This year's contest is the first to be dedicated to the cello - 70 candidates of 22 different nationalities will compete for a grand prize of €25,000 in three rounds in Brussels from 8 May to 3 June

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The Queen Elisabeth Music Competition - this year dedicated to the cello for the first time - has announced the 16 panelists who will judge its 70 selected candidates in three live rounds in Brussels from 8 May to 3 June 2017. Whittled down from 202 applicants, the 21 women and 49 men of 22 different nationalities will compete for a grand prize of €25,000.

The 2017 jury members are:

Gautier Capuçon (pictured)

Marta Casals Istomin

Henri Demarquette

Roel Dieltiens

David Geringas

Natalia Gutman

Marie Hallynck

Frans Helmerson

Gary Hoffman

Anssi Karttunen

Mischa Maisky

Antonio Meneses

Truls Mørk

Jian Wang

Pieter Wispelwey

Arie Van Lysebeth (jury chair)

Cello is the fourth instrument to be included in the annual contest, which up to this point has covered violin, piano and voice in a three-year cycle. The competition will be dedicated to voice in 2018, violin in 2019 and piano in 2020.

The 2015 Queen Elisabeth Competition was won by violinist Ji Young Lim.

Read: ‘As a musician you never finish learning,’ says cellist Gautier Capuçon

Watch: The Strad Masterclass: Pieter Wispelwey on Brahms Cello Sonata op.99

Photo: Gregory Batardon