SERGIO MATTARELLA AWARD THE “MEDAGLIA DEL PRESIDENTE DELLA REPUBBLICA” TO THE XIV EDITION OF THE CANTELLI COMPETITION

President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella has chosen to award, as his official representative honour, the “Medaglia del Presidente della Repubblica” to the XIV edition of the “Guido Cantelli” International Conducting Competition, taking place from 1 to 4 October 2026 in Milan and Novara. This prestigious recognition honours the competition promoted by the Fondazione Teatro Coccia di Novara, which since its foundation has been dedicated to discovering young conducting talent and which, throughout its history, has helped launch some of the most prominent conductors on the international music scene, including Riccardo Muti (1967), Eliahu Inbal (1963), Ádám Fischer and Lothar Zagrosek (1973), Hubert Soudant (1975) and Donato Renzetti (1980).

A commitment to the younger generations which, since the revival of the Competition in 2020, has also been expressed through the work of the Youth Jury, made up of young musicians and music enthusiasts and working alongside the Competition’s other juries. In this edition, in particular, the Youth Jury, which is called upon to award a special prize, the Empathy Prize, has established itself as a fully-fledged part of the Competition. Thirteen boys and girls aged between 13 and 24 are taking part, with their presence acquiring an increasingly profound significance: bringing young people closer to music while offering them a concrete space in which to exercise critical thinking, listening and dialogue, and to experience the most authentic value of artistic expression: behind every musical performance there is a person, a story and a culture.

These are the founding values underpinning the Competition itself, and they also reflect those of the “Medaglia del Presidente della Repubblica”, one of the forms through which the Head of State expresses his personal appreciation for events of significant institutional, cultural or social interest.