Many emotions
Alumnus Claudio Novati wins 3rd prize at the German Conducting Award
The series of successes of the "Weimar Conducting Forge" continues: last weekend, the former conducting student of the University of Music FRANZ LISZT Weimar, Claudio Novati, won the 3rd prize of 5,000 euros at the international German Conducting Award, the former German Conducting Prize. The 1st prize was secured by the conductor Dayner Tafur-Díaz from Peru, the 2nd prize went to Nathanaël Iselin (France).
"I am very happy for Claudio, we are very proud of him," says his former Weimar principal professor Nicolás Pasquet also on behalf of his colleague Prof. Ekhart Wycik. "The competition from all over the world was very tough and it was a very nice success."
Out of more than 230 original applications, six conductors reached the semi-finals, three of them the final. As a special feature and as the only competition, the German Conducting Award considers both opera and concert in the repertoire. It is organised by the German Music Council in partnership with the Cologne Philharmonic, the Cologne Opera, the Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne and the WDR Symphony Orchestra.
"I am still overwhelmed by the many emotions of the last few days," says Claudio Novati, who works as Kapellmeister at the Landestheater Linz. "The experiences I was able to gather in Cologne have had a profound effect on me personally and musically. I would also like to thank my professors Nicolás Pasquet and Ekhart Wycik for their help before and during the competition."
In the competition final, Novati conducted Beethoven's Egmont Overture with the WDR Symphony Orchestra and the "Smuggler's Quintet" from the opera Carmen by Georges Bizet with members of the Cologne Opera ensemble and the Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne.
In its current form, the German Conducting Award has been held every two years since 2017 - and each time, prizes have also gone to students of the Weimar University of Music. In 2017 Dominik Beykirch won a 2nd prize, in 2019 Gábor Hontvári also secured a 2nd prize. In 2021, Martijn Dendievel was awarded 1st prize.
Claudio Novati has already established himself as one of the rising conductors of his generation. The conductor, who comes from Como in Italy, is currently in his fourth season as Kapellmeister at the Landestheater / Bruckner Orchester Linz. Prior to that, he gained diverse and valuable experience at the opera houses in Heidelberg and Hof and as a lecturer at the University of Music FRANZ LISZT in Weimar. He has also worked as an assistant and continuo player with Ton Koopman, Helmuth Rilling, Christina Pluhar, Konrad Junghänel and Gotthold Schwarz.
He is a laureate of several international competitions (including the German Conducting Award 2023, Concorso Forcolin 2023, MDR Conducting Competition 2019). In addition, he was funded by the Conductors' Forum of the German Music Council from 2019 to 2023 and secured his place at the forefront of the new generation of conductors in 2021 with his inclusion in the artist list "Maestros of Tomorrow". From 2013 to 2019, he was a scholarship holder of the Cusanuswerk music promotion programme.
Novati has performed with orchestras such as the MDR Symphony Orchestra Leipzig, the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, the Bruckner Orchestra Linz, the Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne, the Robert Schumann Philharmonic Orchestra Chemnitz and the Philharmonic Orchestra Heidelberg. The versatile artist studied conducting, organ, church music, choral conducting and composition at the University of Music FRANZ LISZT Weimar as well as the State Conservatory of Music in his hometown of Como with Prof. Nicolás Pasquet, Prof. Ekhart Wycik, Prof. Michael Kapsner and Prof. Enrico Viccardi.
[11.10.2023]