HearSay Audio Prize 2026 Shortlist Announced

Congratulations to the artists behind the 20 shortlisted entries. There were entries from all around the world and pieces from 16 different countries made it onto the shortlist.

Every entry was created especially for the HearSay Audio Prize in the spirit of our renewal and this rewilding year. 

It was such a difficult task to create the shortlist. All pieces were listened to completely anonymously. Every single entry was listened to multiple times. These entries showed such bravery; there was vulnerability, there was playfulness, delight and adventurousness.  There was also heartache as favourite pieces of some of the shortlisting team that were just on the cusp of the collective voting didn't make it through. 

Congratulations to........

• "Keep on Stomping" Elena Dikomitis (Belgium)
• "Dick and Dick Tie" Rachel Cusick (Australia)
• "Nur wir Drei" ["Just the Three of Us"] Stephanie Müller-Frank (Switzerland)
• "If I Have to See It, You Have to See It Too" Melanie Bakewell (Australia)
• "Salt of Ulster - The Singers House" Conall McCauley (Northern Ireland - United Kingdom)
• "Bubbles" Giancomo Bagni & Veronica Lugaro (Italy)
• "Har Han Hele Tiden Stået Der?"  ["Has He Been Standing There All Along?" Mette Post Riggelsen w/Lasse Laurentius (Denmark)
• "The Grand Final" Mike Williams (Australia)
• "All This Is Real But Only I Have Heard It" Alyssa Moxley & Evdokia Noula (France & Greece)
• "Schmutz" Sarah Kramer (United States)
• "A Creek Love Story" Rob Law  (Australia) 
• "The Issue" Eva De Groote & Ruben Nachtergaele (Belgium)
• "Lotteries in Rondo Form" Catherine Boulle (South Africa)
• "Spaciada se Bregungia" M. Cristina Marras (Italy)
• "Bed Head Dead Sandwich" Jessie Graham (United States)
• "¿Dónde Está Mi crofono?" ["Where Is My Microphone?"] Tasha Sandoval (Colombia)
• "Broken Wings" Vivien Schütz (United States/Germany)
• "Monday" Åsa Secher (Sweden)

As one of the shortlisting judges commented "It was really notable how many of this year's entries were stunningly crafted short works about bodies, fertility and parenthood, life, death and survival. An arresting reflection of the world we are in right now, and of the power of sound to capture and tell those intimately complicated tales in new and unforgettable ways."

The results of the shortlist judging are now being finalised to identify the award winners. They will be invited to collect their award at the booked out HearSay Audio Festival in Kilfinane, Ireland from the 7th-10th May 2026, receiving flights, accommodation and festival passes. 

There will be an Overall award, a GanBearla award for pieces not in the English language, a Rising Award for an entrant under 21 or in full time education, plus category awards such as Human, Fearless and Zest - find out more here about the awards.