French conductor Maxime Pascal has won the Young Conductors Award at the Salzburg Festival 2014. The 28-year-old came top of 81 competitors, with a jury led by conductor Ingo Metzmacher. Maxime Pascal receives a 15,000 euro prize and the opportunity to conduct the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra in a Salzburg Festival concert at the Felsenreitschule music hall next August.
"Now in its fifth year, the Nestlé and Salzburg Festival Young Conductors Award shows, once again, how much sense it makes to give young directors the opportunity to demonstrate their skills at such a renowned Festival like Salzburg. We are delighted to support the careers of these young talents with our unique initiative, and to introduce them to a wider public with this award," Nestlé Chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe said.
Read the Salzburg Festival press release