The Cliburn, the classical music nonprofit known for its prestigious international piano competition, announced on Thursday that it would start a new contest for young conductors.
Hosted in partnership with the Houston Symphony and the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, the inaugural Cliburn International Competition for Conductors will take place in 2028 in Houston, and award its grand prize winner $50,000. The groundbreaking conductor Marin Alsop will serve as jury chair.
“We ask our artists always to push their own boundaries, but as an organization, we have to also push our boundaries,” Jacques Marquis, the Cliburn’s president and chief executive, said in an interview.
Marquis noted that the Cliburn, which was named after the award-winning American pianist Van Cliburn, has a rich history of launching pianists’ careers. “In this world of classical music,” he added, “conductors are also really important.” Europe, he said, has several conducting competitions.
The new competition, which will be held every four years, will be open to conductors who are 21 to 35 years old. Marquis said the Cliburn expected to receive between 200 and 300 applications for the first competition.
A screening jury will select up to 25 conductors for a live audition in early 2028. Twelve of them will then be invited to compete in June of that year.
The Houston Symphony will perform with the competitors. In addition to the grand prize winner, three finalists will receive $20,000 each.
Alsop, who conceived of the idea for the competition, said in an interview that opportunities for conductors were not always plentiful, and she praised the Cliburn for having offered pianists career management, concert bookings, assistance with publicity and image development.
“I think that’s something that conductors could really benefit from,” she said. “All besides the fact that it’ll be with a wonderful orchestra, and they’ll have this great instrument to work with.”
“Even if you don’t win the competition,” she said, “you win the competition.”
Alsop, who was the first woman to be the music director of a top-tier U.S. orchestra, recalled her own competition experience in the late 1980s, when she was a finalist in the Leopold Stokowski International Conducting Competition. She met conductors on the jury who later invited her to conduct their orchestras.
“I had the opportunity to be seen in that situation by many presenters, many managers,” she said. “It’s more about a showcase and a spotlight, to be able to take advantage of that.”
Gary Ginstling, the executive director and chief executive of the Houston Symphony, said in a statement that his symphony’s longstanding commitment to nurturing young talent made it an ideal collaborator for the Cliburn.
“It’s a full-circle moment for the Houston Symphony to partner with the Cliburn on this project,” he said, “since Van Cliburn made his orchestral debut with our orchestra at age 12 in 1947.”
In announcing its competition for conductors, the Cliburn also said it would end a less prominent competition it has held for amateur pianists since 1999.
Derrick Bryson Taylor is a Times reporter covering breaking news in culture and the arts.
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