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THE WINNERS OF THE 2022 CARL NIELSEN INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION

The juries of the 2022 Carl Nielsen International Competition led by Noah Bendix-Balgley (violin), Yehuda Gilad (clarinet) and Karl-Heinz Schütz (flute), have announced the winners of this year’s competition at a prize ceremony in the Danish composer’s hometown of Odense.

FIRST PRIZE WINNERS

Violin – Joint First Prize:
Hans Christian Aavik (23) & Bohdan Luts (17)
Clarinet: Oleg Shebeta-Dragan (27)
Flute: Alberto Navarra (24)

Both first prize violin winners receive 5 000 euros, a recording deal with Orchid Classics (value 13 000 euros), solo guest appearances with top Nordic orchestras and a bow made by made by Duncan EMCK, donated by Ulf Eriksson Violiner.

Tbe Clarinet & Flute first prize winners each receive 12 000 euros, a recording deal with Orchid Classics and solo guest appearances with top Nordic Orchestras.

SECOND PRIZE WINNERS

Clarinet: Ann Lepage /25)
Flute: Seohyeon Kim (20)

Each second prize winner receives 10 000 euros

THIRD PRIZE WINNERS

Violin: Eun Che Kim (24)
Clarinet: Panagiotis Giannakas (21)
Flute: Alberto Acuna Almela (25)

Each third prize winner receives 7 500 euros

The Prize for Best Interpretation of a piece commissioned for the violin competition (1000 euros), was awarded to Hans Christian Aavik for his performance of Jesper Koch’s “Maze” and the Prize for Playing Around Nielsen (1000 euros each) was awarded to Jonathan Leibovitz (clarinet) and Violeta de los Angeles Gil Garcia (flute).

A Special Prize was awarded to Gerbrich Meijer (clarinet), offering a trip to the Buffet Crampon factory to choose and bring home a brand new clarinet, developed by Buffet Crampon and donated by Buffet Crampon and the Martin Fröst Foundation.

Additional prizes (1000 euros each) include the Odense Symphony Orchestra Prize awarded to Hans Christian Aavik (violin), Oleg Shebeta-Dragan (clarinet) and Seohyon Kim (flute) and the Junior Jury Prize awarded to Bohdan Luts (violin), Oleg Shebeta-Dragan (clarinet) and Seohyon Kim (flute).

Announcing the winners Competition President, Nikolaj-Szeps Znaider, commented:

“This competition has exceeded all our expectations in many ways. First and fore-most for the fact that we have four outstanding First Prize winners of exceptional musicality and individuality. Also for the overall high level of music making which we have heard from the many participants over the last ten days. Equally important has been the extraordinary sense of “togetherness” which we have seen and felt amongst the competitors – young musicians who have shown genuine warmth and support for each other both on and off-stage. The Carl Nielsen values of Excellence, Curiosity, Individuality and Community are the essence of what we strive to achieve in this competition and it is clear that Odense creates that special environment for young musicians to flourish. We wish every participant the very best for the future.”

BRIEF BIOGRAPHIES OF THE FOUR PRIZE WINNERS:

Hans Christian Aavik studied at the Tallinn Music High School, the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts under Erik Schumann and at the Musik und Kunst Privatuniversität der Stadt Wien where he studies with Julian Rachlin. He has appeared as a soloist with the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra and the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra and the Jyväskylä Sinfonia and released his debut CD in 2021 on Pilw Records.

Bohdan Luts studied at the Krushelnytska Music School in Lviv, the Lysenko Music School in Kiev and the International Menuhin Music Academy. His teachers have included Oleg Kaskiv, Renaud Capuçon, Olga Korinets, Yaroslava Kataryna and Maria Futorska. He has played with the Lviv National Symphony Orchestra and the INSO Orchestra and has participated in the Gstaad Menuhin Festival and the Bellerive Music Festival as well as giving recitals in Ukraine, Switzerland and Italy.

Oleg Shebeta-Dragan studied at the National Music Academy of Ukraine with Roman Vovk, the Musikhochschule Lübeck with Reiner Wehle and now studies at the same institution with Jens Thoben. He has occupied the principal clarinet chair of the National Presidential Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine and of the I Culture Orchestra in Poland.

Alberto Navarra studied at the Ghedini Conservatory in Cuneo under Maurizio Valentini, the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome with Andreo Manco and the Accademia Internazionale di Imola. At the Queen Sofia Academy in Madrid he was a scholarship student under Jacques Zoon and was decorated as the school’s most outstanding student. Alberto has made concerto appearances with Ensemble Albéniz and performed as a member of the Orchestra Haydn Bolzano, Orchestra Freixenet and Orchestra B Bruni della Città di Cuneo.

THE 2022 FINALISTS

TIMETABLE OF FINALS

Pre-final VIOLIN
Friday 8 April
19.30 – 22.00 CET

Concerto from the major violin repertoire
(Beethoven / Brahms / Dvořák / Korngold / Mendelssohn / Shostakovich 1 / Sibelius or Tchaikovsky)
—
Conductor: Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider
Copenhagen Philharmonic

Final CLARINET
Saturday 9 April
15.00 – 17.00 CET

Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in A major, K. 622 – 1st movement only
Nielsen: Clarinet Concerto, Op.57
—
Conductor: Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer
Copenhagen Philharmonic

Final FLUTE
Saturday 9 April
19.00- 21.30 CET

Busoni: Divertimento, Op.52, BV 285
Nielsen: Flute Concerto
—
Conductor: Daniela Musca
Odense Symphony Orchestra

Final VIOLIN
Sunday 10 April
14.00 – 16.30 CET

Nielsen: Violin Concerto, Op. 33
—
Conductor: Daniela Musca
Odense Symphony Orchestra

PRIZE CEREMONY
for Violin, Flute and Clarinet Competitions
Sunday 10 April
18.00 – 19.15 CET

Conductor: Daniela Musca
Odense Symphony Orchestra

INTRODUCING THE 2022 COMPETITION

In 2022 the Carl Nielsen International Competition is expanding to include an integrated programme of informal mentoring, coaching and networking opportunities. Young musicians are invited to compete and participate in Espansiva!, especially created to support and develop the participants’ horizons in preparation for their future careers.

“The world has changed and this means that as competition organisers we should also adapt” said Competition President, Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider. “While our priority is of course to find the brightest and most talented young musicians of today, we also feel it is vital to create an off-stage experience that benefits all the participants who come to Odense.”

“There was already something particularly special about the atmosphere surrounding the competition in 2019. With three competitions running parallel to each other there was a buzz in the air and a feeling more akin to a festival. It is this atmosphere that we wish to build on by creating an accompanying platform where the participants have an opportunity to meet their future colleagues and the music world’s movers and shakers, all in an informal and relaxed setting.”

Excellence, Curiosity, Individuality and Community. These were the values that were core to Carl Nielsen in his approach to life and music and they are the same values that underpin the approach of both the Competition and Espansiva!

The Competition

Heading the jury of the three competitions in 2022 will be Noah Bendix-Balgley (violin), Karl-Heinz Schütz (flute) and Yehuda Gilad (clarinet). Artistic Advisors Emmanuel Pahud (flute) and Martin Fröst (clarinet) will actively participate in the selection process. Martin Fröst will also join the clarinet jury for the final round of the competition.

The participants will also benefit from the presence of Artistic Managers from all the top Nordic orchestras who will be involved as jury members, mentors or moderators, bringing with them high profile solo opportunities for the winners. First Prizes winners also receive €12.000 and a recording with the Odense Symphony Orchestra on Orchid Classics (equivalent to the value of €13.000).

As President it remains crucial for Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider that the Carl Nielsen Violin Competition retains the same level of transparancy and fairness as in previous years. Having taken on a part-time teaching professorship at the Danish Royal Academy of Music at the start of the pandemic, he has relinquished his position as Jury Head and will instead take on an active role, participating in talks and workshops and conducting the final round of the violin competition.

Applications from violinists, clarinetists and flautists under the age of thirty will open on 15 August and close on 30 October.

Espansiva!

Espansiva! takes its title from Carl Nielsen’s third symphony. It was the first work to bring the composer real international success. One German critic called it “a mighty animating call from the North” and Nielsen’s biographer wrote that it “represents that rare thing: the state of perfect health – mental and physical.”

“Placing a greater emphasis on musicians’ mental and physical health to prepare them for sustainable and fulfilling careers is the major driver behind this new initiative” commented Trudy Wright, professional development coach and curator of Espansiva!. “We have developed a series of interactive workshops for the participants, interwoven with inspiring talks by industry professionals, soloists and musicians who share invaluable advice along with their own experiences of the music business. Espansiva! takes inspiration from Carl Nielsen’s optimistic, outward-looking and fun-loving approach to music and life.”

Participants will be offered private accommodation for the entire period to ensure they are able to compete and engage in the full programme without additional expense. Every evening there will be the opportunity to relax and eat together at the Carl Nielsen Pop-Up Pub, where there will also be informal music-making and entertainment, as well as the valuable chance to connect with the leading industry professionals involved in the Competition.

The winners of the Carl Nielsen International Competition 2019

“Music is the sound of life”

-Carl Nielsen

The juries of the 2019 Carl Nielsen International Competition led by Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider (violin), Paul Meyer (clarinet) and Karl-Heinz Schütz (flute) have announced the winners of this year’s competition at a prize ceremony in the Danish composer’s hometown of Odense.

FIRST PRIZE WINNERS

Violin: Johan Dalene (18, Sweden)
Clarinet: Blaz Sparovec (24, Slovenia)
Flute: Joséphine Olech (24, France)

Each first prize winner receives 12.000 euros, a solo recording with the Odense Symphony Orchestra for international release on Orchid Classics and the chance to perform with up to 10 orchestras. Presenters so far confirmed are the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, New Japan Philharmonic, Orchestra Filharmonica di Torino, Oslo Philharmonic, Gothenburg Symphony, Norrköping Symphony Orchestra, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Swedish Chamber Orchestra, Swedish Radio Orchestra, Magdeburgische Philharmonie, Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, Aarhus Symphony, Copenhagen Phil and competition host the Odense Symphony Orchestra.

SECOND PRIZE WINNERS

Violin: Marie-Astrid Hulot (21, France)
Clarinet: Aron Chiesa (22, Italy)
Flute: Marianna Julia Żołnacz (19, Poland)

each receives 10.000 euros

THIRD PRIZE WINNERS

Violin: Anna Agafia Egholm (22, Denmark)
Clarinet: Víctor Díaz Guerra (22, Spain)
Flute: Rafael Adobas Bayog (21, Spain)

each receives 8.000 euros

Prize for Best Interpretation

The Prize for Best Interpretation (2.000 euros each) of a new piece commissioned for each competition was awarded to Anna Agafia Egholm for her performance of Sally Beamish’s Prealudium and Allegro for Solo Violin; Ann Lepage for her performance of Tobias Broström’s La noche oscura (The Dark Night) for solo clarinet and Rafael Adobas Bayog for his performance of Thomas Larcher, deep red, deep blue for flute and piano.

Odense Symphony Orchestra Prize

The Odense Symphony Orchestra Prize (1.500 euros each) – chosen by members of both the Odense Symphony Orchestra and Copenhagen Phil – was awarded to Johan Dalene (violin), Blaz Sparovec (clarinet) and Joséphine Olech (flute).

Junior Jury Prize

The Junior Jury Prize (1.500 euros each) – chosen by a jury of young people aged between 14 and 20 who all play violin, clarinet or flute themselves – was awarded to Anna Agafia Egholm (violin), Blaz Sparovec (clarinet) and Joséphine Olech (flute).

Photos of all the Competition winners and Prize Ceremony are available to download from the competition website

This year marked a new stage in the Carl Nielsen Competition’s history. By presenting all three competitions alongside each other, there has been a festival like atmosphere celebrated not only in Odense but throughout the world where audiences have been following the livestream on the world’s leading classical music channel, medici.tv. Over 700 000 videos have been viewed during the 10 days by audiences coming from 154 countries and over 5750 cities. Thanks to a dedicated competition website the online coverage has also included updates, blogs, behind-the-scene videos and replays of each round of the competition, all of which continues to be available on https://nielsen2019.medici.tv for a further three years.

Announcing the 2019 winners Competition President and Head of the Violin jury, Nikolaj-Szeps Znaider, commented: “We are delighted to have with us tonight three First Prize Winners who are, without doubt, talents of tomorrow. On behalf of all my fellow jury members I would like to congratulate Johan Dalene, Blaz Sparovec and Joséphine Olech. We look forward to following each of them as they continue their respective musical journeys and to supporting them in the coming years.”

“This year’s competition welcomed talented young musicians from 26 countries to Odense and the level of the competitors far exceeded our expectations. I think it goes without saying that we were looking for – and found – three winners who are ready to embark on top international careers but our search goes beyond that. Our aim is to nurture the next generation of young musicians by offering them an important platform to further their careers and an atmosphere of genuine support and warmth, which I hope we have created over the last ten days here in Odense.”

Paul Meyer, Head of the Clarinet jury, commented: “What has been special about this competition is the spirit in which each jury member has felt the same passion for encouraging the young musicians to find their own voice and individuality. Most important is to be convinced that what we do is essential in helping the next generation. These are the corner stones of musical life which are also true to the spirit of Carl Nielsen.”

Karl-Heinz Schütz, Head of the Flute jury and himself a previous winner of the Carl Nielsen Competition, commented: “This competition has always been different from other big competitions, because the composer Carl Nielsen’s music stands at its core. We wanted to take the Nielsen Challenge to the heart of the flute competition and asked the second round participants to create their own “new” piece for solo flute – inventing a musical collage entitled “Playing around Nielsen” which drew musical quotes from a cross spectrum of the flute repertoire. Our wish was to awaken the contestants curiosity in the hope that they would find their own personal and creative approach to music making and, to our surprise, many of the participants surpassed our expectations by far!”

https://nielsen2019.medici.tv

https://carlnielsencompetition.com

The Carl Nielsen International Competition Announces the 2019 Finalists!

“Music is the sound of life”

-Carl Nielsen

The juries of the Carl Nielsen International Competition for violin, flute and clarinet have announced the participants who will succeed to this weekend’s finals:

Violin

Johan Dalene (18, Sweden)
Anna Agafia Egholm (22, Denmark)
Marie-Astrid Hulot (21, France)

Clarinet

Aron Chiesa (22, Italy)
Víctor Díaz Guerra (22, Spain)
Blaz Sparovec (24, Slovenia)

Flute

Rafael Adobas Bayog (21, Spain)
Joséphine Olech (24, France)
Marianna Julia Żołnacz (19, Poland)

Both the music and spirit of Carl Nielsen are present at every level in this year’s competition. Always curious and individual, it was Nielsen who said “Give us something else; give us something new; for Heaven’s sake give us something bad, so long as we feel we are alive and active and not just passive admirers of tradition!!”

The 2019 Competition participants have taken up Nielsen’s challenge with alacrity and are proving themselves to be major new talents of which Carl Nielsen would be proud.

Audiences around the world can follow the entire competition – including streaming, replays, interviews and behind the scenes footage – on medici.tv and competition media partner, The Violin Channel, is streaming the full violin competition live online on Facebook.

https://nielsen2019.medici.tv

Carl Nielsen International Competition

29 MARCH, Friday
19:30 – 21:30 CET
VIOLIN FINALS (day 1)

A 19th or 20th century concerto of the candidate’s choice
—
Conductor: Yaron Traub
Odense Symphony Orchestra

30 MARCH, Saturday
15:00 – 17:00 CET
CLARINET FINALS

Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in A major, K. 622 1st movement
Nielsen: Clarinet Concerto, Op.57
—
Conductor: Anna Skryleva
Copenhagen Phil

30 MARCH, Saturday
19:30 – 21:00 CET
FLUTE FINALS

Mozart: Flute Concerto in G, KV 313
Nielsen: Flute Concerto, FS 119
—
Conductor: Anna Skryleva
Copenhagen Phil

31 MARCH, Sunday
14:00 – 16:30 CET
VIOLIN FINALS (day 2)

Nielsen: Violin Concerto, Op. 33
—
Conductor: Yaron Traub
Odense Symphony Orchestra

31 MARCH, Sunday
18:00 CET
PRIZE CEREMONY
for Violin, Flute and Clarinet Competitions

Background to the competition

The first Carl Nielsen International Competition was held in 1980 in Odense, birthplace of the Danish composer. After nearly four decades, the violin, clarinet and flute competitions have established themselves as some of the most demanding and rewarding in the world, each offering winners the chance to launch a significant international career.
Hosted by the Odense Symphony Orchestra, which accompanies the participants during the competition, particular emphasis is made on supporting young musicians in the same way that Carl Nielsen himself was supported as a young man. Born the seventh of twelve children to a poor family in 1865, Carl Nielsen learned the violin from an early age and wrote his first compositions aged 8, but was destined to life as an army musician until his talent was noticed by members of the Odense community. It was thanks to their encouragement and generosity that Nielsen applied and won a place at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, launching his career as one of the most important composer’s of the early 20th century.

Announcing the participants for the 2019 Carl Nielsen International Competition

66 young musicians ranging in age from 16 – 29 have been chosen as the participants for this year’s Carl Nielsen International Competition. For the first time, the violin, clarinet and flute competitions will take place concurrently in the composer’s hometown of Odense in Denmark, accompanied by the Odense Symphony Orchestra and broadcast internationally by medici.tv. A panel of experts including Competition President, Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider and Artistic Advisors, Martin Fröst and Emmanuel Pahud selected the 66 participants from 492 applications from around the world.

Announcing the 2019 competition, Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider commented “I cannot wait to welcome all musicians and my fellow-jury members to Odense and I think that Carl Nielsen would be both happy and proud if he could see all these young people flocking to his home-town in the name of music. Naturally, every competition’s aim is to discover the best young talent and ours is no exception but, in putting together the components for the 2019 Carl Nielsen International Competition, we have tried to focus on what we believe are the most crucial aspects from the perspective of the participating musicians. Namely – offering a platform and transparency.”

The 2019 Carl Nielsen International Competition will be launched on 21 March with a public concert performed by young musicians from the Carl Nielsen Academy Orchestra together with members of the Odense Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider. Joining them on stage as soloists in concertos by Mendelssohn and Bruch will be the 2016 violin competition winners, Jiyoon Lee and Liya Petrova. The aim of the project is to inspire more children and young people to play an instrument as a tool to self-expression and communication, and to strengthen the musical foundation of future musical life in Danish orchestras.

Tickets for the opening concert and all rounds of the competition can be purchased from the Odense Symphony Orchestra’s website

Click here for details of prizes, schedule and jury members.

The competition will be live streamed via Nielsen2019.medici.tv.

Participants for the Carl Nielsen International Competition 2019

Violin

12 women/7 men aged 16 to 28 from Austria, Canada, Denmark, France, Japan, Latvia, Poland, Russia, South Korea, and Sweden.

Clarinet

8 women/16 men aged 19 to 27 from Belarus, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, and Taiwan.

Flute

13 women/10 men aged 17-29 from China, Denmark, France, Hungary, Italy, Kazakhstan, Norway, Poland, Russia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the USA.

Click here for the contestants’ biographies.

As transparency is essential to this competition, we wish to point out that one of the participants who has been selected for the violin competition is represented by Nordic Artists Management. However, it is important to note that Nordic Artist’s involvement in the competition is limited to organization and they have no involvement or influence over the jury voting proceedings.

The Carl Nielsen International Competition announces the 2019 semi-finalists

“Music is the sound of life”

-Carl Nielsen

After five intense days in Odense, the juries of this year’s Carl Nielsen International Competition have announced 18 candidates from 13 different countries who will proceed to the semi-finals:

Violin

Johan Dalene (18, Sweden)
Anna Agafia Egholm (22, Denmark)
Michael Germer (16, Denmark)
Marie-Astrid Hulot (21, France)
Hina Maeda (16, Japan)
Belle Ting (18 Canada)

Clarinet

Aron Chiesa (22, Italy)
Víctor Díaz Guerra (22, Spain)
Han Kim (22, South Korea)
Ann Lepage (22, France)
Blaz Sparovec (24, Slovenia)
Ivan Tikhono (24, Russia)

Flute

Rafael Adobas Bayog (21, Spain)
Matvey Demin (25, Russia)
Lívia Duleba (29, Hungary)
Marley Eder (27, USA)
Joséphine Olech (24, France)
Marianna Julia Żołnacz (19, Poland)

With jury teams led by Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider (violin), Paul Meyer (clarinet) and Karl-Heinz Schütz (flute) this year’s events have brought the Carl Nielsen Competition to a whole new level by combining the three competitions in one festival-like experience. Audiences around the world can tap into the full #Nielsen2019 experience on nielsen2019.medici.tv for live streaming, replays, interviews and behind the scenes footage.

Schedule for semi-finals and finals

Tuesday 26 March

19.00-23:30 CET (Clarinet semi-finals)

Wednesday 27 March

19.00-22.30 CET (Flute semi-finals)
19.00-22.30 CET (Violin semi-finals)

Friday 29 March

19.30-21.30 CET (Violin final concert (day 1))

Saturday 30 March

15.00-17.00 CET (Clarinet Finals)
19.30-21.00 CET (Flute finals)

Sunday 31 March

14.00-16.30 CET (Violin final concert (day 2)))
18.00 CET (Prize ceremony)

Click here for the full competition schedule.

The 2019 Carl Nielsen International Competition for violin, clarinet & flute

21st to 31st of March 2019

Competition president: Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider

Artistic Advisors: Martin Fröst & Emmanuel Pahud

Artistic Advisory from left: Martin Fröst, Nikolaj Znaider, Emmanuel Pahud

For 10 days in March 2019, the Carl Nielsen International Competition for violin, clarinet & flute will be held concurrently for the first time in the composer’s hometown of Odense in Denmark, accompanied by the Odense Symphony Orchestra
Representing the 2019 competition as Artistic Advisors are 3 of the world’s leading musicians in their fields – Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider, Emmanuel Pahud & Martin Fröst – who will actively participate in the pre-jury selection process
Joining Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider on the jury of the 3 competitions themselves, are more than 25 musicians, advisors, and managers from around the world
The entire competition will be filmed and broadcast by medici.tv
All violinists, clarinettists and flautists under the age of 30 are invited to apply
Applications close on 15 October 2018

Announcing the 2019 competition, Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider commented “We have a first-rate jury in place and I am particularly delighted to have both Martin Fröst and Emmanuel Pahud on board as Artistic Advisors on the Pre-Jury selection committees to help choose the best participants before the competition even begins. Naturally, every competition’s aim is to discover the best young talent and ours is no exception but, in putting together the components for the 2019 Carl Nielsen International Competition, we have tried to focus on what we believe are the most crucial aspects from the perspective of the participating musicians. Namely – offering a platform and transparency.”

Platform

“Naturally we realise that the title and prize money are important to the competition, but we also wish to place as strong a focus as possible on other components which we know are crucial to young musicians at this stage in their lives. This includes both future concerts and the opportunity to record their own album with the Odense Symphony Orchestra for international release on Orchid Classics, supported by CD promotion.”

Transparency

”I believe it is crucial to find the most honest and humane way possible of organising the competition process and for this reason we have set four premises for the violin competition; Firstly, the jury will not include any teachers; Secondly, votes will be made public at every stage of the competition; Thirdly, the jury will not be provided with biographies in the first round and will be encouraged not to read up on the participants in their spare time; And fourthly, as the first round of the competition takes place over two days, it allows us to split it into parts. On the first day the jury (not the participants) will be seated behind screens and the participants will perform, unnamed and in a random order, ensuring that the jury use only their ears. On the second day of Round One the jurors will be able to both see and hear the participants who will again perform in random order. The jury will vote after each day and the contestants will receive the aggregate from the scores of those two days. I think this will be very interesting and provides a way of freeing the violin jury of pre-conceived ideas and allowing for the competition to be both fair and honest.” “As both the flute and clarinet worlds are somewhat different to that of the violin, we have followed Emmanuel Pahud and Martin Fröst’s advice on tailor-making each competition to offer the best for each instrument.” “What makes this competition particularly demanding is that it requires the finalists to perform the concerto written for their instrument by Carl Nielsen. All three of Nielsen’s concertos are technically challenging to play and give a clear insight into the individuality of the performer. For us, as torchbearers of Nielsen’s legacy, it allows us to introduce a new generation to his music – a generation which might not otherwise have discovered it for themselves. I cannot wait to welcome all 72 young musicians and my fellow-jury members in Odense and I think that Carl Nielsen would be both happy and proud if he could see all these young people flocking to his home-town in the name of music.”

Violin competition jury

Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider (violinist, conductor & President of the Competition)
Eugen Tichindeleanu (concertmaster, Odense Symphony Orchestra)
Albena Danailova (concertmaster, Vienna State Opera & Vienna Philharmonic)
Sergey Khachatryan (violinist)
Sally Beamish (composer)
Nurit Bar-Josef (concertmaster, National Symphony Orchestra, Washington)
Ingrid Filter (pianist)
Kathryn Enticott (artist manager)
Tobias Niederschlag (Director of Artistic Planning, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig)

Pre-Jury to include: Nikolaj Znaider, Eugen Tichindeleanu, Albena Danailova, Sally Beamish and Finn Schumacker, CEO Odense Symphony Orchestra

Clarinet competition jury

Paul Meyer (clarinettist)
Svante Wik (principal clarinet, Odense Symphony Orchestra)
Michel Portal (clarinettist)
Michael Collins (clarinettist)
Boris Allakhverdyan (principal clarinet, Los Angeles Philharmonic)
YehdaGilad (clarinettist)
Claudio Bohórquez (cellist)
Mats Engström (former Director of Artistic Planning, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic)
Sten Cranner (Artistic Director, Gothenburg Symphony)

Pre-Jury to include: Martin Fröst, Paul Meyer, Svante Wik, Boris Allakhverdyan and Finn Schumacker, CEO Odense Symphony Orchestra

Flute competition jury

Karl-Heinz Schütz (principal solo-flute, Vienna State Opera)
Rune Most (principal flute. Odense Symphony Orchestra)
Rachel Brown (flautist)
Andrea Oliva (principal flute, Orchestra dell’Accademia di Santa Cecilia)
Soyoung Lee (principal flute, Bucheon Philharmonic)
Torleif Thedéen (cellist)
Emily Beynon (principal flute, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra)
Alex Taylor (Head of Artistic Planning Oslo Philharmonic)
Frederik Andersson (Programme Director, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic)

Pre-Jury to include: Emmanuel Pahud, Karl-Heinz Schütz, Rune Most, Torleif Thedéen and Finn Schumacker, CEO Odense Symphony Orchestra