37 young musicians have been loaned fine instruments, while four have extended the loan agreements of their current instruments

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The 31st edition of the German Musical Instrument Fund competition was held from 23 to 25 February 2024 at the Museum of Arts and Crafts in Hamburg. A total of 52 young musicians competed for the chance to be loaned an outstanding stringed instrument. From this, 37 musicians secured loans, while four musicians extended the loan agreements of their current instruments.

Bettina Bermbach, managing director of the German Music Life Foundation (Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben) commented: ’The technical and musical level of the applicants was once again very high this year.

’The competition jury dealt very intensively with the musicians and their individual skills and needs in order to award the instruments in the best possible and most accurate way. We are now looking forward to getting to know our new scholarship holders and supporting their artistic development.’

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Louisa Staples and Dr. Monika Blankenburg © DSM David Ausserhofer

Among the instruments up for grabs was a violin by G.B. Guadagnini, Piacenza 1744, from a private collection, which was loaned to 23-year-old violinist Louisa Staples , a master’s student at the Hanns Eisler University of Music in Berlin. The instrument most recently belonged to the Polish violinist Michel Schwalbé (1919-2012), who was concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic under Herbert von Karajan for many years.

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Tzu-Shao Chao and prof. Christian Brunnert © DSM David Ausserhofer

23-year-old cellist Tzu-Shao Chao, currently a master’s student at the Munich University of Music, earned a cello labelled ’Joseph Guarnerius Filius Andreae’ and also received the Dr. Alexander Sikorski scholarship. This €5,000 scholarship for outstanding young cellists is in memory of the surgeon and foot specialist Dr. Alexander Sikorski, who was an enthusiastic cellist, excellent chamber musician and committed supporter of young musicians. The scholarship donor was Régine Mazloum-Martin from Geneva.

The honorary members of the jury for this year’s competition were prof. Volker Jacobsen, viola (Hannover University of Music, Theater and Media and member of the advisory board of the German Musical Instrument Fund) - jury chairman, prof. Christian Brunnert, cello (Cologne University of Music and Dance), prof. Nora Chastain, violin (Berlin University of the Arts), prof. em. Maria Kliegel, cello (Cologne University of Music and Dance) and prof. Elisabeth Weber, violin (Lübeck University of Music).

The full list of instruments and winners are as follows:

Violin:

Louisa Staples (b.2000): Giovanni Battista Guadagnini, Piacenza ca. 1744, ’ex Michel Schwalbé’

Philipp Chernomor (b.2010): Sébastian Philippe Bernadel ’père’, Paris ca.1845

Elisabeth Gühring (b.2009): Lorenzo Storioni, Cremona 1774 

Eun Che Kim (b.1997): Joseph Guarneri ’Filius Andreae’, Cremona 1698-1700 

Michel Lewin (b.2003): Andrea Guarneri, Cremona 1664 

Johanna Schubert (b.1999): Lorenzo Storioni, Cremona 1779 

Aoi Saito (b.1997): violin labelled Antonio Stradivari Cremonensis, Faciebat Anno 1716 

Hani Song (b.1997): Francesco Rugeri, Cremona 1667 

Dongmin Lim (b.2001) Matteo Goffriller, Venice 1715-1720 

Veronika Rädler (b.2000): Carlo Giuseppe Testore, c.Milan 1710 

Lea Jonscher (b.2007:) Philipp Augustin, Staufen 2018 

Jueun Jeong (b.1996): Haiko Seifert, Plauen 2018 

Alexey Stychkin (b.2000): Carlo Antonio Testore, Milan, 1740 

Sofiko Tchumburidze (b.2000): Lorenzo Ventapane, Naples, 1795

Mira Marie Foron (b.2002): Stephano Scarampella, Mantua 1909 

Viola:

Anuschka Cidlinsky (b.1996): Matteo Goffriller, Venice 1711 

Eike Coetzee (b.2002): Gianbattista Ceruti, Cremona 1798 

Jimin Jang (b.2000): Paolo Antonio Testore, Milan, c.1740 

Yeunwoo Park (b.2002): Paolo Antonio Testore, Milan, 1749

Luisa Ye (b.2006):  Stephan von Baehr, Paris 2009 

Cello:

Tzu-Shao Chao (b.2001): cello labelled ’Joseph Guarnerius Filius Andreae Fecit Cremonae’ 

Till Schuler (b.2000): Francesco Rugeri, Cremona c.1670-1680 

Jeremias Luther (b.2006): Stefano Scarampella, Mantua 1880 

Merle Geißler (b.1999): Georges Chanot à Paris, c.1840 

Alexandra Kahrer (b.1998): Giovanni Battista Rogeri, Brescia, 1671 

Clara Yuna Friedensburg (b.2007): Jean Baptiste Vuillaume, Paris 1845 

Joui Karr (b.2006): cello labelled ’Joseph Guarnerius filius Francisco Andreae fecit Cremonae sub titule Sanctae Teresiae’

Seungyeon Baik (b.1999): Peter Schlarb, Aachen 2009 

Arne Zeller (b.2006): Antonio Sgarbi, Rom 1894 

Xuanhan Xu (b. 2004): cello labelled ’Joseph Antonius Rocca fecit Taurini anno Domini 1842’

Leopold Behrens (b.1998): cello labelled ’Joseph Gagliano Filius Nicolai et Nepos Januarius fecit’, Naples 1720 

Youbien Lee (b.2000): cello labelled ’Paolo Antonio Testore’, Milan, c.1750 

Maxime Grizard (b.2006): Stephan von Baehr, Paris 2009 

Paula Prudlo (b.2006): cello from the school of Jacques Boquay, Paris c.1700 

Yong-Jun Lee (b.1997): Pierre Pacherel, Nice 1852 

Akito Marschik (b.2004): Urs. W. Mächler, Holzhausen 2018 

Solveig Maria Emilsson (b.2007): Haiko Seifert, Plauen, 2016 

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