It was a historic moment for the mdw great talent award powered by Christian Zeller: for the first time since the inception of this competition, all three finalists were awarded 1st prizes—a powerful testament to these young talents’ outstanding quality and the competition’s continual development.
The mdw great talent award powered by Christian Zeller is one of the mdw’s most important formats through which to encourage and reward excellence. As a highly visible presentation platform, this competition documents the University’s enormous artistic bandwidth. It features mdw students exclusively, being open to those studying in programmes for keyboard instruments, bowed and other stringed instruments, wind and percussion instruments, chamber music and special ensembles, voice and musical theatre, and popular music.
The path to the final round is a demanding one: a digital preselection process is followed by two live rounds, after which the best three soloists or formations present themselves in the grand finale. And it was once again a commensurately distinguished and versatile jury that expertly evaluated the various musical genres represented in this latest edition.
In selecting jury members, an important criterion was to avoid possible conflicts of interest within the University. The 2025 mdw great talent award jury, chaired for the first time by Ulrike Anton, was therefore comprised of external experts and former faculty members: alongside Ulrike Anton (Arnold Schönberg Center), it included Peter Legat (Count Basic, Austrian Composers Association), Ursula Magnes (music journalist), Heinz Medjimorec (pianist), Eva Teimel (Ö1), and Štěpán Turnovský (Vienna Philharmonic).
“The unbelievably high overall level of this competition impressed us all, and it was an immense pleasure to remain on the edge of our seats together with the musicians right into the final round. In the name of the entire jury, I’d like to once again express how delighted we were when the mdw and the Christian Zeller Private Foundation made it possible to recognise these superlative musical achievements with three 1st prizes,” said Ulrike Anton of the event.
The final evening, held in the concert hall of the Future Art Lab with a euphoric audience in attendance both onsite and via the live stream, put an exciting and impressive capstone on a year that had witnessed a whole series of high-calibre competitions at the mdw.
The extraordinarily high artistic standard set by the entire 2025 mdw great talent award competition and the finalists’ equally superlative performances confronted the jury with the truly irresolvable challenge of ranking them. However, a spontaneous increase in financial support by the Christian Zeller Private Foundation and the mdw made it possible to recognise all three finalist entries as equal winners.
These young talents’ personal reactions show just how much importance they attach to this award. Alongside the monetary aspect, the reinforcement it provides them has been above all in terms of their artistic identities and visions. “As winners of the mdw great talent award, we feel honoured and inspired to continue our artistic development and more motivated than ever to explore our shared path in chamber music,” stated the Motus Quartet. Harpist Julia Dietrich described the competition as an important milestone: “This award fills me with heartfelt gratitude and makes me feel like I’ve truly arrived as a musician in the musical city of Vienna.” Double bassist Siheon Ryu, as well, emphasised the award’s motivating effect: “I’m hugely grateful for this award. I view it as a great honour, and it motivates me to believe in my work and my vision.”
It’s thus that the mdw great talent award powered by Christian Zeller has once again planted a highly visible flag for excellence, diversity, and the sustainable cultivation of young talents, thereby providing renewed confirmation of the mdw’s central role as an international place of training for tomorrow’s artists.
Watch it here.
