"All of the mdw’s areas of study are strongly intertwined with scholarship and research—including music education, which even has its own research department. Teacher training can only be elevated to the highest possible level of excellence if it’s deliberately kept distinct from the training of performers."

Since March 2020, Vienna RSO Chief Conductor Marin Alsop has been an artist in residence at the mdw, where she’s also the first woman to teach orchestral conducting. The maestra joined Rector Ulrike Sych and Vice Rector Gerda Müller for a conversation about quotas, excellence, and equal opportunities.