Kennedy Center VSA Young Soloists Award
Scholarship Sponsored by Kennedy Center
Each year the VSA International Young Musicians Award recognizes exceptional young performers with disabilities from around the world. The competition welcomes soloists and small ensembles working in any style or instrument — classical, jazz, Hip Hop, rock, and more.
Eligibility
- Disability: The program uses a broad understanding of disability that includes visible physical and sensory conditions as well as less visible diagnoses such as anxiety, ADHD, chronic illness or pain, PTSD, dyslexia, neurodivergence, and similar lived experiences. Applicants may refer to definitions tied to the Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act for guidance.
- Age: Applicants must be between 14 and 25 years old on the application deadline.
- Ensembles: Groups of two to five musicians are eligible provided every member meets the age requirement and at least one member has a disability. Financial stipends are awarded only to those ensemble members who have disabilities.
What the program includes (2026)
- In-person activities at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.: July 23–27, 2026.
- Scheduled virtual sessions: April 25, May 30, and June 27, 2026.
- Additional online meetings will be arranged with participants and their assigned mentors as the program proceeds.
Application components
- Basic contact details.
- A brief statement (maximum 250 words) describing your musical background and why you would benefit from the program.
- Three performance videos.
Video and repertoire guidelines
- Submit links to three distinct musical selections. Each selection may be up to 10 minutes long.
- Choose performances that demonstrate your range as an artist. Award recipients will perform live, so submit recordings that accurately reflect how you perform now — preferably from a live performance within the last year.
- The application system accepts only YouTube or Vimeo links. If you need an accommodation for another format, please contact us.
Technical tip for YouTube links
- The system requires the full "youtube.com" URL. Shortened "youtu.be" links (often generated by the Share button or used for unlisted videos) are not recognized and will return an "Unsupported Format" error. To fix this, open the video in a browser, copy the full "youtube.com" address from the address bar, and paste that into the application. If problems persist after trying this, contact us for help.
Need more information?
- Attend the Application 101 webinar on Tuesday, October 21 at 7:00 PM ET for answers to common questions and advice on preparing a strong submission.
- For additional details or to request application materials in an alternative format, call 202-416-8898 (voice) or email vsainfo@kennedy-center.org.