The Cadaqués Orchestra International Conducting Competition, is a music competition for young conductors

Conducting

Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...

 organized by the Cadaqués Orchestra

Cadaqués Orchestra

The Cadaqués Orchestra is a chamber orchestra based in Cadaqués, Catalonia, Spain. Originally founded in 1988 to be the resident orchestra of the Cadaqués Festival, the orchestra has since become an established orchestra with a regular concert season...

 in Catalonia

Catalonia

Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...

, Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

.

History

The competition takes place every two years and is organized by the Cadaqués Orchestra. The first competition was organized in 1992 with the idea of being a platform for young conductors starting their professional careers. The first prizes consists of a cash award and engagements to conduct orchestras such as the BBC Philharmonic

BBC Philharmonic

The BBC Philharmonic is a British broadcasting symphony orchestra based at Media City UK, Salford, England. It is one of five radio orchestras maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation. The orchestra's primary concert venue is the Bridgewater Hall....

, Vienna Chamber Orchestra

Vienna Chamber Orchestra

The Vienna Chamber Orchestra is an Austrian chamber orchestra based at the Vienna Konzerthaus....

, Royal Flemish Philharmonic

DeFilharmonie

deFilharmonie is a Belgian symphony orchestra, with its principal home base in Antwerp. Founded by Gaston Ariën, Jef Maes, J.A...

, Bilbao Symphony Orchestra, RTVE Symphony Orchestra

RTVE Symphony Orchestra

The RTVE Symphony Orchestra , also known as the Spanish Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra is a Spanish radio orchestra servicing RTVE, the Spanish national broadcasting network....

, Spanish National Orchestra and the Barcelona Symphony and Catalonia National Orchestra. The presidents of the jury are the conductors Gennady Rozhdestvensky

Gennady Rozhdestvensky

Gennady Nikolayevich Rozhdestvensky is a Russian conductor.-Biography:Rozhdestvensky was born in Moscow. His parents were the noted conductor and pedagogue Nikolai Anosov and soprano Natalya Rozhdestvenskaya...

 and Sir Neville Marriner. Lutz Köhler, Philippe Entremont

Philippe Entremont

Philippe Entremont is a French pianist and conductor. He has made many recordings during his career, notably one in 1961 of Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1, with Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic....

, Jorma Panula

Jorma Panula

Jorma Panula is a Finnish conductor, composer, and professor of conducting.Panula is a graduate of the Sibelius Academy, where he studied the organ, church music and conducting...

, Alexander Rahbari

Ali Rahbari

Ali Rahbari is a Persian composer and conductor, who played with more than 120 European orchestras including Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.-Biography:...

, Adrian Leaper

Adrian Leaper

-Biography:He is currently the conductor RTVE Symphony Orchestra in Madrid. He was previously Principal Conductor of the Orquesta Filarmónica de Gran Canaria from 1994 until 2001.He has made many recordings for the Naxos Records label.-External links:...

 and Gianandrea Noseda

Gianandrea Noseda

Gianandrea Noseda is an Italian conductor. He studied piano, composition and conducting in Milan. He furthered his conducting studies with Donato Renzetti, Myung-Whun Chung and Valery Gergiev....

 have been members of the jury. In each competition one of the compulsory pieces is a new commission. Xavier Montsalvatge

Xavier Montsalvatge

Xavier Montsalvatge i Bassols was a Spanish Catalan composer and music critic. He was one of the most influential music figures in Catalan music during the latter half of the 20th century.-Life:...

, Cristóbal Halffter

Cristóbal Halffter

Cristóbal Halffter Jiménez-Encina is a Spanish composer. He is the nephew of two other composers, Rodolfo and Ernesto Halffter.-Life:...

, Luis de Pablo

Luís de Pablo

Luis de Pablo is a Spanish composer.He was born in Bilbao, living in Madrid from age six and starting to compose aged 12. Although he received composition lessons from Maurice Ohana and Max Deutsch, he was essentially an autodidact in composition...

, Joan Guinjoan and Leonardo Balada

Leonardo Balada

Leonardo Balada , is a Catalan American composer, now teaching and composing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.-Life:...

 have written pieces for the competition.

Winners

• 2010 First Prize: Andrew Gourlay. Second Prize: Domingo Garcia Hindoyan
• 2008 First Prize: Michal Nestorowicz. Second Prize: Daniele Rustioni.
• 2006 First Prize: Pablo González. Second Prize: Justin Doyle.
• 2004 First Prize: not awarded. Second Prize: Hans Leenders.
• 2002 First Prize: Vasily Petrenko
  Vasily Petrenko
  Vasily Petrenko is a Russian conductor. He attended the Capella Boys Music School and the St Petersburg Conservatoire. He studied conducting with Ilya Musin, and later under the tutelage of Mariss Jansons, Yuri Temirkanov and Esa-Pekka Salonen. He was resident conductor at the St. Petersburg...
  
  . Second Prize: Jonathan Pasternack.
• 2000 First Prize: not awarded. Second Prize: Christoph Müller.
• 1998 First Prize: Gloria Isabel Ramos. Second Prize: not awarded.
• 1996 First Prize: Achim Fiedler
  Achim Fiedler
  - Biography :Born in Stuttgart in 1965, Achim Fiedler studied violin at the Hochschule für Musik in Köln, in London at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and conducting at the Musikhochschule in Stuttgart. He also attended the Tanglewood Music Center Summer Courses.In 1996 he won the first...
  
  . Second Prize: Zsolt Hamar.
• 1994 First Prize: Gianandrea Noseda
  Gianandrea Noseda
  Gianandrea Noseda is an Italian conductor. He studied piano, composition and conducting in Milan. He furthered his conducting studies with Donato Renzetti, Myung-Whun Chung and Valery Gergiev....
  
  . Second Prize: Christopher Gayford
  Christopher Gayford
  -Biography:Born in Wilmslow, Gayford studied at the Royal College of Music and the Royal Northern College of Music. His international career started after winning the second place of the Cadaqués Orchestra International Conducting Competition and sharing a first prize at the International Besançon...
  
  .
• 1992 First Prize: Charles Peebles. Second Prize: Alejandro Posadas.