For three days, our stage belonged to the next generation of conductors: six students aged between 21 and 30 rehearsed works by Beethoven, Mozart, Shostakovich and Johann Strauss (the younger) as part of the Conductors’ Academy. In four masterclasses, Paavo Järvi gave them numerous tips on technique (horizontal movements work better than vertical ones in a waltz!), on stage presence (long sleeves are better!), and on musical content (don’t overdo it!).
422 applicants had registered for this sixth edition of the Conductors’ Academy. Those invited included Lamar Elias from Palestine, Waybe Gao from China and New Zealand, Myrto Gkekou from Greece, Yukuang Jin from China, Daniel Seonggeun Kim from South Korea and Germany, and Mats Thiersch from Germany.
Following the final concert, Yukuang Jin was awarded the ‘Paavo Järvi Scholarship’. He will be able to continue working with our Music Director at the ‘Järvi Academy’ during the Pärnu Music Festival in the summer of 2027. Myrto Gkekou, on the other hand, won the international audience vote. She received the Audience Prize of CHF 1,000, sponsored by the Freundeskreis Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich.
The seventh Conductors’ Academy will take place in August 2026. Once again, the public will be able to follow the masterclasses and the final concert both in the concert hall and via live stream.
