JUNIOR Category - Information on the 2026 Final

Schedule for the JUNIOR category final of the
Samson François International Piano Competition

📍 Location information

The contest will take place at the following address:

Cagnes-sur-Mer Racetrack 2 Boulevard J. F. Kennedy 06800 Cagnes-sur-Mer, France All events will take place at the Salon Masséna (2nd floor).

🎹 Practice Pianos & Shuttle Service

For rehearsals, contestants will have access to several pianos throughout the competition:

4 practice pianos at the Hippodrome.
4 to 5 practice pianos at the Cagnes-sur-Mer Conservatory (103 Chemin du Val Fleuri, 06800 Cagnes-sur-Mer).

🚐 Shuttle Service: A dedicated driver will provide continuous shuttle service between the main entrance of the Hippodrome and the Salon Masséna.
You’ll find the link to the interactive Google Map to guide you from the Hippodrome entrance at 2 Boulevard J.F. Kennedy to the grandstand where the Salon Masséna is located (2nd floor):
– in French
– in English
– static version

🎹 Piano Rehearsal: As indicated on the schedule, each group of contestants will also have access to the competition’s official piano during the soundcheck session preceding their performances.

🏨 Accommodations

Regarding accommodations, please note that we do not provide hotel recommendations, as prices and availability can vary significantly depending on the booking platform and dates. We therefore encourage applicants to choose the accommodation that best suits their preferences and budget.

If you need further information, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

2026 Jury

Here is the 2026 jury for the JUNIOR categories:

Biography

Nicolas Bringuier

Born in Nice in 1980, French pianist Nicolas Bringuier is one of the most brilliant artists of his generation. Invited to perform as a soloist at venues such as the Philharmonie and Konzerthaus in Berlin, the Musikverein in Vienna, the Salle Gaveau in Paris, the Auditorio in Madrid, and the Seoul Arts Center, his career as a soloist and teacher has taken him to most European countries, the United States, China, South Korea, and Japan.

He is also Artistic Director of the Negresco Music Festival and the Samson François International Piano Competition.

After studying at the Nice Regional Conservatory with Christine Gastaud, he entered the Paris Conservatory at the age of 13, studying under Bruno Rigutto, where he was awarded first prize in piano at the age of 16 and completed the advanced program at 18.

He then continued his training at the Berlin University of the Arts under Klaus Hellwig, graduating with the highest honors.

During masterclasses, he also benefits from the advice of masters such as Dimitri Bashkirov, Oleg Maisenberg, Dominique Merlet, Jean-Claude Pennetier, John Perry, Charles Rosen, Kristina Steinegger, and Vladimir Viardo.

Winner of the Banque Populaire, Cziffra, Langart, and Yvonne Lefébure foundations, Nicolas Bringuier has also distinguished himself in major international competitions: the youngest participant selected in 1998 for the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, he won the Grand Konzerteum in Greece in 2000 and was a finalist in the Pro Piano Competition in New York.

In 2004, he won second prize and the silver medal at the prestigious Robert Schumann International Competition in Zwickau. He also won a medal at the Maria Canals Competition in Barcelona and was a semi-finalist at the Monte-Carlo Piano Masters and the Chopin Competition in Warsaw in 2005, where he was one of the favorites of the press and the public.

Nicolas Bringuier has a repertoire of more than 30 concertos, which he has performed with numerous European and Asian orchestras: the Berliner Symphoniker, the Wiener Concertverein, the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, the Capitole Orchestra of Toulouse, the Zwickau-Plauen Orchestra, the Nice Orchestra, the Wuhan Orchestra, the Cannes National Orchestra, the Avignon Orchestra, the Castilla e Leon Symphony Orchestra, the Balearic Symphony Orchestra, the Euro-Asian Orchestra, and others.

He is invited to perform at the most prestigious festivals, including: the Monte Carlo Spring Arts Festival, the Nuits du Suquet in Cannes, the Colmar Festival, Radio France in Montpellier, Génération Virtuose in Antibes, Les Serres d'Auteuil, the Schwetzingen Festival, the Mosel Festwochen and the Klassik Festival Ruhr in Germany, Sonoro in Romania, Schermonnikoog in Holland, Alba in Italy, and many others around the world.

His recordings of Schumann, Bartók, and Fauré for the Audite and Klarthe labels have been highly acclaimed by critics and have received the highest awards.

With pianist Olga Monakh and their Duo Siloti, they performed at the invitation of the President of the Federal Republic of Germany at his residence in Schloss Bellevue, toured China three times, and played together in most European countries.

A passionate chamber musician, he also performs alongside Andrej Bielow, Alexandra Conunova, Nicolas Dautricourt, Philippe Graffin, Julien Hervé, Gary Hoffman, Esther Hoppe, Alissa Margulis, Raphael Oleg, Régis Pasquier, Razvan Popovici, Estelle Revaz, François Salque, Istvan Vardai, Ukjin Yang, Alexander and Dana Zemtsov, among others.

Lecturer at the Berlin University of the Arts, visiting professor at Inje University in South Korea, N. Bringuier is now a professor at the École Normale de Musique de Paris.

He is regularly invited to sit on the juries of prestigious international competitions.

Biography

Vasco Dantas

Vasco Dantas, a Portuguese pianist born in Porto, is the artistic director of the Music Series, Algarve Music Series, and The Piano Concerto Festival. He has won over 50 prizes and distinctions at international competitions, including: the Grand Prix at the Valletta International Piano Competition ( Malta), the Special Prize at the SAR Princess Lalla Meryem International Piano Competition ( Morocco), the GianClaudio Chiais International Prize ( Rome), the Steinway & Sons Piano Competition in Münster, the International Piano Competition of the City of Vigo (Spain), the Porto Santa Cecília Competition, and the Estoril Lisbon Competition.

His performances have regularly taken him to a series of renowned concert halls across five continents. Following his successful appearances at Hong Kong City Hall and the Grand Hall of the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, Vasco recently made his debut at Carnegie Hall (New York), the Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), and the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées (Paris). He has also performed as a soloist with several other orchestras, such as the Kremlin Chamber Orchestra (Moscow), Hong Kong Symphonia, the Südwestdeutsches Kammerorchestra Pforzheim (Germany), the Gulbenkian Orchestra (Lisbon), Porto Symphony Orchestra, Filarmónica Portuguesa, and Orquestra Sinfónica Espírito Santo (Brazil), allowing him to work with renowned conductors such as Baldur Brönnimann, Choi Sown Le, Daniel Cohen, Dinis Sousa, Douglas Bostock, Günter Neuhold, Jan Wierzba, Joshua dos Santos, Martim Sousa Tavares, Martin André, Misha Rachlevsky, Nicholas Kok, Nikolay Lalov, Nuno Coelho, Osvaldo Ferreira, Pedro Carneiro, Pedro Neves, Peter Sauerwein, Rui Pinheiro, Vassily Sinaisky, and Victor Hugo Toro.

Vasco made his first live appearance on Portuguese national television at the age of six, having started learning the piano at the age of four. In 2000, he was admitted with honors to the Porto Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Rosgard Lingardson, completing his studies in 2010 with the highest grade. Since the age of seven, Vasco has also been studying the violin. He obtained his bachelor's degree in music with "high honors" at the Royal College of Music in London, where he studied piano with Dmitri Alexeev and Niel Immelman, and conducting with Peter Stark and Natalia Luis-Bassa. He obtained a master's degree in performance with the highest marks and a doctorate "Konzertexamen" under the supervision of Heribert Koch at the University of Münster.

Vasco has been invited to lecture at Boston University. He holds a master's degree in music education from the University of Aveiro and a diploma in "Art of Teaching" from the Royal College of Music in London. He is regularly invited to teach master classes and festivals around the world, as well as to participate as a jury member in several international piano competitions.

He has been invited to record for KNS Classical, ARS Produktion, MPMP, Coviello Classics, and his seven albums include: Promenade ( 2015), Golden Liszt ( 2016), Freitas Branco | Sonatas ( 2020, nominated for "Best Classical Music Album" by Prémios Play 2021), Poetic Scenes ( 2020, nominated for "Best Young Artist of the Year" by Opus Klassik 2021), Departure ( 2021), Préludes| Prelúdios ( 2024), and Tomás Borba – Violin and Piano ( 2025). Vasco has received support from AVA Musical Editions and the AMMFoundation.

Biography

Denise Lutgens

Denise Lutgens was born in the Netherlands. From an early age, her passion for music was evident, and her love for the piano began at auctions where she accompanied her father when she was very young.
She began piano lessons with Marianne Maessen at the music school in Venlo. Her remarkable progress soon became apparent and, at the age of 8, she was admitted to the Young Talents class at the Amsterdam Conservatory. In 2000, she continued her training with Ton Demmers at the Tilburg Conservatory. In 2002, she continued her piano studies at the Anton Rubinstein Academy with Alla Blatow. There she met Professor Vladimir Krainev, who immediately invited her to continue her studies with him at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hanover. She studied there from 2002 to 2008.

In June 2008, Denise graduated from St. Willibrord High School in Deurne and went on to study at the Royal College of Music in London. She was the first Dutch pianist to be accepted into this prestigious institution. In 2009, she obtained her bachelor's degree in music from the Royal College of Music. She then continued her studies in The Hague, where she also obtained her diploma under Professor Naum Grubert at the Royal Conservatory.

During her studies, her passion for teaching became apparent. From her first year in London, she began giving group music lessons to young children and private lessons to beginners. In 2015, she also organized an international piano competition in The Hague, bringing together 83 young international talents. Denise herself participated in numerous competitions from an early age, winning first prize at the Steinway Competition in the Netherlands, the Rotary Competition, the Alexander Scriabin Competition in Paris, and the DTKV Competition in Germany.

In 2009, Denise founded the Holland International Piano School with her fellow pianist Dani Luca. The school continues to enjoy great success in The Hague. Since 2018, she has also been teaching at Globe CKC, located at the Broadcasting Music Center in Hilversum, Netherlands.

In recent years, his students have won numerous prizes in competitions, including first prizes at the Orbetello Piano Competition, Golden Piano Talents, Danubia Talents, Memorijal Jurica Murai, Monegarte International Piano Competition, Steinway Competition, and many others. They have also been invited to perform at prestigious events, such as the Hague Classical Festival, a meeting with Prime Minister Mark Rutte (also broadcast on television), and have been featured in several articles in the print and television media (Telegraaf, Ivo Niehe, Gooi en Eembode, etc.).

She now holds another position: artistic director of the Globe International Piano Competition in Hilversum, Netherlands. In this capacity, she gives concerts throughout Europe, organizes summer and winter courses, masterclasses, and a festival for young pianists.