Three young flautists from France advance to the final of the Prague Spring International Music Competition 2026

Of the eleven participants in the second round of the Prague Spring International Music Competition 2026 flute category, in which young artists from Slovenia, the United States, Germany, Israel, Italy, France, Portugal and the Republic of Korea competed against one another, the following three French flautists have advanced to the final round, to be held on Wednesday 13 May from 18.00 at the Rudolfinum: Mathilde Alvin Besson, Iris Daverio and Maël Metzger.

In the final, all three finalists will perform Johann Sebastian Bach’s Partita in A minor for solo flute BWV 1013 and the Concerto for Flute and Orchestra by Jindřich Feld, accompanied by the Hradec Králové Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Kaspar Zehnder. The final round of this year’s competition will be streamed live online on the Prague Spring YouTube channel, @PragueSpringFestival. It is also still possible to come to the Rudolfinum in person and support the finalists live. Audiences can look forward not only to the excellent, almost sporting atmosphere of the final rounds, but will also have the chance to win tickets to one of this year’s Prague Spring International Music Festival concerts.

An Honourable Mention and the Czech Music Fund Foundation Prize for the best performance of a work composed for the Prague Spring IMC 2026 – Dances and Song of the Night for Flute and Piano by Petr Popelka – were awarded to Moritz Schulte from Germany. The Bohuslav Martinů Foundation Prize for the best performance of the Sonata for Flute and Piano was awarded to Maël Metzger from France.

The final of the Prague Spring International Music Competition 2026 flute category will take place on Wednesday 13 May from 18.00 in the Dvořák Hall of the Rudolfinum. The results are expected at around 22.00. The winner will be decided by a jury comprising Philippe Bernold (France) – Chairman of the Jury, Emily Beynon (United Kingdom / Netherlands), Christina Fassbender (Germany), Davide Formisano (Italy, Germany), Barthold Kuijken (Belgium), Václav Kunt (Czech Republic) and Jan Ostrý (Czech Republic).

Partners of the Prague Spring International Music Competition 2026 are the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, the City of Prague and the ČEZ Foundation.

Recording of the second round:
Part I: https://youtu.be/FBodafUErq0
Part II: https://youtu.be/nnuNkTQ2DVQ
Part III: https://youtu.be/4eV44ZVYDh8