Indispensable support
Rodrigo Gonzalo Pandorfa Garrido receives the DAAD Prize 2025
The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), founded in 1925 as a joint institution of German universities and student bodies to foster international relations, has been shaping academic and cultural exchange in Germany for 100 years.
The DAAD Prize is endowed with 1,000 euros and gives a face to the many international students at this university every year: The prize is awarded to international students for outstanding academic and/or artistic achievements and for their outstanding intercultural commitment within and outside the university community.
The DAAD Prize 2025 was awarded to violin student Rodrigo Gonzalo Pandorfa Garrido during the enrollment ceremony on October 13. He began his musical training at the renowned Conservatorio de Música of the Universidad Mayor in Santiago de Chile and continued his studies in Weimar with Professor Kathrin ten Hagen-Riesenberg, earning a Bachelor of Music degree.
His impressive professional career includes engagements with the Thüringen Philharmonie Gotha-Eisenach, the Loh-Orchester Sondershausen, the Robert Schumann Philharmonie in Chemnitz, and an academic position at the Duale Orchesterakademie Thüringen at the Theater Altenburg-Gera and, more recently, at the Jenaer Philharmonie. His teachers particularly praise his stylistic range and his intense interest in music from before 1800.
“He enriches not only the musical world in the region, but also the community through his exemplary intercultural commitment,” says Ly Tran, head of the International Office at the Weimar University of Music. “At the university, he is known as an indispensable pillar of various ensembles, where he creates an inspiring and positive working atmosphere.”
Rodrigo Gonzalo Pandorfa Garridois also an assistant in student services, supports Erasmus students, and helps with teaching rehearsals and entrance exams. In his home country of Chile, he is involved in supporting youth orchestras and organizing master classes and concerts. As a true ambassador of music, he helps bring cultures closer together.
[27 October 2025]