October 28, 2024
For Immediate Release
Contact: Susan Barbash, Competition Coordinator
516-639-8575 info@jsbachcompetition.org
Re: 2025 Lillian and Maurice Barbash J.S. Bach Competition
The application for the seventh annual Lillian and Maurice Barbash J.S. Bach Competition will be posted on Saturday February 1, 2025. Submissions will open on Saturday March 1, 2025 and the submission deadline is midnight, Sunday, June 15, 2025. There is a $50 submission fee. The competition is for string players ages 16-30, performing works (Partitas, Sonatas, Suites) by J.S. Bach for unaccompanied, bowed string instruments. Modern and baroque instruments are eligible.
Finalists and Alternates will be announced on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. The Finals will be held at Stony Brook University’s Staller Center Recital Hall at 1:00pm on Thursday, October 16, 2025, and will be livestreamed on The Violin Channel.
Note: Finalists have the option of performing any piece by J.S. Bach for unaccompanied bowed string instrument (Partitas, Sonatas, Suites) at the Finals. The piece performed at the Finals does not have to be the same piece performed for the application. The finalist must advise the Competition Coordinator which piece they will perform at the Finals within 7 days of notification that they have been selected as a finalist.
Cash Prizes and Performing Engagements
Grand Prize – $10,000
Second Place Prize – $2,500
Performing Engagements:
The Grand Prize Winner will be the featured soloist at the annual Island Symphony Bach Festival at St. Peter’s By-the-Sea Episcopal Church in Bay Shore, New York. (Date TBA) The winner will receive an additional fee of $1000 for this performance.
The Grand Prize Winner’s program for this concert will include an unaccompanied work by J.S. Bach (not necessarily the one performed for the Competition Finals). In the event the Grand Prize Winner is unable to perform at the Island Symphony Bach Festival, the Second Place Winner will be given the opportunity to perform at this event.
The Grand Prize Winner will also be offered paid engagements with the following performing groups on dates to be determined by mutual agreement:
GEMS (Gotham Early Music Scene) The Grand Prize Winner will be engaged to perform a concert presented by NYC-based GEMS, at a date and venue TBA. GEMS requires that the artist perform on a period instrument. This concert will be streamed. The archived video of the stream will be made available to the performers for their personal use.
Washington Bach Consort The Grand Prize Winner will be engaged to perform a concert at a date and venue TBA. An archived video of the concert will be made available to the performer for their personal use. Founded in 1977 by the late J. Reilly Lewis, the Washington D.C.-based Washington Bach Consort presents three concurrent music series each season. With the music of J.S. Bach and his contemporaries firmly at the core, the group also performs music from the Renaissance to Classical periods.
Amor Artis Amor Artis is a 40-voice chamber choir and baroque orchestra. The Grand Prize Winner will be engaged to perform a concert at the Amor Artis annual all-Bach program, on a date to be determined. The winner will perform a work by J.S. Bach (solo concerto or unaccompanied work) selected in consultation with the Artistic Director.
The Bach Choir of Bethlehem The Grand Prize Winner will be engaged to perform a concert at a date and venue TBA. The Pennsylvania-based Bach Choir of Bethlehem shares the transformative power of the music of J.S. Bach and other composers through excellence in performance and education. Their mission is to build, strengthen, and sustain diverse communities, and to foster a life-long passion for the choral arts.
Travel and Accommodations
Finalists are required to arrive on the Stony Brook campus on Wednesday October 15, 2025. Hotel accommodations will be provided on October 15 and 16 at the Hilton Garden Inn, located on Stony Brook’s campus within walking distance of the recital hall. Please be advised that the Competition does not provide any stipend for travel expenses.
International applicants must consult the nearest United States Embassy or Consulate for guidance regarding visa requirements at the time of application. Applicants are required to secure their own visas. Upon receipt of the application, the Competition will provide an invitation to the United States to compete, subject to applicant’s reaching the finals. The applicant will be responsible for informing the Competition of other documents they will need from the Competition for any visa applications.
Timeline
| APPLICATION POSTED | FEBRUARY 1, 2025 |
| APPLICATIONS OPEN | MARCH 1, 2025 |
| SUBMISSION DEADLINE | JUNE 15, 2025, Midnight |
| FINALISTS ANNOUNCED | JULY 30, 2025 |
| DEADLINE TO CONFIRM PARTICIPATION | AUGUST 7, 2025 |
| FINALS | OCTOBER 16, 2025, 1:00 PM |
2025 Jury
Kim Kashkashian: Professor of Viola and Chamber Music at the New England Conservatory
Renée Jolles: Professor of Violin at The Eastman School of Music
Kenneth Slowik: Artistic Director of the Smithsonian Chamber Music Society, Cello and Viol
Colin Carr: Professor of Music, Cello, & Chamber Music, Stony Brook University
Arthur Haas: Professor of Harpsichord, Early Music Performance & Continuo, Stony Brook University