BFS Competitions 2026

The BFS’ flagship annual event, the Competitions are a chance for flute players to showcase their talent, receive feedback from top judges and win brilliant prizes.

Join us at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire on Sunday February 22nd for a day of inspiring music from our talented competitors - entry is free and all are welcome!

We’re excited to be returning to Royal Birmingham Conservatoire for a day of fantastic flute-playing. All are welcome to join the audience, support the players and enjoy a day of beautiful music - and the prize-giving will include performances from the first-prize category winners - not to be missed!

There’ll also be trade stands on-site throughout the day with an array of instruments, accessories and sheet music - a great chance to find your next flute, upgrade your kit or discover some new repertoire!

Location
The event will be held at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire (RBC). The Conservatoire has maps and extensive info about getting to the venue on its website.

Schedule 
The four competitive categories will run consecutively throughout the day across several spaces, and will be followed by a joint prize-giving at the end of the day and performances from the first-prize category winners.

Approximate timings are as follows:

School Performer category: 10am - 4pm
Young Performer category: 9:45am - 4pm
Young Artist category: 10am - 4pm
Flute Ensemble category: 11am - 12pm
Lunch break: 1-2pm
Prize Giving and performances from winners: 4:30 - 6pm, Bradshaw Hall

Please note these timings are subject to change.

Book your free audience ticket to the Competitions 2026 below - and read on for more about the Competitions categories, prizes and adjudicators:

Competitions Overview & Rules

We have prepared a Guidance Document with all the information you need to understand the Competitions categories and what you can get out of the day, as well as the rules and the ins and outs of technical requirements. Download this below:

Categories

Please read the Guidance Document carefully for further instructions and information about each category.

A. BFS School Performer

• Performers aged 13 and under on 31 August 2026 and approximately Grade 5 standard

• 6 minutes performance limit (including breaks between movements/pieces)

• This category is first-come-first-served, with a waitlist

Following the performances for this category, competitors will have the opportunity to have fun playing flute ensemble music together in a workshop led by the category adjudicators, learning a new piece and performing it to an audience at the end of the day.

B. BFS Young Performer

• Performers aged 14-18 on 31 August 2026 and approximately Grade 7 standard

• 7 minutes performance limit (including breaks between movements/pieces)

• The first round of this category is a video round, with shortlisted players then invited to the live final round on February 22 2026.

C. BFS Young Artist

• Performers aged 19-24 on 31 August 2026 and Grade 8 or above in standard

• 8 minutes performance limit (including breaks between movements/pieces)

• The first round of this category is a video round, with shortlisted players then invited to the live final round on February 22 2026.

D. BFS Flute Ensemble

• Ensembles of 3 to 10 players

• 8 minutes performance limit (including breaks between movements/pieces)

• This category is first-come-first-served, with a waitlist.

Players from this class are invited to combine it with the Adult Players Workshop at a reduced rate in the afternoon to create a full day of fluting.

Prizes

School Performer

1st Prize - William Bennett Prize of £500, and the opportunity to perform at a BFS event
2nd Prize - Funky Flute Cases flute case and £50 June Emerson Wind Music voucher
3rd Prize - The ALRY Prize of £150 of vouchers

Young Performer

1st Prize - William Bennett Prize of £1000, and the opportunity to perform at a BFS event
2nd Prize - A Wiseman flute case of your choice, and the ABRSM Prize of £200 of vouchers
3rd Prize - The the ABRSM Prize of £100 of vouchers, and a £50 Furore Verlag voucher

All Flutes Plus piccolo prize
Selected by the adjudication panel, the All Flutes Plus piccolo prize will be awarded to a competitor in the BFS 2025 Competitions Young Performer category.

Young Artist

1st Prize - William Bennett Prize of £2000, and the opportunity to perform at a BFS event
2nd Prize - The Oxford Flute Summer School Prize of a fully funded place at the Oxford Flute Summer School
3rd Prize - The ALRY Prize of £200 of vouchers, and a £50 Furore Verlag voucher

Musician’s Answering Service Prize
One year’s free subscription to the Musician’s Answering Service. Selected by the adjudication panel, this prize will be awarded to a UK-based competitor in the Young Artist category. The Musician’s Answering Service is the leading UK diary service for orchestral and session musicians - find out more about them at https://maslink.co.uk.

Piccolo Prize
A Fergus Davidson piccolo headjoint will be awarded to the best Young Artist performance of a piccolo piece

Flute Ensemble

1st Prize - The William Bennett Prize of £350, the opportunity to perform at a BFS event, and the Newmoon Insurance Prize of £150 of vouchers
2nd Prize - The Newmoon Insurance Prize of £100 of vouchers, and a £100 Tetractys Publishing voucher
3rd Prize - The ALRY Prize of £150 of vouchers

The William Bennett Prize

The BFS are honoured to award the William Bennett Prize at the BFS Competitions for the third year. We are incredibly grateful to Michie Bennett for entrusting us with this legacy, which will enable us to award this prize for a number of years. As one of the founding members of the BFS, and our President for many years, we cannot think of a better way to commemorate Wibb’s extraordinary life and his profound impact on the flute world.

School Performer 1st Prize - William Bennett Prize of £500
Young Performer 1st Prize - William Bennett Prize of £1000
Young Artist 1st Prize - William Bennett Prize of £2000

Atarah’s Legacy Fund Memorial Prize

Atarah’s Legacy Fund was established shortly before her death, according to her wishes to support the musical education of entrants to the Competitions through the award of a cash prize for a candidate of sufficient merit, musical integrity and potential. Musical integrity is something Atarah particularly wished to encourage, so the panel will be looking for a core musicality, rather than a display of virtuosity. The prize will be available to the value of £500 each year.

The recipient will not necessarily be one of the prize winners in the competition, and will be chosen by the competition adjudicators and BFS Council, where possible supported by members of the Fund Advisory Group. There will be one winner each year for as long as the funds are solvent.

Entrants wishing to be considered for the Prize should make their application using the Prize entry form (which will be sent to all competitors once they have made their entry), indicating how they would use the Prize to further their musical education, for example through lessons, music courses or other educational activities. Winners will be required to write a report for Pan, the BFS journal, on the benefit they received from being awarded the Prize.

Adjudicators

Our adjudicators will judge the performance categories at the live event on February 22 2026. Everyone who performs will receive individual feedback from them - it’s a wonderful opportunity to learn from leading lights of the flute world.

This year, our eight fantastic adjudicators are:

• School Performer Competition: Alison Hardy and James McDowall

• Young Performer Competition: Helen Benson and Anna Wolstenholme

• Young Artist Competition: Anna Noakes and Amy Yule

• Ensemble Competition: Carolyn Kelly and Mel Orriss

Between them they have a breathtaking range of experience. Find out more about them below:

FAQs