ICMA Gala takes place in Lucerne for the first time
The award ceremony and gala concert for this year's International Classical Music Awards (ICMA) will take place on May 10, 2019 at the KKL Lucerne. Numa Bischof Ullmann, Artistic Director of the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra, will receive a Special Achievement Award.
Under the direction of Lawrence Foster, several soloists will perform with the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra at the award ceremony - for example Nelson Freire (Lifetime Achievement Award), Javier Perianes (Artist of the Year), Matko Smolcic (Young Artist of the Year), Eva Gevorgyan (Discovery Award) and Stephen Waarts (Orchestra Award).
This year's winner of the ICMA "Special Achievement Award" is Numa Bischof Ullmann, who as artistic director of the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra "has shaped the Swiss orchestral scene for many years with his innovative artistic ideas, his tireless enthusiasm and his foresight", as the jury writes in its laudation. The Orchestra Award, which is presented by the respective host orchestra, goes to the young violinist Stephen Waarts.
The ICMA have been awarded annually since 2011. They are awarded by independent media professionals. In recent years, the ICMA awards have been presented in countries such as Finland, Italy, Germany and Poland.
