Nestlé extends Salzburg Festival partnership until 2015

The company has partnered the prestigious annual music and drama event in Austria for 20 years.

“Nestlé is our most loyal sponsor,” said Helga Rabl-Stadler, President of the Salzburg Festival. “For 20 years we have shared the same passion for quality.

“Together, we created the Nestlé and the Salzburg Festival Young Conductor's Award in 2010. It is a new chapter in youth development at the Salzburg Festival.”

The Nestlé and the Salzburg Festival Young Conductor’s Award was created to give talented young conductors aged between 22 and 35 a crucial boost to their careers.

The prize is worth EUR 15,000 (more than CHF 18,000). The winner is also given the opportunity to conduct a concert with the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra in Salzburg’s Felsenreitschule theatre.

The award was presented this year to Ainars Rubikis from Latvia. The year before, David Afkahm from Germany won.

Promising talents
"The Nestlé and the Salzburg Festival Young Conductors Award has already given two promising talents a major push in their international careers,” said Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, Nestlé Chairman.

“The Salzburg Festival offers the winner of the award an ideal platform to put his or her skills to the test,” he added.

In addition to conducting a classical-romantic repertoire, award candidates must also prove their ability to conduct contemporary works of music.

Next year, the selection process will change, giving three finalists the opportunity to perform at a public concert at the Felsenreitschule theatre over a weekend in April.

This performance takes place ahead of the award presentation at the festival in August.

The finalist will be accompanied by one of three orchestras - the Camerata Salzburg, the Mozarteum Orchestra or the Munich Radio Orchestra - as well by young international soloists.

“With this new concert weekend in April we have made the award even more attractive, by offering young conductors another public performance opportunity," Ms Rabl-Stadler explained.

“We want to give people the chance to gain deeper insight into the work of young conductors,” she added.

The award’s 13 member jury panel has also changed, with eight new members. It also has a new chairman; the acclaimed German conductor Ingo Metzmacher.

The jury for the Nestlé and Salzburg Festival Young Conductors Award 2012 are:

-Pierre Boulez, Patron

-Ingo Metzmacher, Jury Chairman

-Peter Alward, Executive Director, Salzburg Easter Festival

-Andreas Bausendorf, Deputy Managing Director, German Orchestra Association

-Albena Danilova, Concertmaster, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra

-Thomas Hampson, Singer

-Gary Hanson, Managing Director, The Cleveland Orchestra

-Christoph Lieben-Seutter, Director General, Elbe Philharmonic Hall, Hamburg

-Brian McMaster, Former Director of the Edinburgh International Festival

-Alexander Meraviglia-Crivelli, Secretary-General, Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra

-Alexander Pereira, Director of the Salzburg Festival

-Aribert Reimann, Performer

-Matthias Schulz, Head of Concert Planning and Media Advisor to the Salzburg Festival Board.

Nestlé’s support of the Salzburg Festival enables the event to offer discounts of up to 90% for people under the age of 27 for its world-renowned programme of operas, plays and concerts.

Contact
Nestlé Suisse S.A. Case postale 352 1800 Vevey Tel. 021 924 51 11 Fax 021 944 30 19 info@ch.nestle.com