Unlike some major instrumental competitions which guarantee a string of concerts and even recording opportunities for their winners, conducting competitions don’t always come with immediate glory. Some offer a few concerts, some offer assistant conductorships with the host orchestra, but as Tadaaki Otaka, the Chairperson of the panel of judges the Tokyo International Conducting Competition 2024 said at the post-competition press conference, “the prizewinners are just at the starting line. It will be up to them how to shape their future.”
Eighteen budding conductors from around the world gathered in Tokyo in early October for the Tokyo International Conducting Competition, which began in 1967 as a mainly domestic event – it has now become one of the most prestigious on the international circuit, according to one of the participants. Recent prizewinners including Nodoka Okisawa (1st prize in 2018) and Bertie Baigent (3rd prize in 2021) have since built successful careers. This year, there were 291 applications from 37 countries/regions, with 14 men and 4 women making it through the screening process – one could say that these eighteen are all achievers already.
The competition consists of two preliminary rounds, where the contestants rehearse the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra in the assigned repertoire within the time frame, and the final round which is performed as a concert with the New Japan Philharmonic (NJP). The opportunity to conduct two different top professional orchestras at the Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall is one of the competition’s unique assets.
In the first round, each contestant had only 15 minutes to show their technique and musicality, in sections of Mozart’s “Prague” Symphony and a recitativo accompagnato scene from The Magic Flute (with some of the jury watching up close on the stage, which must have been intimidating). The nine contestants that went through (7 men, 2 women) then demonstrated their grasp of a wider range of repertoire with Schumann’s Fourth Symphony, Bartók’s Dance Suite and Sibelius’ Violin Concerto. In the final round, the four finalists conducted Dai Fujikura’s Glorious Clouds and a piece of their choice, assigned by the jury from a submitted list of three works.
It must have been tough for the judges to select the nine to go through, based on only 15 minutes rehearsing Mozart. Were they looking more for technical security here than musicality? There were several contestants who did interesting things that unfortunately didn’t make it to the next round. I was also struck by how very few took a historically-informed approach to Mozart (Dutch/Japanese Kent Moussault was an exception), conducting the slow introduction to the Prague Symphony very grandly. In the second round, the nine contestants needed to show their mastery of larger forces: creating a Romantic sound-world in the Schumann, rhythmic precision and vivacity in the Bartók, and in the Sibelius Violin Concerto – a tricky concerto to accompany well – they needed to make sure the soloist (the excellent Tomoko Kawada) could perform at ease while shepherding the orchestral texture and mood.
The four conductors that proceeded to the final round were (in performing order) Ayano Yoshizaki, Hiroki Okazaki (both Japan), Riley Holden Court-Wood (UK), and Kornilios Viktor Michailidis (Greece). Between them, there was a wide range in both age and experience: Court-Wood and Michailidis (the eldest at 35) have had assistant posts in professional orchestras, whereas Yoshizaki (the youngest at 23) and Okazaki are still studying. It showed that the judges are not only looking for immediate talent but are also interested in discovering those with great potential who will hopefully mature into outstanding conductors over the years.
In the first half of the concert, we heard Fujikura’s Glorious Clouds – a colourful piece inspired by the workings of microorganisms and bacteria in our body – four times in a row, and it was really intriguing to hear how different the piece could sound under the four conductors (the candidates are not able to listen to each other’s performances during the competition).
It can’t be easy to be the first on stage, but Yoshizaki, the only female finalist, showed calm control and gave a precise and structural reading of Glorious Clouds, although perhaps lacking in personal touch. Next up, Okazaki took a more lyrical approach, bringing out the flow and navigating the transitions well. Court-Wood succeeded in putting his personal stamp in his interpretation by highlighting various melodies and motifs from the complex texture, and bringing out colours and gestures that one had not noticed in the previous performances. His build-up to the climax was the most organic (the judges were unanimous in praising Court-Wood’s interpretation of the Fujikura piece). Last up, Michailidis’ performance was the suavest in terms of orchestral sonority and balance, and his grasp of the big picture reflected his experience.
In the second half of the competition, each conductor performed their own piece of choice. Yoshizaki gave a well-structured and sincere performance of Richard Strauss’s Tod und Verklärung (incidentally, the work was performed in the final round in 2021 too). She had good control of the overall narrative and brought out some beautiful sonorities from the NJP, but perhaps it lacked the sense of transcendence in her depiction of the world beyond. Okazaki chose the first movement of Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony. He was competent and created a good flow, but it was a little generic and one wanted a little more personality and characterization.
Next on stage, Court-Wood’s Mendelssohn had just that. It was a stormy and passionate reading of the first and final movements of the “Scottish” Symphony, an apt work for the currently Glasgow-based conductor. His interpretation was less about Victorian charm and elegance and more about the turbulent emotions of this Romantic work, which he painted with darker colours than we are often used to. The finale was particularly driven, and a little rushed in the coda.
Michailidis concluded the concert with a mature and absorbing performance of the third and fourth movements of Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony, bringing out vivid colours from the NJP. In the third movement he captured both the sardonicism of the outer sections and the deep emotions of the central section with the D-S-C-H and Elmira motifs, and in the final movement he built steadily from the slow introduction to the massive climax. He is clearly a masterful communicator and possesses great balance between intellect and emotion.
After deliberations from the distinguished panel of judges (consisting of six conductors, one violinist/conductor, and two orchestral directors), Michailidis was awarded first prize, and he was also given the orchestral award from the NJP, testimony that the orchestra enjoyed working with him. The second prize and Audience Award went to Court-Wood, and Yoshizaki received the third prize and Hideo Saito Award. The prize-winners will also perform in the Debut Concert with the NHK Symphony Orchestra Tokyo at Suntory Hall in July 2025.
On his win, Michailidis commented, “winning is very nice, but it’s not the only gain from the competition. The main thing for me, especially as I progressed, was the realization that I was in competition with myself. The competition forces you to grow very fast, and within one week you can make actual progress which I was very happy about. The competition also allows you to meet other conductors. I met 17 incredible musicians who are going to be the conductors of tomorrow, so I feel grateful to have been in this location all together and having spent time with them.”
I asked Court-Wood which aspect of the competition he found most challenging: “The second round, because you had to go from the very Romantic Schumann to the Bartók, which is very technical and you’re just looking after the logistics, and then to Sibelius which is a very awkward concerto to accompany – but I was lucky because I had played it as a violinist and knew the solo part.” He also told me that he had applied for the previous competition in 2021 but didn’t get past the screening process. “I guess this time was my time,” he beamed. This will be encouraging for applicants that didn’t make it this time.
In the end, the two experienced conductors took first and second prize, and deservedly so. But the other two will undoubtedly develop in the coming years. As jury member Mike George (Senior Producer, BBC Philharmonic) said at the press conference: “Age is not important for conductors. We are all developing at different speeds. What matters is that the four finalists have all made a crescendo throughout the course of the competition, and I am sure that will be the case for their careers.” Ultimately, these words are applicable to all the contestants, and I wish every one of them success in the future.
This article was sponsored by Tokyo International Conducting Competition.