New Talent – SPP Foundation Award

Formerly known as the International Forum of Young Performers, the New Talent – SPP Foundation Award competition is part of the Bratislava Music Festival which is organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) based in Geneva, under the auspices of UNESCO and the International Music Council (IMC), in co-operation with the Slovak Radio and the Slovak Philharmonic. It was initiated in 1969 by Sir Yehudi Menuhin. The purpose of the competition is to contribute to the career advancement of talented young musicians from Slovakia and from around Europe. They get opportunity to present themselves at the prestigious Bratislava Music Festival, to meet with distinguished personalities of the world music and to confront their own performance with that of the interpreters of their own generation.

Competitors are evaluated on their performance by an international jury. The final concert is combined with the presentation to the competition’s winner of the award comprising a financial sum and a fine art work. The concert is broadcast through the EBU radio network in many countries. The New Talent competition has become a springboard for many artists marking the start of their career. Slovak musicians who have launched their careers through the competition include the opera singers Peter Dvorský and Sergej Kopčák.