Queen Elisabeth Competition

The Queen Elisabeth Competition (Dutch: Koningin Elisabethwedstrijd, French: Concours Musical International Reine Elisabeth) is a competition for career-starting musicians held in Brussels. The competition is named after Queen Elisabeth of Belgium. It is a competition for classical violinists (from 1937), pianists (from 1938), singers (from 1988) and cellists (from 2017). It also held international competitions for composers from 1953 to 2012.

Since its foundation it is considered one of the most challenging and prestigious competitions for instrumentalists. In 1957 the Queen Elisabeth Competition was one of the founding members of the World Federation of International Music Competitions.

Eugène Ysaÿe, Belgian concert-violinist, wanted to set up an international music competition for young virtuosi showcasing their all-round skill, but died before he could do so. Queen Elisabeth, patroness of the arts and good friend of Ysaÿe, set up the competition in his memory in 1937. The prestige of Ysaÿe and Belgium's Royal Court (King Albert and Queen Elisabeth were admired heroes of the First World War) assured that the first competition would draw great entrants.

The first two editions of the competition, in 1937 for violin and in 1938 for piano, were named after Ysaÿe. World War II and other impediments prevented the competition from taking place from 1940 to 1950.

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