Newpark Festival 2026
February 16–21, 2026 | Carnegie Library, Dún Laoghaire
Running for over 30 years, the Newpark Festival is a week-long celebration of music, featuring instrumental and vocal competitions open to participants of all ages and levels. Taking place from February 16 to 21, 2026 at the refurbished Carnegie Library in Dún Laoghaire, the festival provides an encouraging space for performers to share their music and develop their skills.
This year, the festival is expanding beyond its long-established competitions to include concerts and open workshops, which will welcome a new audience and keep music accessible for the wider community.
By bringing performers, audiences, and educators together, the Newpark Festival continues to strengthen the musical life of our community and inspire the next generation of artists.
Please take a moment to read the Rules and Regulations of the Festival.
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Festival Week at a Glance
Monday February 16th
String Competitions
10:00...............14 years and under
11:25.................12 years and under
12:40...............10 years and under
14:45.................8 years and under
15:55.......18 years and under - The John Donald Cup
Free Workshop
18:00 - 19:00........Bowing Bootcamp with Mia Cooper
🔗 Free reservation on Eventbrite
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Tuesday February 17th
Wind & Brass Competitions
10:00...............12 years and under
11:05...............18 years and under - The James Ringsland Cup
Instrumental Competitions
12:45............Senior Instrumental Repertoire
14:10............The Concerto Cup - The Evelyn Levins Perpetual Cup
Free Workshop
18:30 - 19:15........Breathe, with Julie Feeney
🔗 Free reservation on Eventbrite
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Wednesday February 18th
Piano Competitions
10:00...............8 years and under
10:40...............10 years and under
13:20...............12 years and under
15:05..............Junior Piano Sonata Cup
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Thursday February 19th
Piano Competitions
10:00...............Junior Piano Repertoire - The Fuller Trophy
Free Workshop
12:15 - 13:15...............Stage Ready: Managing Performance
Under Pressure, with Vourneen Ryan
🔗 Free reservation on Eventbrite
Piano Competitions Continued
13:30............16 years and under
15:35...........Coakley Fuller Cup - Baroque Era
Newpark Concert Series
19:00 - 19:45......Scott Flanigan, jazz pianist
Tickets: €12.50 (under 18 & over 65)
€15 (general admission)
(subject to booking fee)
🔗 Tickets available on Eventbrite
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Friday February 20th
Piano Competitions
10:00...............Duets 12 years and under
10:30...............Duets 14 years and under
11:00................Duets 16 years and under -
The Phoebe Murphy Cup
11:30................Senior Piano Repertoire -
The Owen Walsh Perpetual Cup
Free Workshop
12:45 - 13:45...........Teddy Bear Sing-along with
Gwendoline Douglas
Piano Competitions Continued
14:00........Senior Piano Sonata Cup
15:10.......Adult Solo Competition - The Prichard Cup
Newpark Concert Series
19:00 - 19:45.......An evening of Chopin with
pianist Andrzej Kozłowski
Tickets: €12.50 (under 18 & over 65)
€15 (general admission)
(subject to booking fee)
🔗 Tickets available on Eventbrite
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Saturday February 21st
Vocal Competitions
10:00...............Adult Classical Competition - The Ruth Beare Perpetual Cup
11:00...............Adult Baroque Aria - The Mignon Rumbold Memorial Cup
12:15.............Adult Lieder Cup
12:55..........Vocal Solo 18 years and under
14:00........Junior Musical Theatre, 15-18 years
14:50..............Vocal Solo 16 years and under
16:00..........Vocal Solo 14 years and under
16:45.........Vocal Solo 12 years and under
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*Audience tickets for competitions will be available at the door
Ticket Price: €5.00 (includes competition programme)
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Strings 14 years and under
1st prize...Ava Li
2nd prize...Evan Zikuan Tong
3rd prize...Theodore Lexa
Highly Commended...Linden Chen
Evan Zikuan Tong
Louise Zhang
Lily Yang
Strings 12 years and under
1st prize...Alexandra Zou Paul
2nd prize...Rosie Liao
3rd prize...Victor Ciubotaru
Highly Commended...Kaylee Long
Matilda Potts
Commended...Lexi Yang
Oscar Cullen
Strings 10 years and under
1st prize...Meicen Chen
2nd prize...Yuet Ling Wong
3rd prize...Angela Liu
Highly Commended...Alice Yang
Commended...Ava Yuhan He
Strings 8 years and under
1st prize...Emma Yang & Maedhbh Nic Cathmhaoil
2nd prize...Niall Campbell
3rd prize...Evelyne Mazataud
Highly Commended...Eloise Burns
Méabh Byrne
Grace Meng
Strings 18 years and under - The John Donald Cup
1st prize...Éabha Foy
2nd prize...Ava Li
Highly Commended...Louise Zhang
Commended...Yihan Jasmine Chen
Chris Fu
Junior Piano Repertoire - The Fuller Trophy
1st prize...Lily Yang
2nd prize...Emily (Dongni) Liu
Highly Commended...Winnie Zhao
Piano 16 years and under
1st prize...Alex Platsas
2nd prize...Lily Yang
3rd prize...Tom McMahon
Highly Commended...Brian Li
Yihan Jasmine Chen
Anita Han
Coakley Fuller Cup (Baroque Era)
1st prize...Jack McDowell
The Owen Walsh Perpetual Cup - Senior Piano Repertoire 16 years and over
1st prize...Louise Byrne
2nd prize...Eleanor Xu
Highly Commended...Brian Li
Caitlin Ng
Senior Piano Sonata Cup - 16 years and over
1st prize...Eleanor Xu
2nd prize...Brian Li
3rd prize...Deirdre Keane
The Prichard Cup - Adult Solo
1st prize...Liam Collins
2nd prize...Sadie Mitchell
3rd prize...Gabriel Landmark
Damien Roche
The Ruth Beare Perpetual Cup - Adult Vocal Classical
1st prize...Ciara Smith
2nd prize...Chiara Trejo Infante
3rd prize...Rebecca Thornes
Caoimhe Fitzpatrick
Vocal 14 years and under
1st prize...
2nd prize...
3rd prize...
Highly Commended...
Vocal 12 years and under
1st prize...
2nd prize...
3rd prize...
Highly Commended...
Wind & Brass 12 years and under
1st prize...Arthur Cullen
2nd prize...Jude Bridgeman Carr
3rd prize...Linda Chen
Highly Commended...Kejun James Du
Richard Ni
Clive Tempany
James Ringsland Cup - Wind & Brass 18 years and under
1st prize...Aran Cahalan
Senior Instrumental Repertoire - 16 years and over
1st prize...Karl Murtagh
2nd prize...Ira Schwitzer
3rd prize...Anna Luisetti
The Concerto Cup - The Evelyn Levins Perpetual Cup
1st prize...Ava Li
2nd prize...Aran Cahalan
Winners 2026
Piano 8 years and under
1st prize...James Murphy
2nd prize...Ryan Meehan
3rd prize...Owen Michael Ogbedor
Piano 10 years and under
1st prize...Sophie Shannon
2nd prize...Richard Ni
3rd prize...Angela Liu
Highly Commended...Aaron Yueming Zhang
Piano 12 years and under
1st prize...Emily (Dongni) Liu
2nd prize...Jenny Han
Coco (Luoxi) Xu
3rd prize...Devrah Tomas
Highly Commended...Angela Kendrick
Terry Gan
Oscar Shi
Junior Piano Sonata Cup - 15 Years and Under
1st prize...Tom McMahon
2nd prize...Alexandra Zou Paul
Duets 12 years and under
1st prize...Oscar Shi & Daniel Zhu
Duets 14 years and under
1st prize...Eileen Fan & Rian Ni
The Phoebe Murphy Cup - Duets 16 years and under
1st prize...Tongwei Wang & Tongyu Wang
The Mignon Rumbold Memorial Cup - Adult Vocal Baroque Aria
1st prize...Ciara Smith
2nd prize...Rebecca Thornes & Chiara Trejo Infante
3rd prize...
Highly Commended...
Lieder Cup
1st prize...Rebecca Thornes
2nd prize...Ciara Smith
3rd prize...
Highly Commended...
Vocal 18 years and under
1st prize...Grace Hanley
2nd prize...Arnold Alosious Kavukattu
3rd prize...Holly Trainor
Highly Commended...
Junior Musical Theatre - 15 - 18 years
1st prize...Ruby Smyth
2nd prize...Holly Trainor
3rd prize...Kyla Rose Rabbett
Highly Commended...Eloise Corrigan
Vocal 16 years and under
1st prize...Eloise Corrigan
2nd prize...Shaun Paulson
3rd prize...Eva Maria Ghiuza
Highly Commended...
Festival Venue
Carnegie Library, Dún Laoghaire
20 George Street Lower, A96 E9A2
This Year's Adjudicators
Highlights of Festival 2025
photo credit: Poppy & Poet
Festival Director
Mairéad English
@newpark_music_festival
Mairéad English is a Dublin-based flautist and educator whose career brings together performance, teaching, and community music-making. As an orchestral musician, she performs with many of Ireland’s leading ensembles, including National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, RTÉConcert Orchestra, and Wexford Festival Opera Orchestra. She is also a member of the Gardellino Flute Trio.
Mairéad is a long-time collaborator with Classical Kids, performing chamber concerts and education workshops specially designed for babies and young children. She has also appeared with the National Concert Hall’s Discover series, performing in programmes for young people and families.
At Newpark Academy of Music, Mairéad serves as Head of Wind and Brass and teaches flute. She also runs NAM’s monthly student concert series, designed to give students of all ages and levels the opportunity to nurture their creativity through performance in a supportive and encouraging environment. Her commitment to inclusive and community-based music is reflected in her work with the Musical Memories Choir, which welcomes people living with dementia and their carers.
As Newpark Festival’s Director in 2026 Mairéad will lead an exciting new chapter in the festival’s 30+ year history. Taking place in the beautifully restored Carnegie Library, this year’s Festival will celebrate Newpark Academy of Music’s legacy of music education by reaching out to the wider community through a diverse programme of concerts and inclusive workshops which will run alongside the daily competitions. This exciting week of events will see the festival engaging with new audiences through expanded partnerships between professional artists, students, and community groups, building on NAM’s mission to make music accessible to the community it serves.
Co-Festival Director & Artistic Director
Alyssa Filardo
Alyssa Filardo is an Italian-American pianist, artistic director, and educator based in Ireland. Renowned for her expressive musicality and depth of collaboration, she has performed internationally, with appearances at Carnegie Hall in New York, Schloss Leopoldskron in Salzburg, the Hidalgo Festival in Munich, the National Concert Hall in Dublin, and Whyte Hall at the Royal Irish Academy of Music. She has appeared as a soloist with orchestras in Munich and New York.
Alyssa trained extensively in vocal collaboration in Salzburg and Munich, working with artists from the Vienna State Opera, Semperoper Dresden, and the Metropolitan Opera. She continues to perform widely as a recitalist and collaborator.
Her artistic practice spans opera, art song, and interdisciplinary performance, with previous engagements as répétiteur and assistant musical director in Munich. She currently serves as Co-Festival Director of the Newpark Festival and Artistic Director of Newpark Academy of Music in Dublin, where she leads artistic programming, festival curation, and community engagement. Through her leadership, Alyssa is committed to fostering collaboration, creativity, and accessibility in Ireland’s vibrant musical landscape.