US cellist Noah Lee won first prize of €3,000, a bow, a case, plus an instrument maintenance package
The 2026 Buchet International Cello Competition (BICC) was held by the Belgium Cello Society (BCS) a the Conservatoire Royal de Mons on 26-27 October.
14 cellists aged 29 and under were selected from over 100 applicants and competed in the first round. Six reached the final with piano.
26-year-old US cellist Noah Lee won the Prix Maryse Buchet first prize of €3,000. He also received an engraved J.P. Bernard bow, valued at €2,200, a GEWA cello case and a maintenance package from Maison Bernard.
Artyom Ioanisyan, 23, of Armenia took the Prix Delen Private Bank second prize of €2,000, while Wanxuan Wu, 23, of China took the Prix Amis de la BCS third prize of €1,000.
All three laureates received string sets from Pirastro, Jargar and Larsen, plus bow rehair, a sound package and a maintenance package from Belgian luthiers and were invited to perform at the 2026 Brussels Cello Festival.
Lee won the 2012 International Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians in Montreux at age twelve and the 2014 Antonio Janigro Competition. He was most recently a prizewinner at the 2026 International Classic Cello Competition in London.
A graduate of Harvard College and New England Conservatory, he studies with Danjulo Ishizaka at the Musik-Akademie Basel.
The jury was chaired by Han Bin Yoon, with Frans Helmerson, Roel Dieltiens, Marie Hallynck and Victor Julien-Laferrière, joined for the final by Judith Van Eeckhout, Ulrich Hauschild and Veerle Simoens.
’A competition ends with a result; a festival is where the discovery continues,’ said Yoon, artistic director of the Belgium Cello Society.
’We invite young talents to find their voice alongside leading soloists. Something magical always happens when so much talent, of every age and background, comes together for one reason only: to create beautiful musical moments and share them with the public.’
The three laureates performed at the BICC Laureates Recital on 31 October at Flagey, Studio 1, with pianist Katsura Mizumoto, as part of the 2026 Brussels Cello Festival which was held from 30 October to 1 November.
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