Feifan Jiang wins the Cantelli conducting competition – and five more prizes besides

The 14th edition of the Premio Internazionale di Direzione d’Orchestra “Guido Cantelli” culminated in a remarkable victory for Chinese conductor Feifan Jiang. At just 25 years old, Jiang emerged as the clear standout in the competition, held at Teatro Coccia in Novara on October 4, 2024. His win places him among an illustrious lineage of past laureates that includes such renowned maestros as Riccardo Muti and Eliahu Inbal.

The event gathered eighteen emerging conductors from twelve countries, selected from an initial pool of 200 applicants worldwide. Over the course of three days, candidates underwent rigorous elimination and semi-final rounds at the Auditorium di Milano before the final four contenders advanced to Novara. Alongside Jiang, the finalists were Yuta Kobayashi, Mauro Mariani, and Giovanni Fanizza.

The contest’s final was marked by each conductor leading distinct repertoire before the Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano. Giovanni Fanizza opened the evening with Bellini’s Norma overture and Andrei Octavian Popescu’s contemporary piece, 4 città invisibili, a work recently chosen as the winner of the competition’s composition call. Yuta Kobayashi interpreted Richard Strauss’s Don Juan, Op. 20, while the concluding performances of Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, From the New World, were split between Mauro Mariani and Feifan Jiang.

Jiang’s comprehensive triumph extended beyond the first prize, which included a €12,000 monetary award. He also claimed nearly every additional accolade: the critics’ jury prize, the agents’ and managers’ prize, the young people’s jury “Empathy” prize, the Friends of the Teatro Coccia award, and the musicians’ prize from the Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano itself. Yuta Kobayashi was awarded second place with €8,000, and Mauro Mariani secured third place accompanied by a €5,000 reward and the City jury prize.

Currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, Jiang has trained under several distinguished mentors, including Riccardo Muti. Earlier in 2024, Muti handpicked Jiang as one of four young conductors worldwide to participate in the inaugural Italian Opera Academy in China, underscoring his rising profile on the global stage.

The jury for the Cantelli competition was chaired by Donato Renzetti, himself a former winner of the contest in 1980. The panel comprised eminent figures in the classical music world, including Roanna Gibson of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Didier de Cottignies from the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, and Riccardo Frizza, the competition’s artistic consultant. Other members included music directors and artistic leaders from prestigious institutions such as the Polish National Opera, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Opera Philadelphia, and the Pacific Philharmonia Tokyo.

The evening’s proceedings were auspiciously marked by the presentation of the Medal of the President of the Italian Republic to the competition. This honor coincided with the 70th anniversary of Guido Cantelli’s tragic death. Cantelli, once hailed by Arturo Toscanini as his spiritual successor, had a brief but impactful career, culminating in his appointment as music director of La Scala shortly before his untimely passing in 1956.

In addition to the conducting awards, composer Andrei Octavian Popescu received recognition for his winning composition 4 città invisibili, including a €3,000 prize and publication of the score. The next iteration of the Premio Cantelli is scheduled for October 2028, continuing the tradition of spotlighting exceptional young conducting talent on an international platform.

Feifan Jiang’s sweeping success at this prestigious event not only highlights his individual artistry but also reinforces the ongoing vitality of the Cantelli competition as a proving ground for the next generation of conductors. The event’s blend of rigorous musical standards, distinguished jury, and historic significance continues to attract the finest emerging talents in orchestral leadership.