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Unanimous Decision in Besançon

Competitions

Following selection rounds behind closed doors in the spring of 2025, twenty candidates were selected for the final rounds during the 78th edition of the Music Festival

The 59th edition of the Besançon International Competition for Young Conductors took place from 22 to 27 September 2025. 

After a week-long musical marathon, the Besançon Competition concluded with its ultimate challenge: the only round performed under true concert conditions. The three finalists each had 40 minutes to convince the jury, conducting the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie in a program that included the world premiere of Delirium Scherzo by composer-in-residence Régis Campo, commissioned by the Festival.

At the end of this decisive day, the international jury unanimously named Satoshi Yoneda (29, Japan) winner of the 2025 Grand Prix in Conducting. The trophy was presented by the jury’s president, Michael Schønwandt.

The jury also unanimously awarded a Special Mention to Tianyi Xie (21, China), the youngest candidate of the Competition, praising his “incredible talent and tremendous potential.” Xie also won both the Audience’s Favorite and the Orchestra’s Favorite, with votes proving extremely close in both categories.

Announcing the results, the President of the Jury once again underlined the outstanding overall standard of this year’s Competition, noting how the candidates succeeded in moving the Jury day after day.

Satoshi Yoneda, Grand Prize of the 59th Besançon Conducting Competition

Satoshi Yoneda began studying piano at an early age before joining the Okayama City Youth Orchestra, where he was responsible for percussion. In 2016, he entered the Faculty of Music at the Tokyo University of the Arts, studying conducting with Ken Takaseki and piano with Yoshihiro Nagase. He attended conducting masterclasses with Paavo Järvi and Kazuki Yamada. In 2018, he received the Ataka Prize. He was a finalist in the 2021 Tokyo International Music Competition for Conducting (the highest distinction in Japan), where he received an Honorable Mention. In 2023, he competed in the Hong Kong International Conducting Competition. He has already conducted several major professional Japanese orchestras, including the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra, Sapporo Symphony Orchestra, New Japan Philharmonic, and Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra.

Laureates:

Grand-Prix: Satoshi Yoneda (29)

Finalists: Tianyi Xie (21) wins orchestra and audience Prizes,  Kyrian Friedenberg (26)

 

Jury: Michael Schønwandt (Chair), Cécile Agator, Régis Campo, Jaewon Kim, Catherine Larsen-Maguire, Jean-Claude Picard, Jean-François Verdier, Stephen Wright

Artists: Orchestre Victor Hugo, Orchestre Dijon-Bourgogne, Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken