Concours de Genève Merges Conducting and Composition Contests for 80th Edition

The Concours de Genève will unite its Conducting and Composition Competitions for the first time at its 80th edition, running Nov. 6 to 13 in Geneva.

At the finals, the Conducting Competition finalists will lead the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande in works written by the Composition Competition finalists. The composers will also collaborate directly with the conductors during preparation ahead of the Nov. 11 final at Victoria Hall.

The composition finalists are Sing-Yat Chen (26, Hong Kong), Hanurij Lee (21, South Korea) and Rafael Marino Arcaro (37, Brazil). First prize in composition carries CHF 15,000, with CHF 10,000 for second and CHF 5,000 for third.

The semifinals run Nov. 7 to 9, with candidates conducting the Orchestre de Chambre de Genève, Ensemble Contrechamps and the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande in turn. Three conductors will advance. Final Round 1, on Nov. 10 and 11, doubles as the Composition Competition final. Final Round 2 follows on Nov. 12 and 13, with the remaining conductors leading works by Bartók, Debussy, Mahler, Prokofiev, Strauss or Stravinsky at Victoria Hall.

The Conducting Competition offers CHF 20,000 for first prize, CHF 12,000 for second and CHF 8,000 for third. The three semifinalists who do not advance will each receive CHF 3,000. Additional honors include the Audience Prize (CHF 1,500), the Young Audience Prize (CHF 1,000) and the Students' Prize (CHF 1,000).

Unsuk Chin chairs the Composition Competition jury, which also includes Toshio Hosokawa, Magnus Lindberg, Augusta Reed Thomas and Katharina Rosenberger. Chin joins the Conducting Competition jury for the final rounds as well. That jury is led by Bertrand de Billy, with Mark Stringer as vice chair, and counts Baldur Brönnimann, Martin Campbell-White, Laurent Gay, Sarah Nemtanu, Eva Ollikainen, Peter Oundjian, Natalia Ponomarchuk, Arturo Tamayo and Wingsie Yip among its members.

Prize money is only part of the reward. Laureates will enter a career development program that includes two years of services from Sartory Artists, management representation, international concert tours, personal coaching and commissions. One winner will also record an album with orchestra on the La Dolce Volta label.

Audiences beyond Geneva can follow the finals on medici.tv, amadeus.tv, Mezzo TV and the competition's website and social media channels, as well as on RTS – Espace 2 in Switzerland.

The merged format puts young composers and conductors in the same room, and on the same podium, with one of Europe's established orchestras — a model that could shape how the competition develops beyond its 80th anniversary.