Record registrations for the International Conducting Award dedicated to the figure of Guido Cantelli: 241 applications to participate.
The “Guido Cantelli” Award had 241 applications for participation
It is a record for the 13th edition of the “Guido Cantelli” international conducting prize in Novara: in fact, 241 applications for participation arrived from young conductors from all over the world, aspiring candidates, all between 18 and 35 years, to take up the legacy of the Novara orchestra conductor Guido Cantelli. A success that places the Cantelli Prize among the most authoritative competitions dedicated to orchestral conducting, with a prize pool that exceeds 25,000 euros in total, with six different juries and a final, which will be held on 6 October at the Coccia Theater in Novara, open to the public.
Requests from all over the world
Applications were received from all five continents, from one side of the globe to the other: from Argentina to New Zealand, from the United States to Japan, from Brazil and Chile to the Republic of Korea and Singapore. But also from African countries such as Morocco and South Africa, to European countries – as well as Italy of course – such as Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, up to the nations today at the center of the international geopolitical crisis such as Palestine, Iran , Israel, Russia and Ukraine. In total, 44 nationalities will be represented in this first phase which will lead to the selection by the jury of 18 candidates who will access the semi-finals, hosted from 3 to 5 October at the Fondazione Cariplo Auditorium in Milan.
The section for composers also doubles the questions
Even the call aimed at composers of all ages and nationalities, now in its second edition, has collected more than double the applications received in 2022. The Award, inspired by the artistic director Corinne Baroni, aims to give attention and space not only to young talents , also to new music, respecting Guido Cantelli’s interest in new compositions. There are 67 scores sent and, also in this case, from different countries such as Canada, Sweden, Guatemala, Portugal as well as Italy, Spain and Poland. Among these compositions, one will be chosen which will be performed during the final stages of the Cantelli Prize by the candidates who will thus compete with a contemporary score.
The next stop in June
The next stop will be on June 15th when the 18 finalists will be nominated by the jury chaired by Günter Neuhold, internationally renowned conductor, and composed of Riccardo Frizza (Artistic Advisor Premio Cantelli, Musical Director of the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Art Group – HRSO ; Musical director of the Donizetti Opera festival in Bergamo), Corrado Rovaris (Jack Mulroney Music Director of the Philadelphia Opera Company), Numa Bischof Ullmann (Superintendent of the Luzerner Sinfonieorchester; Superintendent and Artistic Director of the “Le Piano Symphonique” Festival in Lucerne with Martha Argerich “pianiste associée”), Mauro Bucarelli (Artistic Secretary of the National Academy of Santa Cecilia), Didier de Cottignies (Artistic Director of the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra) and Cristina Rocca (Vice President The Richard and Mary L. Gray Chair of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association – artistic administration).
A contribution for the Award from the Ministry of Culture
The brilliant results of the registration phase combine with the excellent news that has arrived in recent weeks regarding the Award. The Ministry of Culture has, in fact, included the Cantelli Prize in the 90 Special Projects for Musical Activities 2024, among the 340 applications received from all over Italy, attributing a specific contribution of approximately 17,000 euros. This special contribution is a further demonstration of the attested artistic and planning quality of the Award and a sign of national and international interest.
Guido Cantelli, a meteor who illuminated the most important concert halls
Guido Cantelli was a meteor on the podium, who illuminated the most important concert halls and theaters in the world with his smile, professionalism and qualities of genius for just over ten years. Born in Novara on 27 April 1920, he made his debut at the Coccia Theater in his city in 1943: and in the same hall on 17 November 1956, he conducted his last concert, with the Orchestra of the Teatro alla Scala of which he had been appointed the previous day permanent director. A week later, on November 23, the plane that was supposed to take him once again to New York crashed into the ground immediately after takeoff from Orly airport in Paris. Recognized by Arturo Toscanini as his most authentic heir, Cantelli represents for Italy the link between the late romantic conducting school and the modern director, whose repertoire also ranges in ancient music and becomes the standard bearer of contemporary music. To honor his memory, in 1961 the Provincial Tourist Board of Novara established the “Guido Cantelli” International Award for young orchestra conductors. After a break that lasted 40 years, thanks to the commitment of Corinne Baroni who was then appointed director of the Teatro Coccia in Novara, in 2020 the Cantelli Prize restarted its journey with two editions (2020 president of the jury Donato Renzetti and 2022 president of the jury Sebastian Schwarz) who confirmed the story, presenting among the selected many talents who today are having a career on the rise such as Tianyi Lu (winner of the XI edition), Bertie Baigent, Diego Ceretta, Dmitry Matvienko, Cristian Spătaru and Toby Thatcher.
The XIII edition of the Guido Cantelli International Orchestra Conducting Award is organized by the Carlo Coccia Theater Foundation of Novara in collaboration with the City of Novara, the Milan Symphony Orchestra and the University of Eastern Piedmont, with the contribution of the Ministry of Culture, with the patronage of the Piedmont Region, Local Tourist Promotion Agency of the Province of Novara, with the support of the Banca Popolare di Novara Foundation.
