Ninety young choral conductors applied for the Eric Ericson Award – eight semi-finalists chosen
Young choral conductors from around the world applied to the Eric Ericson Award 2024. The selection committee has now chosen eight semi-finalists to compete in Stockholm in October:
Simon Arlasjö (Sweden), João Barros (Portugal), Jurgita Česonytė (Lithuania), Anastasija Kildiša (Latvia), Alexander Lüken (Germany), Heide Müller (Germany), Marcel Ortega i Martí (Spain) and Joe Tobin (UK).
The eight semifinalists in the Eric Ericson Award 2024.
The fifth edition of the Eric Ericson Award takes place 23–26 October 2024 in Stockholm with semi-finals at the Royal College of Music and a public grand finale, where the competitors will conduct the Swedish Radio Choir in Berwaldhallen. The total prize sum is SEK 150.000 and the winner will get to conduct several prominent EBU radio choirs in future concert seasons. Altogether, this makes the Eric Ericson Award the most prestigious competition for choral conductors in the world. The competition is organised by the Swedish Radio, in collaboration with the Royal Swedish Academy of Music.
“The Swedish Radio proudly manages the legacy of the Swedish Radio Choir's long-standing chief conductor Eric Ericson, whose name continues to have great significance for young choral conductors worldwide. The fact that we had more than ninety applicants, and from them have picked eight highly competent candidates, guarantees a competition of the highest calibre” says Staffan Becker, Director of the Swedish Radio’s concert hall, Berwaldhallen.
“We are proud to present eight young, dedicated choral conductors in this year’s semi-finals of the Eric Ericson Award and look forward to following their progress during the competition” says Susanne Rydén, President of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music.
“The Eric Ericson Award can change your life as a choral conductor. It is a competition that guarantees the winner success and a radical change to their professional career. The Eric Ericson Award has made all the difference for me” says Krista Audere, winner of the 2021 Eric Ericson Award.
The Eric Ericson Award’s internationally renowned jury is chaired by conductor Justin Doyle and includes the Swedish Radio Choir’s Chief Conductor Kaspars Putniņš, the previous competition winner, conductor Krista Audere, and others. The winning conductor will lead a long list of choirs within the European Broadcasting Union, such as the BBC Singers, Chœur de Radio France, RIAS Kammerchor in Berlin, and the Netherlands Radio Choir.
The Rosenborg Gehrman Foundation has contributed the cash prize of SEK 150.000, of which the winner receives SEK 100.000 and SEK 25.000 each to the other two finalists. Previous winners include Krista Audere (2021), Kjetil Almenning (2009), Martina Batič (2006), and Peter Dijkstra (2003). The Eric Eric Ericson Award is also arranged with support from the European Broadcasting Union.
Semi-finals and the grand final are broadcast live on Berwaldhallen Play.
Eric Ericson was chief conductor of the Swedish Radio Choir for over 30 years, between 1951 and 1982. His contributions to the Swedish as well as the wider choral community cannot be overstated. By premiering works composed by his contemporaries, many of which were written specifically for him and the Swedish Radio Choir, he widened the perspective on how a choir can sound, and how it can be led. Throughout his career, he also taught choral conducting at the Royal College of Music, fostering generations of young conductors. His extensive international appearances as a teacher and guest conductor earned him worldwide renown as one of the great role models in choral conducting.
Find out more at ericericsonaward.se
For press inquiries, contact
Karl Thorson
Press- & PR-ansvarig / Press & PR Manager
Berwaldhallen | Sveriges Radios Symfoniorkester | Radiokören
karl.thorson@sverigesradio.se
08-784 18 30 | 070-431 18 93
Sveriges Radios konserthus Berwaldhallen
SE-105 10 Stockholm, Sweden
Besök/Visiting address Dag Hammarskjöldsväg 3
berwaldhallen.se
