One of the world's most prestigious interpretive competitions knows this year's bassoon winners. First prize at the 75th ARD International Music Competition in Munich was won by the Italian bassoonist Enrico Bassi. Second prize and the Audience Prize go to the Belgian bassoonist Jappe Dendievel, and third prize was won by the French bassoonist Laure Thomas.
This year's ARD International Music Competition is taking place in Munich from August 30 to September 18, 2026, with competitions in four categories: bassoon, organ, percussion, and string quartet. The bassoon category has already concluded its competition marathon: after several demanding rounds, the finals culminated on Friday, September 11, in the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residence.
From solo repertoire to the orchestra
The ARD Competition places extraordinary demands on young performers not only through the scope of its repertoire, but also its stylistic breadth. Throughout the various rounds, bassoonists had to demonstrate technical proficiency and musical personality in music from different eras—ranging from the Baroque and Classical periods, through the Romantic repertoire, to 20th- and 21st-century music.
Six contestants advanced to the semifinals: Enrico Bassi, Johanna Bilgeri, Jappe Dendievel, Carlos Martin Esteve, Augusto Velio Palumbo, and Laure Thomas. The semifinalists faced, among other works, Vivaldi's Bassoon Concerto in D minor RV 481, Jean Françaix's virtuosic Concerto for Bassoon and Eleven String Instruments, as well as a new piece by Nina Šenk, which was commissioned directly by the ARD competition for this year's edition.
The extraordinary difficulty of the semifinal was further highlighted by the fact that the candidates performed with the Munich Chamber Orchestra without a conductor. In addition to their solo qualities, they thus had to demonstrate the ability to actively communicate and play in chamber synchronization with the orchestra.
For his semifinal performance, Jappe Dendievel has just won the Munich Chamber Orchestra's Special Prize worth 1,000 euros.
Three bassoonists in the final
Laure Thomas, Enrico Bassi, and Jappe Dendievel advanced to the finals. On Friday, September 11, they performed at the Munich Herkulessaal with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Bar Avni.
Enrico Bassi chose Johann Nepomuk Hummel's Concerto in F major for the final, while Laure Thomas performed Carl Maria von Weber's Concerto in F major, Op. 75.
Following the final evening, the international jury decided on this ranking:
🥇 1st prize – Enrico Bassi
🥈 2nd prize – Jappe Dendievel
🥉 3rd prize – Laure Thomas
Jappe Dendievel won the Audience Award, also taking home the aforementioned Special Prize of the Munich Chamber Orchestra from Munich.
Who are this year's laureates?
🥇 Enrico Bassi
Italian bassoonist Enrico Bassi (born 2001 in Parma) began playing the bassoon at the age of twelve under Luca Reverberi at the Arrigo Boito Conservatory in his native Parma, where he completed both his bachelor's and master's degrees with honors. He then continued his studies at the Zurich University of the Arts (Zürcher Hochschule der Künste) in the class of Matthias Rácz, where he graduated with a Specialized Master's in Solo Performance in 2024.
His orchestral career took off exceptionally quickly. At just 21 years old, he secured the position of principal bassoonist of the Orchestra della Svizzera italiana in Lugano, where he performed from 2022 to 2025. Since August 2025, he has been the principal bassoonist of the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra in Hamburg. As a guest principal bassoonist, he has collaborated with ensembles such as the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the hr-Sinfonieorchester Frankfurt, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, and the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.
Bassi also has a number of competition successes under his belt. For example, he won first prizes at the Norma Hooks Young Artist Competition in 2019, the Rossini International Bassoon Competition in 2021, and the International Muri Competition in 2023. With his victory at the 2026 ARD, he now adds one of the most significant achievements of his career so far to that list.
🥈 Jappe Dendievel
Belgian bassoonist Jappe Dendievel (2004) is the youngest of this year's three laureates. His musical journey is interesting for its versatility – alongside the bassoon, he also played other instruments in the past. His professional bassoon education subsequently led him to Munich, where he studied with Dag Jensen, one of the most prominent contemporary bassoon pedagogues.
It was precisely Dendievel who emerged as one of the prominent figures of this year's bassoon competition. Alongside second prize, audience support also brought him the Audience Award, and even after the semifinals, members of the Munich Chamber Orchestra honored him with their special prize for an extraordinary performance.
Winning three awards in a single ARD competition year thus represents an extraordinary achievement for the young Belgian bassoonist.
🥉 Laure Thomas
French bassoonist Laure Thomas comes from Colmar and began playing the bassoon as a child. Her talent showed very early on, and her further studies led her, among other places, to the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris, where she studied under the prominent French bassoonist Gilbert Audin. Later, she also continued her studies in Munich with Dag Jensen.
Thomas has already gained significant international competition experience and is establishing herself not only as a solo player, but also as a chamber and orchestral player.
In this year's ARD competition, she advanced to the final three bassoonists and performed Weber's Concerto in F major, Op. 75 in the final with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. Her performance earned her the 3rd ARD Prize 2026.
An exceptionally strong young generation of bassoonists
This year's ARD results offer an interesting perspective on the emerging generation of European bassoonists. All three laureates are still very young, yet they already have experience from major European music institutions and the highest international competition level.
It is also interesting how their study journeys connect with several prominent figures of the contemporary European bassoon school: Enrico Bassi studied in Matthias Rácz's class, while Jappe Dendievel and Laure Thomas are connected to Dag Jensen's school.
At the same time, the ARD Competition is not merely a battle for prizes. Thanks to extensive online broadcasts, it offers bassoonists and educators around the world an extraordinary opportunity to watch the rising professional generation, compare different interpretive approaches, and hear the bassoon repertoire performed by young players at the highest international level.
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