Iserlohn International Guitar Festival & Competition
Iserlohn, Germany · Classical guitar competition
Iserlohn International Guitar Festival & Competition takes place in Iserlohn, Germany. It is held every year, usually in July.
- Location
- Iserlohn, Germany
- Type
- Competition & Festival
- Most recent edition
- 27 July 2026 – 31 July 2026
- Next edition
- Usually each July — dates to be announced
- Frequency
- Annual (Solo/Duo alternating)
- Eligibility / age
- offen für alle Altersklassen
- Entry fee
- 170 Euro (Participation in the festival and competition)
- Tickets
- Festival participation fee (including 3 or 4 hours of active lessons, all concerts, exhibitions, lectures, technique and ensemble lessons) is 110 or 160 Euro. Participation in the festival and competition costs 170 Euro. For concert visitors, a concert pass for all 7 concert evenings from July 26 - August 1, 2026 costs 80 Euro. Individual concerts are 20 Euro (15 Euro reduced). A family pass is 45 Euro (two adults plus children). Festival participants have free entry to all concerts.
- Who it's for
- The festival is for active participants (up to 130 admitted) who take part in lessons and the competition, as well as for the general public who wish to attend the concerts.
- Prizes
- 1st2.000 Euro in bar, 1 Gitarren-Koffer von JML Cases, Saiten von D’Addario, Savarez, Royal Classic und Alice Strings
- 2nd1.500 Euro in bar, 1 Gitarren-Koffer von JML Cases, Saiten von D’Addario, Savarez, Royal Classic und Alice Strings
- 3rd1.000 Euro in bar, 1 Gitarren-Koffer von JML Cases, Saiten von D’Addario, Savarez, Royal Classic und Alice Strings
- 4th500 Euro in bar (Spezial-Preis von SAVAREZ), Saiten von D’Addario, Savarez, Royal Classic und Alice Strings
- 5th500 Euro in bar (Spezial-Preis von SAVAREZ), Saiten von D’Addario, Savarez, Royal Classic und Alice Strings
- Special prizes
- 4 guitars from MARTINEZ Guitars with a value of 1,000 to 1,500 Euro (lottery among all festival participants on four concert evenings)
Programme & line-up
Montenegrin Guitar Duo; Dorothee Oberlinger & Edin Karamazov (Opening Concert); Hans-Werner Huppertz; Guitar Duo Stojaković - Čižmek; Judicaël Perroy; Guitar Duo KM (Katrin Klingeberg / Sebastian Montes); Thibaut Garcia; Baltic Quartet; Jorge Caballero; Raphaël Feuillâtre; Bandini & Chiacchiaretta; Finale of the 15th International Guitar Competition; Guitar Gala (Closing Concert of the Seminarists) with Solist Manni Wu.
Workshops & masterclasses you can join
Masterclasses are offered by Juan Carlos Arancibia, Baltic Guitar Quartet, Giampaolo Bandini, Xu Bao, Jorge Caballero, Guitar Duo Stojaković - Čižmek, Guitar Duo KM, Danielle Cumming, Raphaël Feuillâtre, Thibaut Garcia, Gerald Garcia, Frank Gerstmeier, Stephen Goss, Hans-Werner Huppertz, Tom Johnson, Edin Karamazov, Dale Kavanagh, Thomas Kirchhoff, Montenegrin Guitar Duo, Judicaël Perroy, Luciano Pompilio, He Qing, Emma Rush, Torrin Williams, Manni Wu. There is also an ensemble with Gerald Garcia and Finger Aerobics with Dale Kavanagh. To participate, register for the festival by April 30, 2026. A maximum of 130 active participants are admitted.
Repertoire requirements
1st Round: One of 3 compositions by Dale Kavanagh from "Three Preludes" plus free program of maximum 6 minutes (total 10-11 minutes playing time). "Three Preludes" will be sent after registration. 2nd Round: Free program of maximum 15 minutes; no repetition of pieces from the first round. 3rd Round (Finale): Program of minimum 25 minutes and maximum 28 minutes; pieces from the first two rounds may be repeated.
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Competition Round · 20 min
- Free choice program
Official website
Enter the pieces you play and Guitar Events instantly shows how your repertoire matches this competition's rounds, and which other events you qualify for.
Check your repertoire matchVisiting? A guitarist's guide to Iserlohn
Photo: Foto Fitti, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
For a week each summer the small Sauerland town of Iserlohn becomes one of the great gathering points for the classical guitar. Founded in 1992 and running ever since, its festival and symposium pair a nightly concert series with masterclasses from an international faculty that has included players such as Judicaël Perroy, Thibaut Garcia and Raphaël Feuillâtre, in the green hills east of the Ruhr.
Getting there
Iserlohn sits in the Sauerland region of North Rhine-Westphalia, about forty-five minutes by direct train from Dortmund, the nearest major hub. Dortmund airport (DTM) is closest, with Düsseldorf (DUS) and Cologne/Bonn (CGN) offering wider connections.
Compare trains, buses & flights to Iserlohn on Omio →
Germany runs on Type F sockets, standard across most of Europe, so you will only need a travel adapter if you are coming from the UK, Ireland, or beyond Europe.
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Where to stay
The town is small and walkable, and staying centrally puts the evening concerts at the Oberste Stadtkirche within easy reach. This is a place to slow down, with the countryside and its caves and lakes close by.
What you'll hear
The heart of the week is the concert every evening, given by international guitarists who are also teaching by day, so the roster reads like a who's who: recent years have brought David Russell, Thibaut García and many more. A solo competition runs across the week to a public final, alongside a guitar-duo competition. For a listener it is a rare chance to hear so many fine players in one small town.
If you play as well as listen, explore Fernando Sor's studies and sonatas in our repertoire finder, where you can hear each piece and find the sheet music.
The local table
Westphalian cooking is honest and filling: Pfefferpotthast, a peppery braised beef, the region's celebrated hams, and dense Pumpernickel rye bread. It goes down well after a long day of music.
Fancy a guided taste? Food and wine tours in Iserlohn →
While you're there
The illuminated Dechenhöhle dripstone cave, with its cave museum, is right on the doorstep, and the lakes and open-air museums of the Sauerland are a short drive. Dortmund and the wider Ruhr are close for a change of pace.
Tours, tickets and day trips in Iserlohn →
The organizer offers partner-hotel discounts — see the official site.
Compare hotels and apartments near Iserlohn for your dates.
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This map centers on Iserlohn in general, so the venue may be elsewhere in town. Check the competition's official website before booking.
More guitar events in Germany: Anna-Amalia Competition for Young Guitarists · ARD International Music Competition (Guitar) · Hamburger Guitar Festival · Hanse Guitar Cup · Heinsberg Guitar Festival and Competition · International Competition for Young Guitarists Andrés Segovia (EGTA)
Also in July: Canadian Music Competition - Guitar · Certamen Miquel Llobet · Classical Guitar Retreat Scotland · Concorso Città di Fiuggi · Granada Guitar Festival · International Guitar Festival José Tomás Villa de Petrer
Listing data is compiled from official sources and can change each edition. Always confirm dates, deadlines and requirements on the organizer's official website before applying or booking travel. Spotted an error? See our terms or let us know via the About page.