Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition

June 17-19, 2024

The Music and Arts Program will host the second bi-annual Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition on June 17 – 19, 2024.

It is designed to attract the very best young organists from around the world and will be centered on The Great Organ of the church.

Six organists will be invited to Atlanta to compete for prize money totaling $21,000. The competition will be judged by a jury of five of the world’s finest performers.

This competition was founded by the family of the late Elizabeth B. Stephens, who was a great supporter of the arts at PRUMC and throughout the city of Atlanta.

For inquiries, please contact competition@prumc.org.

The judges

We are thrilled to be working with world-renowned performers as our adjudicators next year.

The three preliminary recorded round judges are:

  • David Briggs, who once again serves as Chair of the Adjudicators
  • Chelsea Chen, concert organist and composer
  • Dr. Oliver Brett, Associate Organist and Choirmaster, PRUMC

The final recital round judges are:

  • David Briggs
  • James O’Donnell, who will play the June 16 competition kick-off recital
  • Dr. Isabel Demers, concert organist and Associate Professor of Organ at McGill University in Montreal
  • Lynne Davis, concert organist, and master teacher
  • David Coucheron, concertmaster of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

For Competing Organists

We are thrilled with your interest in the Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition!

The competition rules, regulations, and repertoire requirements will be posted on this website on September 5, 2023. The application will be available online on January 8, 2024. The application deadline will be February 9, 2024, at 5 p.m. ET. The Six Finalists from the pool of recorded round applications will be announced on March 18, 2024. The dates of the Final Round are June 17 – 19, 2024, with all six final round recitals being played and adjudicated on June 19. All final round recitals will be open to the public and free of charge!

Feel free to visit our Facebook page for both information about the 2024 competition and a chronicle of the 2022 inaugural competition.

Congratulations to the winners of the 2022 Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition!

2022 Winners

First Place | Quentin du Verdier
Second Place | Tom Rioult
Third Place | Alex Jones

Prizes

1st prize – $12,000
2nd prize – $6,000
3rd prize – $3,000

Jury

Recorded Round Jury
David Briggs (chair)
Jens Korndörfer
Oliver Brett

Final Round Jury
David Briggs (Chair)
David Higgs
Alan Morrison
Carole Terry
Jean-Baptiste Robin