The Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition is pleased to announce the Six Finalists for The Final Round Recitals.
Finalist Round Recitals
Saturday, June 27, 2026
10:00 am to 1:00 pm, and 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm, Atlanta, Georgia
All six recitals will be livestreamed.
An awards reception will follow at 7:00 pm.
2026 Finalists
Spanish pianist and organist Andoni Andrada (b. 1999, Madrid) began piano studies at age five and was admitted two years later to the Centro Integrado de Música “Padre Antonio Soler” in El Escorial. He studied piano for ten years with Lydia Rendón and Anatoli Povzoun and participated in masterclasses with renowned artists including Galina Eguiazarova and Vladimir Ovchinnikov. At fifteen, he began organ studies at the Monasterio de San Lorenzo de El Escorial, studying with several distinguished organists and earning the Premio Extraordinario de la Comunidad de Madrid in 2017.
In 2017, Andrada entered the Tchaikovsky State Conservatory in Moscow on a full scholarship, studying organ with Aleksei Parshin and piano with Aleksandr Vershinin and Andrey Pisarev. He later earned a Master’s in Piano Interpretation and Diplôme d’Artiste from the École Normale de Musique de Paris and received the Bach Prize at the 2025 St Albans International Organ Competition. He performs widely across Europe and continues advanced organ studies in Paris and Versailles.
Organist Songyeon Im, born in South Korea, began her musical studies on the piano at a young age under the influence of her mother, a pianist. She later studied at the Korea National University of Arts, earning her bachelor’s degree before turning her focus to organ.
In 2022, she began organ studies with Éric Lebrun at the CRR in Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, and was subsequently admitted to the master’s program at the CNSMD in Paris, studying with Olivier Latry, Thomas Ospital, and Maude Gratton. She completed her master’s degree there and continues advanced studies in Europe, pursuing dual training with Martin Schmeding in Leipzig and Jean-Baptiste Robin in Versailles.
Im has performed internationally across Europe and South Korea, with appearances at major venues including Notre-Dame, Saint-Sulpice, and Saint-Eustache in Paris, as well as churches in Germany, Italy, and Spain. A prizewinner at international competitions, she received First Prize and the Audience Prize at the 2025 Dudelange International Organ Competition and Second Prize at the Prague Organ Competition.
Organist Yeseul Jo began her musical studies in Korea as a pianist at Yewon School and Seoul Arts High School, where she developed a strong artistic foundation through performances with orchestras, choirs, and ensembles. She later turned her focus to organ, studying with Prof. So Hyun Park at Ewha Womans University, graduating in 2024 with highest honors.
During her studies, she appeared in numerous concerts, including Young Artist and New Year performances, and performed as a soloist with the Ewha Womans University Orchestra. She also served as organist for Light and Salt Church and Mokyang Church.
Jo earned her state music teaching certificate and taught music at Deoksong Elementary School. She has participated in international masterclasses in Germany with Zsigmond Szathmáry and Wolfgang Zerer.
Since 2024 she has been based in Germany, performing solo recitals and continuing her studies in the Master’s program in organ at the University of Music and Theatre “Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy” Leipzig with Prof. Martin Schmeding.
2026 Finalists
Japanese organist Mio Kuriyama studied organ performance at the Tokyo University of the Arts, where she completed both undergraduate and graduate degrees under Megumi Tokuoka and Prof. Rie Hiroe. During her studies she received numerous honors, including the Ataka Prize, Ryohei Miyata Prize, Akanthus Music Prize, and Douseikai Prize, as well as scholarships from the Aoyama Music Foundation and Nomura Arts Foundation.
Kuriyama has appeared in concerts across Japan and Europe, including the Japan Organists’ Association Newcomers’ Concert and the Fresh Organ Concert series. She has also performed with orchestra, including a performance of Widor’s Symphonie pour orgue et orchestre with the Geidai Philharmonia Orchestra Tokyo.
Her international recognition includes Second Prize at the International Orava Organ Competition (2023) and the Audience Prize at both the Toulouse International Organ Competition (2024) and the International Albert-Schweitzer Organ Competition (2025).
Currently a DAAD scholar, she continues advanced studies at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Leipzig with Prof. Martin Schmeding and Nicolas Berndt.
Concert organist Grant Smith, a native of Fresno, California, is a graduate of Rice University, where he earned a master’s degree in organ performance studying with Ken Cowan. His performing career has taken him to major venues across the United States, Ireland, England, Germany, South Korea, and Japan.
Smith has received numerous competition honors, including Second Prize in Interpretation at the 2025 St Albans International Organ Competition, Third Prize in the 2024 Leipzig Bach Competition, and First Prize in both the Hall Organ Competition (2023) and the Feith Competition (2022).
While in Houston, he served as organist at several churches and accompanied the Houston Masterworks Chorus, performing major choral works and new repertoire.
He began studying piano at age five and organ at seventeen. Smith earned dual bachelor’s degrees in music and civil engineering from California Polytechnic State University and studied historical performance in Leipzig. He performs frequently as an organ duo with his wife, organist Sunkyung Noh.
Organist Julianne Zhu, born and raised in Shanghai, China, came to the United States in 2017 to attend Wake Forest University, where she double-majored in music and psychology and minored in German. It was at Wake Forest that she first began studying organ with Susan Bates.
During her undergraduate years she performed at significant university events, including the Wake Forest Lovefeast in 2020 and the 2022 inauguration of President Susan Wente. Zhu later earned a Master’s degree and Professional Artist Certificate from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, studying with Dr. Timothy Olsen.
She has also participated in the Organ Institute at the Oregon Bach Festival, studying with Paul Jacobs. Zhu previously served as music intern at Augsburg Lutheran Church and organist at Ardmore Moravian Church in Winston-Salem.
Currently, she is pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts at the Eastman School of Music in the studio of Nathan Laube. She is also an active composer and recently won First Prize in the Rochester Carillon Composition Competition.
THANK YOU TO OUR PRESTIGIOUS APPLICANTS TO EBSIOC 2026!
Thank you to our prestigious applicants to EBSIOC 2026, from Australia, Austria, China, France, Germany, Great Britain, Holland, Ireland, Japan, Poland, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, and the United States!
Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition
The best young organists from around the globe meet here to perform and 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. Her legacy offers opportunities to young artists to develop their talents and thrive in their vocation.
The first competition in 2022 received over seventy applicants, twice as many as most other organ competitions here in the U.S. and abroad. Six finalists will once again be invited to Atlanta to compete for prize money totaling $21,000.
If you have any questions about the competition, please email: competition@prumc.org.
EBSIOC 2026 Juries
September 2, 2025
Competition Rules Posted
January 5, 2026
Applications Open
February 13, 2026
Applications Close
March 16, 2026
Six Finalists Announced
June 25, 26, 27, 2026
Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition
June 27, 2026*
Final Round Recitals
*All Free and Open to the Public from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm.
Congratulations to the winners of the 2024 Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition!
Congratulations to Magdalena Moser, winner of the 2024 Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition, taking home $12,000 USD in prize money. Magdalena’s winning recital was a program that paid homage to the many composers who lived and worked in Austria, and included Mozart’s Adagio and Allegro, KV594, Bach’s Concerto in D Minor, BWV 596, and Apparatus Musico-Organisticus from Georg Muffat.
Taking home the second-place prize of $6,000 USD was Canadian Manuel Piazza, who presented a recital with pieces from Mendelssohn, Howells, and Elgar, among others. In third place with a prize of $3,000 USD was Brazil’s Gabriel Dissenha, who delighted the audience with an improvisational piece, alongside works from Bach, Howells, and Reger.
Deliberations took around an hour — the competition was fierce, and all six recitals were thoughtfully produced and skillfully played. Thank you to our final round judges David Briggs, James O’Donnell, Isabelle Demers, Lynne Davis, and Julie Coucheron.
You can watch the recitals in their entirety below.
2024 Winners
Magdalena Moser is an Austrian organist and has been studying with Ulrich Walther at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz. She was awarded several prizes at international organ competitions, among them the Judith-Weir-Prize and the Douglas-May-Award at the International Organ Festival in St Albans (UK), 1st prize at the International Franz Schmidt Organ competition in Vienna in 2020 and 2nd prize at the International Organ competition in Korschenbroich 2019. She attended master classes with Wolfgang Zerer, Peter Planyavsky, Jean-Baptist Dupont, Hannfried Lucke, Naji Hakim and others. Since 2023 she has been teaching organ and improvisation at the Johann-Joseph-Fux conservatory in Graz.
Manuel Piazza is the Assistant Director of Music at St. Thomas’s Anglican Church (Toronto), where he accompanies the High Mass and Evensong choirs and directs the parish’s new children’s choral program, The St. Thomas’s Choristers.
Manuel completed his Bachelor in Organ Performance at the University of Toronto, studying with John Tuttle. He has also performed in masterclasses led by Olivier Latry, William Porter, Stefan Engels, David Briggs, James O’Donnell, Ben van Oosten, Jürgen Essl, Wolfgang Zerer, Christophe Mantoux, Olivier Penin, Fréderic Blanc, and Isabelle Demers. As an undergraduate in Toronto, he served as choir director and organist at Our Lady of Sorrows Roman Catholic Church, organ scholar at Trinity College (UofT), organ scholar at St. James’ Anglican Cathedral, and an organist at St. Michael’s Cathedral Basilica. After graduating, he was the organ scholar at Truro Cathedral in Cornwall (UK), where he played for Evensong three times a week under the direction of Christopher Gray, and performed with ensembles such as the London Sinfonia.
After returning to North America, he won first prize in the 2021 RCCO National Organ Playing Competition. In May 2022, he graduated with an MM from the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, where he studied organ repertoire with Martin Jean and improvisation with Jeffrey Brillhart. Additionally, he served as senior organ scholar at Trinity Church on the Green, where he was mentored by Walden Moore. He also accompanied the Schola Cantorum, conducted by David Hill. The next year, he was Interim Assistant Director of Music at Trinity Church, Boston, working with Colin Lynch. Manuel’s playing has been praised for its “seamless registration changes … imaginative stop selections, smoothly shifting tone colours … (and) abundant energy” in Organ Canada. Other awards include the Godfrey Hewitt Memorial Scholarship, the Mary Baker Scholarship in Organ Accompanying, the Julia R. Sherman Memorial Prize for excellence in organ playing, the Aidan Kavanagh Prize for Academic Achievement, and the Ernest MacMillan Memorial Foundation Prize.
Gabriel Dissenha was born in 1997 in Curitiba, Brazil. He started playing piano at the age of 13 and organ at the age of 19. At present he is pursuing a Master’s degree in organ with teachers Sietze de Vries and Erwin Wiersinga in Groningen. He finished his studies in church music (organ under Ulrich Walther) in Graz, Austria, with distinction. Before that he had private lessons in harmony, counterpoint, and piano in Brazil.
He was a prizewinner at international music competitions; among others: 1st prize at the 33rd Rosa Mística Latin American Piano Competition (Curitiba, Brazil); first prize at the Martha-Debelli Organ Competition (Graz); special prize for the best interpretation of baroque music at the Tariverdiev Organ Competition (Kaliningrad, Russia); and the 3rd prize at the Kropfreiter Organ Competition (St. Florian, Austria). He took part in several masterclasses with renowned teachers, including Nathan Laube, Ludger Lohmann, Pieter van Dijk and Michel Bouvard.
In addition to this, he has a YouTube channel in which he posts his own compositions in historical styles, mainly that of J. S. Bach.
Part One of Two:
First Three Recitals
2nd Place winner Manuel Piazza is the third of these first three recitals.
Part Two of Two
Last Three Recitals and Awards
1st Place winner Magdalena Moser is the third of these last three recitals, and 3rd Place winner Gabriel Dissenha is the second of these last three recitals.
2024 Winners
First Place | Magdalena Moser, Austria
Second Place | Manuel Piazza, Canada
Third Place | Gabriel Dissenha, Brazil
Prizes
1st prize – $12,000
2nd prize – $6,000
3rd prize – $3,000
Jury
Recorded Round Jury
David Briggs (chair)
Chelsea Chen
Dr. Oliver Brett
Final Round Jury
David Briggs (chair)
James O’Donnell
Dr. Isabel Demers
Lynne Davis
Julie Coucheron
Manuel Piazza, Gabriel Dissenha, Adam Chlebek, Magdalena Moser, Aleksanteri Wallius, Mitchell Miller and Sally Westmoreland
Congratulations to the winners of the 2022 Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition!
Congratulations to Quentin du Verdier, the First Prize winner of the inaugural Elizabeth B. Stephens International Organ Competition. Second prize went to Tom Rioult and Third to Alex Jones.
We are so thrilled with the quality of music making at this year’s competition and offer thanks to our esteemed judges who had a very difficult decision to make among six very talented young organists.
You can watch the recitals in their entirety below.
2022 Winners
From left to right: Tom Rioult (2nd place) Quentin du Verdier (1st place), and Alex Jones (3rd place.)
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
Alex Jones, Krzysztof Augustyn, Ilariar Centorrino, Scott Atchison, Sally Westmoreland, Tom Rioult, Quentin du Verdier and Minjun Lee