Honor for Nicolás Pasquet
Former conducting professor receives the Würth Prize from Jeunesses Musicales Germany
On August 6, Nicolás Pasquet—one of today’s most influential conductors and educators—was honored with the Würth Prize from Jeunesses Musicales Deutschland (JMD). The prize, sponsored by the Würth Foundation, is endowed with 25,000 euros. Pasquet was honored for his exemplary conducting style, “free of any ‘maestro’ airs and graces,” as well as his conviction that working with youth orchestras is the best training ground for talented conductors, according to Jeunesses Musicales Deutschland, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year
“Nicolás Pasquet has inspired young musicians and, at the same time—with youth orchestras serving as the ideal learning environment and sounding board—has guided a new generation of conductors in how to ignite this spark of musical inspiration from their podium,” said JMD President Johannes Freyer in his tribute to the award winner. The laudatory speech was delivered by Martijn Dendievel, chief conductor of the Symfonieorkest Vlaanderen—who was audibly enthusiastic himself: “Nicolás Pasquet deserves this award because he has dedicated his life not only to music, but above all to the people who, through music, have been able to grow, find their own path, and develop their personalities.”
The award was presented by Johannes Freyer and Johannes Schmalzl, Chairman of the Board of the Würth Foundation. Approximately 950 guests attended the award ceremony at the Carmen Würth Forum at the Würth Group’s headquarters in Künzelsau, Baden-Württemberg. In the concert that followed, featuring the Hesse State Youth Symphony Orchestra, Pasquet’s artistic credo of “Let them shine” came to life in an impressive way: Under the baton of assistant conductor Leonard Wacker and the award recipient, the young musicians performed and captivated the audience with Johannes Brahms’s Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80, and Béla Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra, BB 123.
Nicolás Pasquet, born in 1958 in Montevideo, Uruguay, taught as a professor of orchestral conducting at the Franz Liszt University of Music in Weimar from 1994 to 2024. The fact that Weimar is today regarded as one of Europe’s most important training grounds for conductors is inextricably linked to his work. His career began in the 1980s with awards at major conducting competitions. This was followed by ten years at the helm of professional orchestras as well as—driven by the same artistic conviction—engagements as a youth orchestra conductor. Today, Pasquet teaches at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía in Madrid and serves as International Chair of Conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.
The Würth Prize of Jeunesses Musicales Germany has been awarded annually since 1991 to artists or ensembles who have rendered outstanding service to the promotion of young musical talent and to the JMD ideals of authenticity, responsibility, and solidarity. Sponsored by the Würth Foundation, the prize is specially recognized by the German Music Council and is one of the most prestigious awards in the German music scene. Previous recipients include figures such as conductor Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla (2024) and violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja (2019), ensembles such as the Notos Quartet (2022), and projects such as the Berlin Philharmonic’s Education Program (2004).
The non-profit Würth Foundation was established in 1987 by Prof. Dr. h. c. mult. Reinhold and Carmen Würth in Künzelsau and supports projects in the fields of education and science, integration and social affairs, as well as art and culture. JMD is the German section of Jeunesses Musicales International (JMI). It was founded during World War II to promote exchanges among young musicians.
[Press release from the Würth Foundation, August 6, 2026]