Claudio Monteverdi Choral Competition 18-21 February 2025

Jury 2019

Paweł Łukaszewski – Poland

President of the Jury

Born in Częstochowa in 1968, Paweł Łukaszewski  is a graduate of the Fryderyk Chopin Music Academy in Warsaw, where he studied the cello (with Andrzej Wróbel, diploma in 1992) and composition (with Marian Borkowski, a diploma with distinction in 1995). He also finished the School for Arts Management at the University of Poznań (1994) and the postgraduate course in choral conducting at the Music Academy in Bydgoszcz (1996). He took part in the course of computer music in Warsaw (1992), the courses for young composers in Kazimierz Dolny (1992, 1993) and the summer courses in contemporary music in Kraków (with Bogusław Schaeffer, 1993). He has been on the faculty of the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music since 1996. In 2000 he gained his Ph.D. in composition (supervisor: Professor Marian Borkowski), in 2007 he received a post-doctoral degree and in 2010 the title of Professor. He worked as a visiting professor in Chile and Argentina (2003, 2006). He has received numerous commissions from Poland and abroad (Japan, Germany, Great Britain, Switzerland) and has held many grants, including those from the Częstochowa Town Council (1991-1992), the Professor Bogdan Suchodolski Foundation (1995), the ZAiKS Authors’ and Composers’ Association (1996), the Arts Promotion Fund of the Ministry of Culture (several times) and the President of Warsaw (2010). His honours include First Prize at the Composers’ Competition in Łomża (1988), an honourable mention at the Tadeusz Baird Composers’ Competition (1994), First Prize at the Warsaw Music Academy Competition (1994), Second Prize at the 2nd Young Composers’ Forum in Kraków (1994), Second Prize at the Adam Didur Competition in Sanok (1996), and Second Prize at the 27th International ‘Florilege Vocal de Tours’ Competition in France (1998). He won the ‘Fryderyk’ Awards of the Polish Phonographic Academy (2005, 2006), the Award of the town of St Quentin (for the best performance of a contemporary work) at the Concours Europeen de Choeurs et Maitrises de Cathedrales (2006). He has received the Commander’s Cross of the ‘Order of Polonia Restituta’ (1998), the award of the Mayor of Częstochowa for outstanding compositional achievements (1995), the award of the Rector of the Music Academy in Warsaw (2005), the Saint Brother Albert Chmielowski Award for outstanding achievements in composition, conducting and organization of musical life (2006), the Gloria Artis Medal of Merit for Culture (2011) and the Award from the Primate of Poland (2011). His works have been performed at over 100 festivals in Poland and abroad. His discography includes over 100 CDs (Hyperion, Acte Préalable, Polskie Nagrania Edition, DUX, Musica Sacra Edition, Signum Records), seven of which received the Fryderyk Awards (in various categories – choral music & oratorios, contemporary music, vocal music) and twenty eight were nominated for the award. Over fifty of his pieces have been published in Britain (ChesterNovello), Poland (PWM Edition), Germany (Edition Ferrimontana, Choris Mundi), Italy (Edizioni Carrara) and the United States (Lorenz Corporation). Paweł Łukaszewski has served as the Director of the International Festival ‘Laboratory of Contemporary Music’ (since 1995) and as President of the Musica Sacra Association (since 2000). He is a member of the ZAiKS Association of Authors and Composers, the Presidium of the Council of the Phonographic Academy and of the artistic council of the Gaude Mater International Festival of Sacred Music in Częstochowa. He has sat on the juries of the composers’ competitions in Arezzo, Moscow and Bucharest. He is Artistic Director and Conductor of ‘Musica Sacra’ Choir of the Warsaw-Praga Cathedral and of the Musica Sacra Edition. In recent years Paweł Łukaszewski’s music has gained a high recognition in Britain. His works have been performed (and some premiered) by such renowned choral ensembles from London and Cambridge as The Holst Singers, BBC Singers, Trinity College Choir, Tenebrae, Britten Sinfonia and Polyphony under the direction of prominent conductors Stephen Layton and Nigel Short. Two CDs devoted exclusively to his music have been released by Hyperion.

Tommyanto Kandisaputra – Indonesia

Member of the Jury

Tommyanto Kandisaputra is the Founder, Artistic Director and Conductor of Studio Cantorum Bandung Choir & Orchestra, Founder and Chairman of Bandung Choral Society and he organizes concerts, choral workshops, symposiums, and competitions. He is also the Artistic Director of the successful Bali International Choir Festival in Denpasar, Bali, which has been held since 2012 and will get to its 8th edition in July 2019. He has also organized successful choral festivals such as Rhapsodie Indonesia Choir Festival and Jakarta World Choir Festival in 2019. As a voice consultant Kandisaputra conducts many choral development programs all over Indonesia and he was appointed to be a World Choir Council member in 2006. He is also a representative of INTERKULTUR and has successfully brought Indonesian choirs to international stages and choir competitions. He became the Indonesian representative for the “One Asia Cultural Ambassador” organized by “The Music for One Foundation”, South Korea in 2014. In 2016 he was invited to conduct the Taipei Philharmonic Youth Choir at the National Concert Hall in Taipei, Taiwan, and he was the speaker at the Asian Pacific Children Choir Assembly in Okinawa. Kandisaputra was the guest speaker at Lithuanian’s Conductors Summer Academy 2017, thereafter a jury member at the Suwon Choral Festival and clinician at Jeju Senior Choir Festival, South Korea. Currently Tommyanto is very active in holding choral education activities as choral camps and workshops, all over Indonesia through choral symposiums since 2003.

 

Pierluigi Comparin – Italy

Member of the Jury

Pierluigi Comparin began his musical studies with his father, who was organist. Later on he studied organ at the Conservatory of Vicenza, Verona and Venice as well as Organ composition, choral music, choral conduction and prepolyphonic music. He attended specialization courses in Organ under the Maestri Langlais, Koopmann, Radulescu, and in Gregorian chant under the Maestri Augustoni and Menga and in conduction under the Maestro Carlo Rebeschini. He carries on an intensive concert activity in Italy and abroad (Mexico, Croatia, Slovenia, Spain, France, Germany, Israel, Switzerland). He is the conductor of the Polifonici Vicentini (choral ensemble) since its beginning. With this choir he has obtained many rewardings of great prestige (seven first prizes) in Italy and abroad. He has done many recordings for choir music and organ. As conductor he co-operates with the Baroque Orchestra I Musicali Affetti, the Orchestra of Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, the Ensemble Musagete, the Accademia Musicale in Schio, Gli Archi Italiani and with the Baroque Orchestra of the Conservatory of Vicenza. He is a member of the artistic committee of A.S.A.C. Veneto. He is organist at the S. Corona Church in Vicenza. He teaches Organ, modality, Gregorian chant in the traditional courses and in the courses of first and second level of the Conservatory A. Pedrollo in Vicenza.

 

Anna Ungureanu – Romania

Member of the Jury

Anna Ungureanu is the main conductor of the “Madrigal-Marin Constantin” National Chamber Choir, a musician with almost a decade of experience alongside Maestro Marin Constantin. Specialised in the conducting art under the careful observation of the renowned musicians Marin Constantin and Ion Marin, Anna Ungureanu performed concerts in Romania, Germany, Russia, Japan, Turkey, Serbia, Czech Republic, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Poland, China, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Great Britain, Portugal, Israel and France. She is member of several national and international jury boards in well-known choir festivals and contests. Starting with 2011, Anna Ungureanu, D.M.A., the leading conductor of the “Madrigal-Marin Constantin” National Chamber Choir, has also became the Artistic Director of the Cantus Mundi National Programme, an artistic and educational movement that was in the same year initiated by Maestro Ion Marin, aiming to stimulate, support and promote social integration through choral music in all educational institutions across Romania. The professional experience gained in almost nine years spent alongside the founder of the Madrigal Choir, Maestro Marin Constantin, recommends her as a disciple and follower of the legendary musician.

 

Johann van der Sandt – South Africa

Member of the Jury

Johann van der Sandt received his formal undergraduate and postgraduate education at the University of Pretoria. He also furthered his studies in Choral Conducting in the Netherlands at the ‘Gorinchem’ Institute of Choral Conductors training. He has been involved in choral work as a composer, conductor, arranger and adjudicator on national as well as international level throughout his career. In his capacity as adjudicator, conductor and lecturer, he is well sought after. Johann has conducted numerous choirs; his experience stretches wide, from working with Children’s Choirs to Youth Choirs, student’s choirs and Adult choirs. His adult Chamber choir Singkronies specifically was aimed at the recording, development and preservation of South African choral compositions. His work with the University of Pretoria Camerata (a mixed student’s choir) is characterized by numerous accolades. Under his leadership, the Drakensberg Boys choir established itself as one of the best boys’ choir internationally. Currently Johann is professor in Music Education at the University of Bolzano, Italy. Before that, he was professor in Choral Conducting at the University of Pretoria and served as the conductor and the Director of Music at the Drakensberg Boys Choir School, South Africa. Currently he is the conductor of Lasido Children’s Choir, UniBzVoices (Choral ensemble of the University of Bozen/Bolzano), the South Tyrolian Youth Choir as well as the male choir Brummnet. Johann is married to Bea de Wit, and they have two boys, Janthé and Nelu.