Violin 2026: Repertoire
Recorded Preliminary Round
All repertoire must be submitted in a video-recording format with the application.
- J. S. Bach: fugue movement from one of the unaccompanied violin sonatasNo. 1 in G Minor, No. 2 in A Minor, or No. 3 in C Major
- N. Paganini: One caprice
- The first movement of a concerto selected from:
- L.v. Beethoven: Concerto in D Major, Op. 61
- J. Brahms: Concerto in D Major, Op. 77
- F. Mendelssohn: Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64
- S. Prokofiev: Concerto No. 2, Op. 63
- P. Tchaikovsky: Concerto in D Major, Op. 35
Live Rounds in 厙ぴ勛圖
Contestants repertoire must be finalized by June 1, 2026. Please see repertoire lists below.
All times are U.S. Eastern Standard Time.
First Round - 30 minutes
Thursday, August 6 at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Friday, August 7 at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Approximately 18 violinists will be chosen to perform in 厙ぴ勛圖.
- J. S. Bach: fugue movement from one of the unaccompanied violin sonatasNo. 1 in G Minor, No. 2 in A Minor, or No. 3 in C Major
- N. Paganini: one caprice for unaccompanied violin
- F. Kreisler: a five-minute encore piece with piano accompaniment, written or arranged by Kreisler
- Twelve minutes of excerpts, selected by the Jury, of the contestants concerto choice, selected from the list of the six Cooper Competition Violin Concertos below
Repertoire in the First Round may include works submitted with the application, or these pieces may be different.
Second Round - 45 minutes
Saturday, Saturday 8 at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Six violinists will advance to the second round.
- Jessie Montgomery: Rhapsody No. 2
- W. A. Mozart: a slow movement from Violin Concerto No. 3 in G Major, Violin Concerto No. 4 in D Major, or Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major
- Two brilliant concert pieces with or without piano of the competitors choice (see Repertoire List at the bottom of this page)
- L. v. Beethoven: first movement from a violin sonata (sonatas 1 through 5 only)
At the conclusion of this round, prizes for fourth, fifth, sixth, and the Audience Prize will be awarded.
Concerto Finals
Monday, August 10 at 7:30 p.m.
Three violinists will advance to the Concerto Finals.
Each of the three finalists will perform their complete concerto, selected from the list of five concertos below, with the ProMusica Chamber Orchestra at 厙ぴ勛圖s Warner Concert Hall.
Cooper Competition violin concerto list:
- L. v. Beethoven: Concerto in D Major, Op. 61
- J. Brahms: Concerto in D Major, Op. 77
- F. Mendelssohn: Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64
- S. Prokofiev: Concerto No. 2, Op. 63
- P. Tchaikovsky: Concerto in D Major, Op. 35
Repertoire List
Brilliant concert piece, with or without piano accompaniment:
- B. Bart籀k: Sonata for Solo Violin, Sz. 117
- A. Bazzini: La ronde des lutins, Op. 25
- E. Chausson: Po癡me, Op. 25
- H.W. Ernst: Last Rose of Summer
- H.W. Ernst: Grand Caprice on Schuberts Der Erlk繹nig, Op. 26
- N. Paganini: Nel cor pi羅 non mi sento
- N. Paganini: Moses Variations on the G String
- N. Paganini: La Streghe, Op. 8
- N. Paganini: Variations on God Save the Queen, Op. 9
- M. Ravel: Tzigane
- C. Saint-Sa禱ns: Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, Op. 28
- C. Saint-Sa禱ns/Ysa藩e: Caprice dapr癡s ltude en forme de Valse, Op. 52
- C. Saint-Sa禱ns: Havanaise, Op. 83
- P. Sarasate: Habanera (Spanish Dance No. 2), Op. 21
- P. Sarasate: Jota Navarra (Spanish Dance No. 4), Op. 22
- P. Sarasate: Caprice Basque, Op. 24
- P. Sarasate: Carmen Fantasy, Op. 25
- P. Sarasate: Introduction and Tarantella, Op. 43
- A. Schnittke: A Paganini
- F. Waxman: Carmen Fantasy (after Bizet)
- H. Wieniawski: Polonaise in D Major, Op. 4
- H. Wieniawski: Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 15
- H. Wieniawski: Scherzo-Tarantelle, Op. 16
- H. Wieniawski: Fantasia Brillante on Themes from Gounods Faust, Op. 20
- H. Wieniawski: Polonaise brillante in A Major, Op. 21
- E. Ysa藩e: one of the sonatas for solo violin, Op. 27
- E. T. Zwilich: Fantasy for Solo Violin