The preselection round jury consists of Kati Hämäläinen, Kari Jussila, and Olli Porthan. 

In the competition proper (first round and final round) the jury members are Marie-Claire Alain (France), Edoardo Bellotti (Italy), Kari Jussila (Finland), Jacques van Oortmerssen (The Netherlands), Olli Porthan (Finland), and David Sanger (Great Britain). Kati Hämäläinen will be chairing the jury.  

The chair will not take part in judging. Members of the jury are not allowed to judge any of their own students. Their judging is private and final. Judging will follow a separate set of rules.

 

 
Kati Hämäläinen studied the organ and the harpsichord at the Sibelius Academy, Helsinki, during the years 1964-1972. She continued with her hapsichord studies in London, and with Kenneth Gilbert. She has also studied early French, Spanish and Italian organ music in several master classes. She completed her Doctor of Arts in Music studies at the Sibelius Academy with French harpsichord and organ music of the Baroque with special mention "cum laude". 

Hämäläinen has performed throughout Finland as  soloist, chamber musician, with orchestras, and as conductor. She has also performed in Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, the former Czechoslovakia, the United Kingdom, Italy, and France. She has recorded for radio and television companies in Finland and in Central Europe, and for Finnish record companies.

Hämäläinen is also a researcher in early music performange practice. As Senior Assistant she tutors doctoral students at the Sibelius-Academy in Helsinki.

 

Jacques van Oortmerssen  began his musical studies at the Rotterdam Conservatoire, studying the organ with André Verwoerd. He earned the
distinction ‘cum laude’ for his final examination and was given a special prize for improvisation.
Between 1974 and 1976 he studied with Marie-Claire Alain in Paris, and was awarded the Prix d´Excellence in 1976. In 1977 he received his degree as a piano soloist, and in the same year he was awarded first prize at the Dutch National Improvisation Competition.

Since 1979 he has been Professor of Organ at the Sweelinck Conservatoire in Amsterdam, where his organ class attracts students from many different countries. In 1982 he succeeded Gustav Leonhardt as ‘Organiste Titulaire’ of the Waalse Kerk in Amsterdam.
In addition to being a visiting professor at the University of Göteborg, the Conservatoire of Lyon and the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, he has visited conservatories and universities worldwide as a guest teacher and recitalist. For the academic year 1993/94 he became Betts Fellow in Organ Studies at Oxford University.

As a recitalist he has appeared in many international festivals like the BBC proms. His interpretations of Bach and early music have brought him widespread fame. He is also active as a comproser and organ consultant.The complete organ works of Brahms and C.P.E. Bach (BIS) feature among his many recordings for various international recording and broadcast companies. In 1994 Jacques van Oortmerssen started recording the complete organ works of J.S. Bach on the most important historical organs in Europe (Challenge Records).

 
 
Kari Jussila studied organ at the Sibelius Academy under Enzio Forsblom. In 1966 Jussila received his Organ Diploma and also graduated as a church musician. He has later enhanced his studies in several masterclasses in Finland and abroad and studied privately in Geneva under Guy Bovet and in Paris under Marie-Claire Alain.

After his Debut of 1966 in Helsinki, he has given recitals regularly in Finland and in the other Nordic Countries as well as in several European countries, Russia and U.S.A. He has premiered over 40 organ and chamber music compositions and made several first and other recordings for the Finnish Radio as well as making many organ and chamber music records. He received first prize in the 1973 Helsinki national organ competition. 

Kari Jussila has taught organ at the Sibelius Academy since 1966. In 1983 he received a lectorate and since the autumn of 1998 he has been the acting Professor of Organ music. Since 1972 he has also taught organ at the post graduate training courses for church musicians in Kuopio and Järvenpää and since 1980 at the Parainen Organ festival.

 
Olli Porthan studied organ at the Sibelius Academy under Enzio Forsblom and under Jacques van Oortmerssen at the Sweelinck Conservatoire in Amsterdam. After receiving his diploma, he gave his debut recital at the Finlandia-hall in 1983. He received first prize in the 1980 Lahti organ competition. Porthan has given concerts in Finland and in the other Nordic Countries as well as in several European countries. He has made several radio recordings and performed on television, in addition to recording baroque organ works and chamber music.

Porthan has taught organ music at the Sibelius Academy since 1980 and as professor since 1988. He has acted as chairman for the Organum Society during 1986-1990. Porthan´s expertise has been widely used in various organ building projects (also the Kotka organ). Since 1992 Porthan has been artistic leader of the ”Janakkalan barokkikesä” music festival. He acted as leader of the Sibelius Academy Church Music Department in 1997- 2002.