Vocal ensemble The Lyons Mouth took the main prize at the 2026 York International Young Artists Competition, along with the Friends of York Early Music Festival award.

The group, a vocal consort founded in 2024 by singers who met while studying at the University of York, will receive a professional recording contract from Linn Records, a £1,000 cash prize, a future paid engagement with the York Early Music Festival, and recording opportunities with BBC Radio 3. The Friends of York Early Music Festival award carries an additional £500 cash prize.

“We’re absolutely thrilled to have received not one but two prizes in this year’s competition. To have done it in our hometown of York makes this moment feel even more special! It was a real treat to meet so many fantastic musicians in the competition, and inspiring to watch them perform. We’d love to say a huge thank you to the Friends for choosing us for their award: as an ensemble who values the audience’s experience above all, this was really meaningful for us. We’re excited to record with Linn Records and to return to the Festival next year. This whole experience feels like an amazing next step and we can’t wait to see where it takes us,” the ensemble said, per an official press release. The Lyons Mouth is comprised of sopranos Aisla Campbell and Elspeth Piggott; alto Ellie Stamp; tenors James Botcher and Jacob Ewens; and bass Thomas Lowen.

Two ensembles, Tra Noi and Ossian’s Dream, shared the EUBO Development Trust’s £1,000 prize for Most Promising Young Artist or Artists specializing in Baroque repertoire. Lagrime won the Cambridge Music Prize, which includes a paid performance at Cambridge Early Music. A newly introduced award, the Jury Prize, went to gamba player Bianca Cucini, who performed with Tra Noi and I Mastricelli.

The nine finalists were selected from a pool of 56 ensembles from around the world and were judged by an international jury including Paul Agnew of Les Arts Florissants, Anna Danilevskaia of the Sollazzo Ensemble, Kati Debretzeni of the English Baroque Soloists, Veerle Declerck of the Concertgebouw Bruges, and Philip Hobbs of Linn Records. The 2026 competition was presented by harpsichordist and conductor Steven Devine, formerly Artistic Advisor of the York Early Music Festival.

The competition served as the finale of the nine day York Early Music Festival, which marked its 50th edition this year with concerts, recitals, and workshops staged across historic venues in the city.