first, second, or third prizes in competitions affiliated with the World Federation of International Music Competitions (WFIMC).
’We listened to over 100 young violinists from around the world,’ commented Bruzzo. ’The technical and interpretive level we encountered this year was nothing short of extraordinary, perhaps the highest we’ve seen in a very long time. The selected candidates impressed us with an artistic maturity and musical depth rarely found at such a young age.
’Once again, the Paganini confirms its role as a global stage for discovering the next generation of great violinists.’
The 24 finalists will compete at the competition through a series of public rounds: the first [reliminary round (15–16 October) at Palazzo Tursi, the second preliminary round (18–19 October), the semifinal (22 October), and the final round (25 October), all taking place at Teatro Carlo Felice.
The 24 finalists are as follows, in alphabetical order of surname. Candidates marked (*) gained direct admission to the competition in Genoa, due to recent competition success:
1. ABOUZAHRA MARIAM* – Hungary / Egypt / Germany
2. ALEXANDER CALVIN – United States
3. CHUNG WONBEEN – South Korea
4. DRAGAN SARA* – Poland
5. FAN HIU SING – Hong Kong
6. FURUSAWA KAORI – Japan
7. HIRAI MIU – Japan
8. HOU YIYANG – China
9. JIN YEYEONG JENNY* – South Korea
10. KAKIUCHI EMIRI – Japan
11. KARLS LORENZ* – Austria
12. KIM HYUN SEO* – South Korea
13. KO SOHYUN – South Korea
14. LI JINZHU* – China
15. MA TIANYOU* – China
16. MAZZON ULISSE – Italy
17. MKRTICHIAN SERGEI – Russia
18. MILENKOVIC TEOFIL – Italy / Serbia
19. NAYA JAIME – Spain
20. SERINO YUKI – Italy / Japan
21. SHIM JAKE DONGYOUNG* – South Korea
22. YOSHIMOTO RINO* – Japan
23. ZHANG AOZHE – China
24. ZOU MENG – Singapore
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