ERIC ERICSON AWARD

The world’s leading competition for young choral conductors is now open for registration. The competition will be held in Stockholm during the period 23-26 October 2024.

Over 90 young conductors from all over the world applied for the 2021 competition. Eight contestants were selected for the finals in Stockholm and in the end Krista Audere from Latvia was the winner. The prize consisted of concerts with about ten European radio choirs and a prize sum of SEK 100,000. Register for the competition here.

Meet Krista Audere, winner of Eric Ericson Award 2021

Swedish Radio Berwaldhallen Concert Hall, in collaboration with the Royal Swedish Academy of Music and with the support of the Rosenborg Gehrman Foundation and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), has re-established the Eric Ericson Award, the international competition for young choral conductors, which last took place in 2021.

The 2024 Eric Ericson Award will be the fifth time the competition has been held, and aims as before to identify, encourage and support promising young choral conductors in the spirit of Eric Ericson. The ambition of the award is to achieve a very high artistic and competitive level in choral conducting, corresponding to the status that Eric Ericson achieved worldwide during his career. The Eric Ericson Award gives the next generation of choral conductors the opportunity to pursue an international career.

The Eric Ericson Award is organised by Swedish Radio under the auspices of Berwaldhallen Concert Hall and in collaboration with the Swedish Royal Academy of Music, with the support of the Rosenborg Gehrman Foundation and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). The competition is planned to be held every three years.

ABOUT THE COMPETITION

The Eric Ericson Award is open to young choir conductors of all nationalities who are 35 years of age or younger at the start of the Competition (i.e. 23 October 2024). Applications are open to everyone. The repertoire will be chosen from Western art music, with some emphasis on contemporary Swedish choral music.

After the application period, a Pre-selection Committee consisting of highly experienced choral conductors and conducting teachers will review the applications, selecting eight competitors who advance to the final round in Berwaldhallen in Stockholm.

Mats Paulson, lecturer in conducting at the Malmö Academy of Music, is chair of the Pre-selection Committee. The other members are Mats Nilsson, Lone Larsen, Karin Oldgren, Christina Hörnell, Kari Turunen and Kim Phipps.

A repertoire committee has selected the repertoire for the final round of the competition.

The winner of the Eric Ericson Award 2024 is selected by a jury consisting of internationally prominent choral conductors and previous winners of the competition.

The chairman of the jury is Justin Doyle. The jury also includes Kaspars Putniņš, Krista Audere, Erik Westberg, Martina Batič , Friederike Woebcken and Sofia Niklasson, member of the Swedish Radio Choir.

The winner gets the opportunity to work with several of Europe’s leading radio choirs, together with a prize sum of SEK 100,000, which is provided by the Rosenborg Gehrmans Stiftelse. The two second prize winners each receive a scholarship of SEK 25,000.

Important dates

• March 1 2024: Your competition application must be at our disposal by this date at the latest.
• June 15, 2024: We announce the eight participants who made it to the semifinals.
• October 23 and 24 2024: Rehearsals and semi-finals are held, where the eight participants conduct Eric Ericson Kammarkör and St. Jacobs Kammarkör before the jury, which then appoints three finalists.
• October 25, 2024: The three selected finalists rehearse with the Swedish Radio Choir before the final.
• October 26 2024: The final will be broadcast live on Sweden’s Radio P2 from Berwaldhallen in Stockholm.

Participating choirs

The following choirs have accepted to engage the winner of the 2024 Eric Ericson Award during some of their upcoming seasons:

The official language of the EEA is English. A basic understanding of the English language is required of all applicants.

Repertoire

The Repertoire committee consists of Helene Stureborg, conductor and head of planning for the Swedish Radio Choir, Arne Lundmark, singer and former head of planning for the Swedish Radio Choir and Lars Johansson Brissman, singer in the Swedish Radio Choir.

The repertoire is selected from the classical, romantic and contemporary periods of Western art music. Swedish and Nordic music in general has a special role in the competition. The intention is to choose works of similar length, similar difficulty and, above all, that they contain inspiring challenges for the competing choir conductors; difficulties which also make it easier for the jury to make an assessment.

The repertoire for the Eric Ericson Award 2024:

Semifinals:
I Pizzetti Ululate from Tre Composizioni corali Suvini Zerboni
E Rautavaara Credo Schott music
G Grigorjeva In Paradisum JW Pepper
N Forte O Oriens Nanaforte.com
C Unander-Scharin from Calliogramme: Mutations Gehrmans
S-D Sandström April och tystnad Gehrmans
J Bingham The darkness is no darkness Ed Peters
M Sköld We know not where the Dragons fly Gehrmans

Finals:
I Lidholm De profundis NM/Gehrmans
A Mellnäs Laude ER/Gehrmans
S Garrop Sonnets of Desire, Longing and Whimsy Garrop.com

ABOUT THE ERIC ERICSON AWARD

The Eric Ericson Award was established on the initiative of Stefan Parkman, choir conductor and Professor in Choral Conducting at the Department of Musicology, Uppsala University. The competition was held in 2003, 2006 and 2009 by Uppsala University Choral Centre, Eric Ericson International Choral Centre, Swedish Radio and Rikskonserter with prize money provided by the Eric Ericson Foundation. The very prestigious competition attracted young conductors from far beyond Sweden’s borders. Previous winners of the competition are Krista Audere (2021), Kjetil Almenning (2009), Martina Batič (2006) and Peter Dijkstra (2003).

ABOUT ERIC ERICSON

Eric Ericson served as The Swedish Radio Choir’s chief conductor for more than 30 years and has made immeasurable contributions to Swedish and international choir life. By premiering works of his contemporary composers, many written directly for him and The Swedish Radio Choir, he opened up a completely new dimension of how a choir can sound and be led. Eric Ericson was also a teacher of choral conducting at The Royal Swedish Academy of Music, where he fostered several generations of young conductors.