American violinist Joshua Bell has been awarded the 16th Glashütte Original Music Festival Award and a €25,000 grant, which honours his achievements in classical music education and his support for young artists.
Bell was presented the award after his concert with Camerata Salzburg at Dresden Music Festival, performing works by Sibelius, Beethoven and Dvořák. Managing director and chief financial officer of Glashütte Original, Frank Kittel, and director of Dresden Music Festival, Jan Vogel, presented the award.
Bell commented, “I am profoundly honoured to receive this year’s Glashütte Original Music Festival Award. It is a great privilege to be counted alongside the many eminent musicians who have received this award in the past. We share a collective commitment to music education, and there are few things that bring me more joy than sharing music with the next generation.”
Previous winners of the award include cellist Steven Isserlies, violinists Hilary Hahn and Gidon Kremer and conductors Kurt Masur, Gustavo Dudamel, Andris Nelsons and Simon Rattle.
Bell plans to donate the grant money to Education Through Music (ETM), Turnaround Arts, Special Music School, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and Learning and Participation Programme of the Academy of St Martin.
Vogel said, “I have known Joshua Bell since 1989, when we met at the Marlboro Music Festival. Today he is one of the most charismatic and successful musicians in the world, and I am delighted that we are able to honour his work with the Glashütte Original Music Festival Award this year.”
