The pre-selections for the 58th edition of the “Premio Paganini” have concluded, with over 100 candidates participating. Live auditions were held in Genoa, Guangzhou, Seoul, New York, and Berlin, before high-level juries chaired by Artistic Director Nicola Bruzzo.

On the evening of May 9, at the conclusion of the final session held at the Italian Cultural Institute in the German capital, a special musical event took place: a widely acclaimed concert for two violins performed by Nicola Bruzzo himself and the renowned Alexandra Conunova. The performance, attended by H.E. the Italian Ambassador to Germany, Fabrizio Bucci, was preceded by a welcome address from the Director of the Institute, Alessandro Turci, and remarks by the President of the Premio Paganini, Giovanni Panebianco. Also present was Dr. Francesco Micheli, a member of the Premio Paganini Committee.

The Berlin leg represents an important step in the internationalization journey that the Premio Paganini has been pursuing in recent years, increasingly in synergy with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI) and the network of Italian Cultural Institutes abroad. A special thanks goes to the Ministry, in particular to the Directorate General for Public and Cultural Diplomacy. Thanks also go to Ambassador Bucci, Director Turci and the Institute staff, as well as to the artists who moved the large audience present in Berlin. These initiatives significantly contribute to promoting the Premio Paganini and the image of Genoa, as well as reaffirming the value of culture and classical musical tradition. We will therefore continue in this direction: the next event will be held at the Italian Cultural Institute in London – declared President Giovanni Panebianco.

As part of the agreements reached with the MAECI and based on the accord already signed with the ICC of London, the Premio Paganini will be in the UK capital in December 2025. The initiative builds on the success of the October 2024 concert featuring the “Cannone” played by Simon Zhu at the Guildhall, alongside the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Antonio Pappano, attended by H.M. King Charles III.

The concert performed by Nicola Bruzzo and Alexandra Conunova offered the Berlin audience a taste of the unique atmosphere that has surrounded the “Paganini” for over seventy years – one of the most prestigious violin competitions in the world, which this year chose Berlin as the venue for its pre-selections. I sincerely wish every success and a bright career to the violinists competing in the 58th edition – stated Alessandro Turci, Director of the IIC in Berlin.

Repertoire:

Jean-Marie Leclair (Lyon, 1697 – Paris, 1764)
- Sonata op. 3 no. 5 in E minor for two violins

Edison Denisov (Tomsk, 1929 – Paris, 1996)
- Sonata in C major for two violins (1958)

Niccolò Paganini (Genoa, 1782 – Nice, 1840)
- Caprice no. 24

Luciano Berio (Oneglia, 1925 – Rome, 2003)
- From 34 Duets: Béla, Bruno, Annie, Giorgio Federico, Alfred

Béla Bartók (Nagyszentmiklós, 1881 – New York, 1945)
- From 44 Duets: Pizzicato, Bagpipes

György Ligeti (Dicsöszentmárton, 1923 – Vienna, 2006)
- Ballade and Dance