Awards of the Concours Nicati 2019
As part of the Concours Nicati, the first prize and the audience prize in the "Interpretation" category were awarded to the Concept Store Quartet, with the second prize going to the duo Klexs. The prize in the new "Open Space" category went to the collective IиTERиATIOиAL Totem. The four prizes are endowed with a total of 45,000 francs.
The members Alicja Pilarczyk (violin), Pablo González Balaguer (saxophone), Nejc Grm (accordion) and Guillem Serrano (drums) of the Concept Store Quartet have been working together since September 2018 and have made a name for themselves in German-speaking countries in a very short space of time. They commission all the works they create themselves.
Léa Legros-Pontal (viola) and Silke Strahl (saxophone) have dedicated themselves to contemporary and experimental music as the duo Klexs since 2016 and are committed to expanding their repertoire.
The Zurich-based collective IиTERиATIOиAL Totem (Léo Collin, Nuriya Khasenova, Kay Zhang) won the prize of CHF 15,000 in the "Open Space" category, which was held for the first time. Stanislas Pili and the duo Eventuell with Manuela Villiger and Vera Wahl also received a "Mention of the Jury".
The aim of the Concours Nicati is to discover and promote young personalities aged between 18 and 35 who are committed to contemporary music. The competition is organized by the Association du Concours Nicati. It maintains close partnerships with the Fondation Nicati-de Luze and the Music Department of the Bern University of the Arts HKB.
