The jury of the 10th International Violin Competition Leopold Mozart selected Julen Zelaia from Spain as the winner of the special prize for the best interpretation of the commissioned work, Soleos, by Elzbieta Sikora. Having not made it into the finals of the competition, the Spanish violinist decided to withdraw from performing the work at the prizewinners’ concert in Augsburg, ignoring the competition rules accepted by all participants. He thus refused the prize and left Augsburg. Read More →

Nour Ayadi

Moroccan pianist Nour Ayadi,19, has won the 2019 Cortot Prize in Paris at the end of the Concours du Diplôme Supérieur de Concertiste at the Alfred Cortot School of Music. Ayadi is the first female Cortot Prize winner since the creation of this competition. Read More →

James Gaffigan

Das Luzerner Sinfonieorchester hat für die Konzertsaison 2019/20 ein vielseitiges Programm vorgestellt. »Die Zusammenarbeit mit Chefdirigent James Gaffigan, erstklassigen Gastdirigenten und Solisten sowie Tourneen an renommierte Konzertorte unterstreichen die Qualität und internationale Ausstrahlung des Klangkörpers », steht in der Pressemitteilung. Read More →

The 18th edition of the International Music Competition of Montreal was dedicated to the violin and ended with American violinist Hao Zhou, 22, winning First Prize. Second Prize went to Johanna Pichlmair, 29, from Austria, Third Prize to Fumika Mohri, 25 (Japan/Germany). Read More →

Michael Tilson Thomas
Photo: SFS

Michael Tilson Thomas, 74, Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony, has withdrawn from all of his scheduled engagements from June 17 to Sept. 3, 2019, in order to undergo heart surgery, the SFS announced. Read More →

Kaoru Oe, Karisa Chiu & Joshua Brown
(c) Remy Franck

Artistic Director Linus Roth announced the names of the three finalists for the International Violin Competition Leopold Mozart in Augsburg: Joshua Brown (USA, *1999), Karisa Chiu (USA, *1999) and Kaoru Oe (Japan, *1994). Read More →

Daniel Barenboim
(c) Peter Adamik

Bis 2027 wird Daniel Barenboim Generalmusikdirektor der Berliner Staatsoper Unter den Linden bleiben, teilte der Dirigent zusammen mit dem Berliner Kultursenator Klaus Lederer am Dienstag mit. Sein derzeitiger Vertrag, der bis 31. Juli 2022 läuft, wurde um weitere fünf Jahre verlängert. Read More →

Following the announced departure of Serge Dorny for Munich, the Opera of Lyon, France, launched a recruitment procedure which led to a series of hearings last month. After examining the projects submitted, the jury decided not to select any of the shortlisted candidates. A new call for applications will be issued soon.

Susanna Mälkki

The Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra and Chief Conductor Susanna Mälkki, 50, have signed a new two-year agreement extending her term beyond 2021. The new agreement also includes an option for another two-year extension. Mälkki took over as Chief Conductor of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra in autumn 2016. Read More →

At this year’s Leopold Mozart Violin Competition in Augsburg, Spanish violinist Julen Zelaia (*1995) won the special prize for the best performance of the commissioned work for solo violin and recording, Soleos, by Polish composer Elzbieta Sikora. Read More →