The National Youth Orchestra of Canada (NYO Canada) has announced the winners of the 2026 Canada Council for the Arts Michael Measures Prizes. Two recipients are chosen each year to recognize exceptional talent and artistry in Canada’s next generation of classical musicians between the ages of 16 and 24.
2026 Canada Council for the Arts Michael Measures Prize Winners:
- First Prize ($25,000): Sabina Sandvoss, Cello (Alberta)
- Second Prize ($15,000): Davin Mar, Viola (British Columbia)
Audiences in Toronto and other cities in Ontario, as well as in Québec at the Domaine Forget International Festival, will be able to hear Sandvoss and Mar along with the rest of NYO Canada in concert.
The tour kicks off in Toronto’s Koerner Hall on July 18, where Sabina and Davin’s achievements will be celebrated, and both awards presented. The concert program features Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85, featuring Sabina as soloist with the NYO Canada orchestra. Mar’s prize also comes with performance and recital opportunities through the next season.
Also on the bill is the world premiere of a commissioned work by Toronto composer Liam Ritz.
LV caught up with the two prize winners for a chat.
Sabina Sandvoss
Cellist Sabina Sandvoss is a rising soloist and chamber musician. In 2025, she won First Prize at the Zara Nelsova Competition at the International Cello Festival of Canada, and Second Prize in the Canada Council for the Arts’ Michael Measures Prize. This year, she is first prize winner of the Michael Measures Prize. Sabina also won the Corcoran Concerto Competition at the Glenn Gould School, a prize that included her performance of Bloch’s Schelomo with the Royal Conservatory Orchestra at Koerner Hall during the 2025–26 season under conductor Earl Lee. Having earned a BMus in 2025, she currently studies with Hans Jørgen Jensen and Andrés Díaz towards an Artist Diploma in Performance, and performs on a cello handcrafted by her father, luthier Christopher Tilman Sandvoss.
Sabina Sandvoss performs Ligeti’s Sonata for Solo Cello in Koerner Hall in April 2026:
Sabina Sandvoss: The Interview
With a father who is alto a noted luthier, was playing a string instrument always in the cards for Sabina?
“My mom is a cellist,” Sandvoss says, “she’s a professional cellist. Since wombhood, I guess,” she laughs, “I was attending concerts. What daughter doesn’t want to be just like her mother?”
She was determined to follow in her footsteps.
“I remember distinctly asking her for a cello and to start playing when I was at least three, and it could have been before. I received a cello when I was four,” Sabina recalls.
She began her studies with her mother, Beth Root Sandvoss, a Calgary cellist and educator. Beth is a founding member of the Land’s End Ensemble, and a faculty member at the Mount Royal University Conservatory. Sabina also attended the Mount Royal University precollege program.
“My dad’s also a violist, violinist, and a luthier,” she adds. “It made it inspiring at a young age. I obviously started when I was very young, and it was one of my favourite things to do.”
That’s not to say that she always had her heart set on a career in music. “When I was a child, I also wanted to move to China and be a zookeeper for pandas,” she laughs.
As she grew older, however, the cello was an obvious choice. “I never questioned my path.”
Her Michael Measures win this year is historic — it’s the first time the top prize has gone to a female cellist.
“It did surprise me, actually,” she says. “I remember reading that and thinking oh my gosh.” As she points out, there have been plenty of female musicians who have won first prize in the past.
She’s enjoyed her time with NYO Canada last year. “I had a really, really lovely time last year. The tour was amazing.” She loved the travel, being on the road with friends, and mentioned that the tour had left the young musicians with plenty of free time to socialize. They also got to see much of the country. “I had an amazing experience. The staff were great.”
In 2025, she was the second prize winner. “I’m kind of grateful that I got second prize first.” She notes that last year’s first prize winner, violinist Justin Saulnier, had a few years with NYO Canada under his belt. He’d served as the orchestra’s concertmaster for the 2022 tour.
“He was honestly a role model for me,” she says, noting his kind and welcoming nature. “I was able to play chamber music with him.” The two were part of a string quartet. “I’ll hopefully do just as good a job, and also being part of the orchestra community.”
At the 2025 NYO Canada tour kick off, Saulnier popped a string on his violin in the middle of playing, and calmly continued as his neighbour in the orchestra offered hers.
“I was thinking about that,” Sandvoss says, “and I thought, if that happened to me, the soloist is on the opposite side from the cellists, I would have to stop.”
She has some definite plans for the near future.
“I would love to continue doing competitions. I think that’s the biggest thing for me right now.”
She’ll be continuing her studies in Toronto, and ideally continuing with a Master’s degree after that.
Competitions can help her progress along the way. “You never know what’s going to happen. If I throw my hat in the ring many times, something good will come of it,” she says.
For now, she’s happy about the Michael Measures win as a good steps. “It’s so beneficial,” she says of the competition experience. “It’s such a good push for yourself. It teaches you so many things.” That includes learning various pieces, as well as how to be very accurate, and to record yourself for video auditions. “It really teaches you so much. That’s sort of what I would like to tackle.”
She sees chamber music as well as solo work on her horizon. “I [would] definitely love to. Me and my brother have big aspirations to form a quartet together, with a few of our friends.” He’s currently studying in Switzerland.
For now, she’s looking forward to this summer and the NYO Canada tour.
“Definitely, the concerto. I think that’s going to be such an amazing experience.” She had not performed the Elgar Cello Concerto before. The orchestra and its staff, including Principal Youth Conductor Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser, are another perk. “The conductor, he’s amazing.”
A few friends are also members of NYO Canada, either returning or coming for the first time. “I’m looking forward to having the time with colleagues and peers.” She wants to learn as much from the faculty as possible, while making as many connections as she can this summer.
Davin Mar
Vancouver native Davin Mar began playing the viola at the age of four. He’s the first violist to receive the Michael Measures Prize. As a high school student, he was a member of the Sequoia Quartet at the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra School of Music, and performed in the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra, including as a soloist. In 2018, Davin won the Junior Division of the American Viola Society Solo Competition in Los Angeles. Davin is currently an undergraduate student at the Curtis Institute of Music, studying with Hsin-Yun Huang and Ed Gazouleas. Davin has served as principal violist of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra, and is also a passionate chamber musician.
Davin Mar performs Rebecca Clarke’s Viola Sonata with pianist Elena Jivaeva in December 2023:
Davin Mar: The Interview
How did he choose the viola?
“At the age of four, I don’t think I was the most decisive about what instrument I was playing,” he says.
He studied at the Vancouver Academy of Music, and as it happened, the violin class was full. Hence, the viola. Davin came to learn that the instrument has its own charms.
“I’ve always thought of the violin as a firework, and the viola as a fine bottle of wine,” he explains. “It’s warm, it’s introverted, it’s a beautiful instrument. It kind of goes unnoticed.”
In a sense, he feels a kind of kinship with his instrument.
“It’s very much my character in a way. It can be kind of quiet, and kind of hidden, but it has a lot to say,” Davin says. “It’s the most naturally suited to the human voice.”
The viola has seen a growth of interest as a solo instrument in recent years.
“A lot of the repertoire for viola is 20th century and 21st century,” he notes.
He’s the first violist to receive a Michael Measures Prize, which seems remarkable, given that the first was awarded back in 2011.
“It does surprise me a little bit, but the viola is not a well known solo instrument.” Davin points out that it can be difficult to play viola in a competitive setting, where there are so many violinists and cellists. “The violin and cello have so much repertoire.” It’s also a body of repertoire with certain characteristics, as he notes. “It’s very showy and extroverted music that people are attracted to,” he says. “It can be a struggle for violists to have that [kind of] spotlight.”
It makes his recent win all the more impressive. “I’m honoured to be chosen.”
The prize comes with a number of elements, including performance opportunities.
“The prize money is incredibly generous. I’m going to put a lot of that towards my musical career,” he says. Travel expenses alone for competitions, auditions, or performance, can be onerous.
For now, he’s looking forward to this summer with NYO Canada.
“It’s a wonderful experience to play with NYO Canada,” he says. “I’m looking forward to performing with Canadian musicians this summer.” The tour also offers invaluable experience. “The opportunities to interact with new audiences.”
Naturally, the buzz surrounding the Michael Measures Prizes, and the tour, have their own benefits. “It’s wonderful and I’m really grateful for that as well.”
He’s leaving his career options open for now.
“I love chamber music, I love orchestra, I love solo playing,” he says. “I think another reason that the viola is wonderful is that it has a lot to say in all of those environments.” It’s also a sound that most of the public still isn’t used to hearing on its own.
“I just got back from the UK,” he says. “I was there for some masterclasses and a festival.” He’ll be performing on a concert tour in Europe before the NYO Canada season launches.
Perhaps best of all, he’s looking forward to making connections this summer that will persist throughout his career.
“It’s never good bye forever,” he says. “You always see people again.”
Concerts: NYOC on Tour
Sabina Sandvoss and Davin Mar will be playing alongside the 88 members of NYO Canada on this summer’s Canadiana Tour.
2026 Canadiana Tour Highlights
- Toronto — July 18 | Koerner Hall *
- Stratford — July 19 | The Avondale (Stratford Summer Music Festival)
- Parry Sound — July 22 | Stockey Centre (Festival of the Sound) *
- Kingston — July 23 | Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts *
- Ottawa — July 26 | Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre (Ottawa Chamberfest)
- Saint-Irénée — July 31 | Domaine Forget (Domaine Forget International Festival)
* Indicates a concert where Sabina Sandvoss will perform as the soloist in Elgar’s Cello Concerto.
Find other tour details, including the repertoire for each stop, and tickets, [HERE].
Are you looking to promote an event? Have a news tip? Need to know the best events happening this weekend? Send us a note.
#LUDWIGVAN
Get the daily arts news straight to your inbox.
Sign up for the Ludwig Van Toronto e-Blast! — local classical music and opera news straight to your inbox HERE.
- INTERVIEW | 2026 Michael Measures Prize Winners Sabina Sandvoss & Davin Mar - June 18, 2026
- PREVIEW | Toronto City Opera Caps Off Its 80th Anniversary Season With Offenbach’s Hilarious Orpheus In The Underworld - June 17, 2026
- FEATURE | Dr. Charlie Wall-Andrews: Scholar, Industry Executive, And Composer - June 17, 2026
