Jordi Savall has been awarded the renowned 2026 Ernst von Siemens Music Prize for his lifetime of exceptional contributions to music. According to the Foundation that presents the award, the Catalan musician has made fundamental contributions to early music as a performer, scholar and musical ambassador, and his concerts and recordings are considered benchmarks within his field. It also highlighted that, as a teacher and director of ensembles, he has trained generations of musicians from around the world and that his music for the historical film Tous les matins du monde (1991) earned him international recognition and introduced his work to audiences worldwide.
Endowed with €250,000, the award will be presented at a ceremony on 23 May at the Prinzregententheater in Munich. There will be a concert with Hespèrion XXI and La Capella Reial de Catalunya, conducted by Savall. The laudatory speech will be delivered by violinist Edouard Mätzener.
The Ernst von Siemens Foundation, based in Switzerland, supports festivals, concerts, academies, new compositions, symposia and musicological publications. It has been awarding these prizes since 1973 and, in this edition, the total endowment amounts to €4.3 million.
The Berlin Philharmonic pays tribute to the Catalan musician
This prize comes in addition to the tribute paid to him by the Berlin Philharmonic, one of the world's most prestigious orchestras, which recognises his significant contribution to the recovery of musical heritage and his career as a performer, conductor and promoter. The tribute marked Savall's debut as a guest conductor with the orchestra, which dedicated a six-concert series to him.
The concerts, five of which have already taken place, have showcased his three exceptional roles: as a viola da gamba soloist, as conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic, and as a mentor to young musicians at the Karajan-Akademie.
On 16 March, a special concert in the main auditorium will conclude the tribute. The evening will be entirely devoted to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and will be performed by Le Concert des Nations, on period instruments, together with La Capella Nacional de Catalunya. It will be a unique opportunity to rediscover the beauty and depth of Mozart through a historically informed performance with instruments from his era.
