Stumm has been recognised for her work with Ilumina, and receives the €10,000 prize which honours artists for exceptional musical achievements and strong commitment to social justice
Violist Jennifer Stumm has been named as the recipient of the 2024 Pablo Casals Award. She received the award at a ceremony on 26 September during the concert ‘Brazilian Fire’ at the Casals Forum at this year’s Kronberg Festival.
Stumm received the award for her work with the artist collective Ilumina, a São-Paulo-based artist development initiative and chamber music collective that Stumm founded in 2015.
It brings together international soloists with the best up-and-coming talent in Latin America. At the Ilumina Festival and on worldwide tours, these talents work and perform together in order to provide equal opportunities. The young artists are studying at leading international universities and have already reached a high level.
Ilumina’s recent performances include appearances at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, a residency at the 2024 Edinburgh International Festival and the Kronberg Festival. 2025 will mark the tenth anniversary of the Ilumina Festival.
Raimund Trenkler, founder and director of Kronberg Academy, commented on the significance of Stumm’s work: ’With Ilumina, Jennifer Stumm succeeds in using music as a bridge - a bridge thattranscends cultural, social and geographical boundaries and unites young talents. She not only gives them a stage, but also the chance to develop in a community based on mutual learning and human exchange.
’Ilumina is a living example of how art can actively contribute to shaping a more open and united world while carrying on the legacy of Pablo Casals, who firmly believed that music could be a transformative force for society.’
’Jennifer’s curatorial flair makes Ilumina concerts a dynamic experience characterised by cultural exchange and fresh energy. The award shows how music not only impresses through its technical brilliance, but also through its contribution to community life,’ said Marcus Stollenwerk, member of the executive board at asset management company Flossbach von Storch, which supports the award.
Stumm was born in Atlanta, US and studied with Karen Tuttle at the Curtis Institute of Music and the Juilliard School, as well as with Nobuko Imai and Steven Isserlis. She also pursued interests in politics at the University of Pennsylvania.
She is winner of the William Primrose, Geneva and Concert Artist Guild competitions and recipient of the BBC New Generation artist and Borletti-Buitoni Trust awards for her work in chamber music.
As a speaker and writer, Stumm recently spoke at NASA about how the arts can innovate toward a better world, and her viral TEDx talk about the viola and the blessings of being different, The Imperfect Instrument, was named editor’s pick of all TED talks and led to a solo debut at the Berlin Philharmonie.
Stumm is professor of viola at the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna. She plays a Gasparo da Salò viola from 1589, generously on loan from a private trust.
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