At this year’s national singing competition, Bundeswettbewerb Gesang Berlin, we will once again be awarding a special prize to a contestant in the concert category who has demonstrated outstanding talent through his or her interpretation of Bach’s works.
The prizewinner will be chosen by the competition’s jury. As with the 2014 competition, the €5,000 in prize money will not be paid to the artist directly, but will instead be given as financial support to organisers who commit to hosting a concert (with Bach vocal music, preferably cantatas – not passions/oratorios).
The prize amounts of €5,000 can also be split up in order to support as many concert engagements as possible.
Once the winner has been chosen, he or she, as well as any interested organisers, can get in touch with the Johann Sebastian Bach Foundation to communicate wishes and suggestions for concerts to be funded. The Foundation’s Executive Board and Board of Trustees will then decide upon the recipients and the funding amounts.
With this prize and the unique way of paying out the prize money, we hope to give a young, promising singer who has demonstrated excellence through his or her interpretations of Bach’s cantatas the opportunity to perform in multiple concerts. By doing so, we strive to not only increase the popularity of Bach’s cantatas, but also support the development of young artists.
The prizewinner and organisers commit to mentioning our Foundation’s support in their concert-related publications (advertising, programmes etc.).
The Executive Board and Board of Trustees of our Foundation are excited about this year’s competition and wish its organisers a successful programme and many excellent participants. We are looking forward to the selection of the next recipient of the special prize from the Johann Sebastian Bach Foundation in late autumn of 2016.