The piano trio receives prizes including a €5,000 cash award and concert engagements
The sixth edition of the Filippo Nicosia Award took place from 28–30 August at the Villa Medici Giulini in Briosco, Italy, with thirteen ensembles competing.
The jury unanimously declared the Trio Archai as this year’s winner. It receives a cash prize of €5,000, two concert engagements with Gioventù Musicale Italiana, and a portrait in Archi Magazine.
The prize for the best Italian ensemble was awarded to Quartetto di Genova, while the Elaia Quartet received the Da Vinci Publishing recording prize. This year’s special prize was awarded to the Al Rupnik Trio.
Trio Archai was founded in 2023 in Basel, Switzerland, and comprises German–Turkish violinist Ayla Sahin, 27, Irish–Scottish cellist Finn Mannion, 24, and Spanish pianist Mar Valor, 26. Among its accolades, it has won first prize at the Royal Overseas League Competition in 2024 and the Schoenfeld International String Competition in 2025.
All ensembles also had the opportunity to receive masterclasses from the jury members, which included violinists Sergei Bresler and Cibrán Sierra, violist Basil Vendryes, cellist Alasdair Tait and pianist Marco Sanna.
The organisers have announced that the competition will henceforth be held biennially, with the next edition taking place in 2028.
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