Finalists compete in the 2026 Ruth P. Cogen Concerto Competition. Cheer on the competitors and join us for a day full of exceptional student performances.
The Ruth P. Cogen Competition was established by the Board of Trustees of Levine Music in 1983 to honor Ruth Cogen, one of the school’s founders and its first chair of the Board of Trustees. From 1984 to 1987, all students competed together in a single division. In 1988, the competition expanded to include separate piano and instrumental competitions with Junior (up to age 9), Intermediate (ages 10-13), and Senior Divisions (ages 14-18) for each. Contestants perform one movement of a concerto.
2026 Competition Judges
Piano
Chad R. Bowles
Artist faculty and Chair of Piano at Peabody Preparatory and the Co-Director of the Peabody Piano Academy
Steven Spooner
Professor of Piano at the Peabody Institute
Instrumental
Jaewon Kim
Assistant Principal/E-flat clarinet, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Jeffrey Solow
Professor of Cello at Temple University