Donatella Flick Conducting Competition

23/09/2023

Huge congratulations to our 2016 winner Niklas Benjamin Hoffmann on his recent success 👏👏👏🥇

02/08/2023

Huge congratulations to our 2023 winner Nicolò Umberto Foron, who has just been awarded this year's Deutschlandfunk prize for talented young artists - the first conductor to receive the award. Previous winners include violinists Julia Fischer and Patricia Kopatchinskaja, and cellist Leonard Elschenbroich.

Nicolò will receive his award at the end of the month during Musikfest Bremen. His prize includes a new CD recording, and a performance with Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin (DSO Berlin) at the festival next summer.

Bremen/Berlin (MH) – Der italienisch-deutsche Dirigent Nicolò Umberto Foron wird mit dem diesjährigen Förderpreis Deutschlandfunk für hochbegabte Nachwuchskünstler ausgezeichnet. Das teilten der Sender und das Musikfest Bremen am Dienstag mit. Der Musiker (Jahrgang 1998) überzeugte [...]

01/08/2023

Always great to see our alumni flourishing. 2021 Finalist Martijn Dendievel has a busy 2023/24 season ahead.

I'm delighted to announce my next season, which features many exciting debuts - fantastic orchestras combined with interesting repertoire. I couldn't be happier! All dates can be found on my website at www.martijndendievel.com

I hope to see you at one of these places! Until then - Vacation mode is now officially ON :-)

17/07/2023

Congratulations to 2021 finalist Martijn Dendievel, who has been announced as Chief Conductor of Hofer Symphoniker in Germany.

13/07/2023

Huge congratulations to Felix Mildenberger (winner 2018) and his wife on their marriage. 🎊

30/03/2023

Last week he made the Final of our competition, this week he's the new Junior Fellow in conducting at RNCM Conducting! Congratulations on an amazing week Jakub Przybycień 👏👏

30/03/2023

As 2021 winner Julio G. Vico quite literally hands on the baton to our new 2023 winner Nicolò Foron, it's wonderful to see him starting a new chapter with new representation.

And also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

29/03/2023

Thanks to Classic FM for a great write up: https://www.classicfm.com/artists/london-symphony-orchestra/nicolo-foron-donatella-flick-conducting/

Nicolò Umberto Foron has gone viral. 😁

Watch as Nicolò Foron brings Berlioz, Grieg and Wagner to life with power and punch, in this prestigious biennial conducting competition...

28/03/2023

A lovely feature about our founder Donatella Flick and the competition just published in the Reader's Digest:

Rosie Pentreath talks with the founder of the iconic conducting competition that bears her name, Donatella Flick, as the winner of the competition’s 17th instalment is announced

24/03/2023

In case you missed it last night, here's briefly what happened at the Final round...

Congratulations to Nicolò Foron, winner of the 17th Donatella Flick Conducting Competition and new London Symphony Orchestra Assistant Conductor.

23/03/2023

Donatella Flick and HRH The Duke of Kent congratulate 2023 winner Nicolò Umberto Foron.

Bravo Nicolò, absolutely thrilled for you, and can't wait to see what you get up to with London Symphony Orchestra!

📸 Mark Allan

23/03/2023

🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁
The winner is...
Nicolò Foron
👏👏👏👏👏👏

📸 Mark Allan

23/03/2023

That's it - they can do no more! Who will it be... Stay tuned to the live stream (and here, of course).

You can vote for YOUR winner too: https://lso.co.uk/vote - does not count towards the result, just for fun!

📸 Mark Allan

23/03/2023

Donatella Flick, the driving force behind this competition, who founded it 33 years ago and is still very much at the helm. Pictured with jury member Antonio Pappano, soon to become London Symphony Orchestra Chief Conductor Designate, who we are delighted to have join us for the final day of competition.

Grateful thanks to all the jury members who provide both their time and wealth of experience for free; each year our competitors gain so much from the jury’s wisdom and guidance:
David Alberman (LSO Principal Second Violin)
Sally Beamish (composer)
Juliana Koch (LSO Principal Oboe)
Martyn Brabbins (conductor)
Sian Edwards (conductor)

📸 Mark Allan

23/03/2023

Our 2023 finalists at work with London Symphony Orchestra earlier today: Nicolò Foron, Jirí Habart, Jakub Przybycień. Whatever the result, we offer our sincere congratulations to all three conductors, who we look forward to seeing flourish in their careers.

📸 Mark Allan

23/03/2023

We're almost an hour into the Final - each of the conductors has had a turn on the podium to conduct Wagner's Prelude to Tristan and Isolde and now they will each take movements of Grieg's Peer Gynt Suites Nos 1 & 2. If you're watching at home here are some useful links:

🎥 Watch the stream (also available on demand): https://www.medici.tv/en/concerts/donatella-flick-lso-conducting-competition-2023-finals

📄 Read the programme notes and biographies of the conductors: https://lso.shorthandstories.com/dfcc-2023/index.html

🗳 Vote for your winner! https://lso.co.uk/vote (the audience vote does not count - just for fun!)

📸 Presenter James Jolly in the studio © Mark Allan

23/03/2023

Studio lit and ready! The Final will be live from 6.50pm BST tonight on medici.tv. Who will be the winner? https://www.medici.tv/en/concerts/donatella-flick-lso-conducting-competition-2023-finals

23/03/2023

Competition founder Donatella Flick on why we need conducting competition to support young artists more than ever:

What are the qualities that make a great conductor? It’s something that has been debated for years, brought into focus recently not least because of Cate Blanchett’s award-winning performance as fictional maestra Lydia Tár. Despite what you may think of the film, it has reignited debate about w...

23/03/2023

Finals Day! Here's what happens today:

Last night our three finalists – Jirí Habart, Nicolò Foron and Jakub Przybycień – drew lots to decide how the programme for the concert will be shared out. You can find the detail on our website: https://donatellaflickcompetition.com/2023-competition-day3-order

Today each finalist will have 50 minutes of rehearsal with the orchestra in each of the morning and afternoon sessions, and they can choose how to structure their time. The jury will observe the rehearsals.

At 7pm BST the Final Concert will begin, and will be streamed live on medici.tv (available on demand afterwards). At the end of the concert the jury will retire to make their decision, and the players of the London Symphony Orchestra also have a vote, which is taken into account. The winner will be announced on stage by competition founder Donatella Flick and HRH The Duke of Kent.

📸 Mark Allan

23/03/2023

Good morning, and welcome to Finals day! Let's start with a reminder of what happened during yesterday's semi-finals.

Ten conductors started the day. During the morning they rehearsed either Shostakovich Cello Concerto with soloist David Cohen or Mozart Clarinet Concerto with soloist Chris Richards - both London Symphony Orchestra Principals.

During the afternoon each conductor rehearsed Sally Beamish's Variations on a Theme by Benjamin Britten - a little bit of a pressure gig as the composer is on the jury!

At the end of the day the jury retired to discuss which three would be going through to today's Final.

Congratulations to all ten semi-finalists. The jury mentioned some truly excellent performances and were happy to have had a difficult decision to make!

📸 Mark Allan

22/03/2023

Huge congratulations to the three finalists who have been chosen from the ten taking part today:





The three finalists will be taking part in tomorrow night's final concert, live streamed from 7pm BST on .tv

22/03/2023

Just announced: the three conductors who will be this year's finalists -
Jakub Przybycień
Nicolò Foron
Jiří Habart

Congratulations to all three, and indeed to those seven who did not get through today. The jury was impressed with every conductor they have seen.

Tomorrow the three finalists will rehearse with the London Symphony Orchestra during the day, and you can watch the final concert live on medici.tv tomorrow at 7pm BST.

22/03/2023

A few moments from this morning's session, during which our conductors each got to work with either our cello or clarinet soloists - David Cohen and Chris Richards - on the Shostakovich or Mozart concertos.

22/03/2023

Absolutely love these photos of yesterday's 20 conductors 'behind the scenes'. It was such a warm, friendly supportive atmosphere; wonderful to see everyone relaxed and happy.

📸 Mark Allan

22/03/2023

Today 10 conductors will each get 30 minutes with the London Symphony Orchestra, to rehearse three works: Shostakovich's Cello Concerto with soloist David Cohen, Mozart Clarinet Concerto with soloist Chris Richards and Sally Beamish's Variations on a Theme of Benjamin Britten.

At the end of the day the jury will choose three conductors to take part in the final tomorrow evening.

📸 The 2023 jury: David Alberman (Chair - LSO Principal Second Violin), Sally Beamish (composer), Juliana Koch (LSO Principal Oboe), Sian Edwards (conductor) and Martyn Brabbins (conductor). Tomorrow they will be joined by Sir Antonio Pappano.

Photo by Mark Allan.

22/03/2023

Good morning and welcome to day 2 of the 17th edition of the Donatella Flick Conducting Competition. We start today by looking back to yesterday, when 20 conductors joined us to conduct the London Symphony Orchestra. At the end of the day 10 were chosen to take part today.

📸 Mark Allan

21/03/2023

Congratulations to all 20 conductors who took part today. It has been such a warm friendly competition so far and wonderful to see everyone supporting each other.

21/03/2023

Congratulations to the ten conductors progressing to tomorrow's second round:

Agata Zając
Aleksandra Melaniuk
Félix Benati
Jakub Przybycień
Jiří Habart
Zofia Kiniorska
Nicolas Kierdorf
Nicolò Foron
Nathanaël Iselin
Matthew Rhodes

Chair of the Jury David Alberman congratulated all 20 conductors on a fascinating day in which they all showed extraordinary talent and very different style. Well done and thank you everyone.

21/03/2023

Keeping a close eye on the proceedings is competition founder Donatella Flick. Mrs Flick founded the competition in 1990 to offer much-needed support to young conductors at the start of their careers. As you can see, she remains at the helm more than 30 years later.

21/03/2023

At the jury table... can't zoom in enough to read any notes... 🧐

21/03/2023

Welcome to day 1 of the 2023 competition! Each of the 20 conductors will get time on the podium today, and 10 will be selected to progress to day 2 tomorrow.

Chair of the Jury David Alberman welcomed everyone to LSO St Luke's with some wise words: "we aren't looking for the perfect conductor today, because they don't exist. We are looking for potential."

He also revealed that conductor Martyn Brabbins, also on the Jury, was a competitior in the first edition in 1990 and did not win! So while there can only be one winner this year, it's certainly not the end for those who aren't.

21/03/2023

Good morning! Day 1 of competition begins, everyone has arrived safely. and find time for discussions before we begin.

20/03/2023

What's it like being in the orchestra playing for a conducting competition? London Symphony Orchestra First Violin Maxine Kwok gives some perspective on what each conductor brings when they get their moment on the podium.

17/03/2023

On Tuesday the Chair of the Jury David Alberman and competition founder Donatella Flick drew the order of appearance in the first round next week on Tuesday 21 March.

The order as drawn can be read here: https://donatellaflickcompetition.com/2023-competition-day-1-order

16/03/2023

François-Xavier ROTH, conductor, joint winner of the competition in 2000, on why it was so important for his career.

16/03/2023

This time next week we will be close to finding out who the winner of the 2023 competition is. Over the last month we've been posting little introductions to each competitor, and here is how you can watch the competition final as it unfolds and support your winner: https://www.medici.tv/en/concerts/donatella-flick-lso-conducting-competition-2023-finals

The competition final kicks off at 7pm BST sharp on medici.tv, hosted by James Jolly.

And for all the news from rounds 1 and 2 on Tuesday and Wednesday, follow us here on Facebook, on Twitter or Instagram.

London Symphony Orchestra

15/03/2023

The last, but by no means the least, of our 20 competitors for 2023 is Clara Maria Bauer, 29, from Austria 🇦🇹

Clara studied at MDW - Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien, graduating in 2020. She founded the virtuoso chamber orchestra the Alma Mahler Philharmonie in 2021.

Find out more about Clara and watch her video introduction: https://donatellaflickcompetition.com/clara-maria-bauer

📸 Natalie Paloma

30/10/2020

The shortlist of 20 young conductors taking part in the 16th Competition next spring has been announced. You can find full details on the website at https://donatellaflickcompetition.com/news

We have our first Norwegian and also identical twins competing against each other to take the top prize, alongside 17 other young conductors from across Europe.

 NEWS Friday 16 October, 2020Donatella Flick Conducting Competition announces 2021 Contestants2021 CandidatesFelix Benati24, FranceTeresa Riveiro Bohm30, Austria, Spain (dual national)Martijn Dendievel24, BelgiumNathaniel Efthimiou28, FinlandKa Hou Fan30, PortugalNicolo Foron22, Germany, Italy (dua...

29/07/2020

With just over two weeks to go before the deadline for submitting applications to enter the 2021 Donatella Flick Conducting Competition, we've launched a new website. Find out how to enter the Competition, the Competition's history, it's past winners and it's founder, Donatella Flick at https://www.donatellaflickcompetition.com

Welcome to the website for the Donatella Flick Conducting Competition. Founded in 1990 by Donatella Flick, the Competition aims to support young conductors at the start of their careers. It is Presented biennially in partnership with the London Symphony Orchestra.

16/06/2020