20 October 2015 – Augustin Hadelich is the winner of the inaugural Warner Music Prize, it was announced today in New York City. The prize, a new classical music award established by the Warner Music Group, is to be given annually to a musician under the age of 35 who demonstrates exceptional talent and promise. The winner, chosen from a pool of 16 artists, is selected by a jury of world-renowned classical musicians and music industry leaders. The award includes a $100,000 cash prize and an opportunity to make a recording for Warner Classics. The prize is also supported by the Blavatnik Family Foundation, which supports classical music and cultural projects.

Nominees for the inaugural 2015 Warner Music Prize were drawn from young singers and instrumentalists presented by Carnegie Hall in significant solo roles during the 2014-15 concert season. Augustin has appeared on the stages of Carnegie Hall numerous times, most recently in December 2014 performing Barber’s Violin Concerto in Stern Auditorium with the New York String Orchestra. Prior to that, in April 2014 in Zankel Hall, he gave the world-premiere performance of mystery sonatas by David Lang, a work commissioned by Carnegie Hall. “I cannot imagine a better performance than the one Mr. Hadelich gave,” enthused The New York Times’ Anthony Tommasini. “His playing combined impressive technical command with plush, rich-textured sound. And with magisterial poise and serene control, Mr. Hadelich became a riveting storyteller.” Augustin will return to Stern Auditorium in December 2015 when he makes his debut with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra performing the Divertimento from Stravinsky’s ballet Le baiser de la fée (The Fairy's Kiss) in an arrangement by fellow-violinist Dmitri Sitkovetsky.

The Warner Music Prize adds to Augustin’s impressive list of awards, which includes the Gold Medal at the 2006 International Violin Competition of Indianapolis, an Avery Fisher Career Grant (2009), a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship (2010), and the 2012 Martin E. Segal Award from Lincoln Center, for which he was nominated by the New York Philharmonic and Music Director Alan Gilbert.

Augustin opened his 2015-16 season with his Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra debut. In November, he makes his debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and will then have performed with every major orchestra in North America, many of them multiple times. Other highlights of his 2015-16 season include returns to the symphonies of Atlanta, Cincinnati, Detroit, New Jersey, Oregon and Seattle, and the Philadelphia Orchestra. In the UK, he will be this season’s Artist-in-Residence with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, and will return to the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Wigmore Hall. Other international engagements include the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Hong Kong Philharmonic.

Augustin’s growing discography includes the recently released Mendelssohn Violin Concerto coupled with Bartók's Violin Concerto No. 2, with Miguel Harth-Bedoya conducting the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, a recording that “shows he has become one of the very best of his generation. Even during Mendelssohn's most straightforward passages, one hears subtle, poetic touches from Hadelich with a pure, beautifully produced tone” (Philadelphia Inquirer). Last year’s pairing of the concertos by Jean Sibelius and Thomas Adès was nominated for a Gramophone Award and was named one of NPR’s “Best of 2014.”

Born in Italy, the son of German parents, Augustin Hadelich now resides in New York City. He plays on the 1723 “Ex-Kiesewetter” Stradivari violin, on loan from Clement and Karen Arrison through the Stradivari Society of Chicago.

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For any media enquiries, interview and image requests relating to Augustin Hadelich, please contact Melanne Mueller, MusicCo International, +44 (0) 20 8698 6933 or +1 917 907 2785, melanne@musiccointernational.com

For further information about Augustin Hadelich, please visit www.augustin-hadelich.com

For any media enquiries, interview and image requests relating to the Warner Music Prize, please contact Jessica Lustig, jlustig@21cmediagroup.com, +1 646 532 4378, or Jennifer Matthews, jmatthews@21cmediagroup.com, +1 646 532 4369

For further information about the Warner Music Prize, please visit http://warnermusicprize.com

ABOUT AUGUSTIN HADELICH
Augustin Hadelich has established himself as one of the greatest violinists of his generation. His phenomenal technique, poetic sensitivity, and gorgeous tone contribute to a rare mastery of repertoire ranging from the Baroque to the present day.

In 2015-16 Hadelich makes debuts with the Chicago Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, and Orpheus Chamber Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, and returns to the London Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, and the symphonies of Atlanta, Detroit, and Seattle, among others. Upcoming highlights also include a London Philharmonic recording, Bournemouth Symphony residency, a return to the Wigmore Hall and a recital tour of Germany.

Hadelich’s festival appearances include his 2015 debuts at Ravinia and Grand Teton, and returns to Aspen and Bravo! Vail Valley. He has also performed at Blossom, Marlboro and Tanglewood.

Hadelich appears with the world’s leading orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, BBC Symphony Orchestra, NHK Symphony and the São Paulo Symphony, under such renowned conductors as Marin Alsop, Herbert Blomstedt, James Conlon, Christoph von Dohnányi, Alan Gilbert, Neville Marriner, Edo de Waart, and Jaap van Zweden.

An enthusiastic recitalist, he has performed at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Louvre in Paris, Tokyo’s Kioi Hall, Washington’s Kennedy Center, and Carnegie Hall, where last season he premiered David Lang’s mystery sonatas. His chamber music partners include Jeremy Denk, James Ehnes, Richard Goode, Midori, Vadim Repin, and Mitsuko Uchida, among others.

Hadelich’s recording of the Sibelius and Thomas Adès concertos with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and Hannu Lintu was nominated for a Gramophone Award and named one of NPR’s “Best of 2014.” His Avie discography also comprises two solo albums and a collaboration with guitarist Pablo Villegas. His most recent release, with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra and Miguel Harth-Bedoya, pairs the Mendelssohn Concerto with Bartok’s Second. A recording of Dutilleux’s Violin Concerto, with Ludovic Morlot and the Seattle Symphony, is due for release this autumn.

Gold Medallist at the 2006 International Violin Competition of Indianapolis, Hadelich is the recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant, a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship, and Lincoln Center’s Martin E. Segal Award. He plays on the 1723 “Ex-Kiesewetter” Stradivari violin.