Taiwanese young conductor Liu Renren recently won the highest honor in wind conducting, the “Golden Baton Award,” at the World Music Contest, becoming the first Taiwanese conductor to receive this award. His mentor, Hamers, stated that Liu Renren is also the first conductor to receive wind conducting education in Germany and win this award, which holds significant meaning for wind conducting education in Germany.
The World Music Contest (WMC) was founded in 1951, held every four years in Kerkrade, the Netherlands. It is one of the most prestigious wind music events globally, covering symphonic wind bands, marching bands, percussion ensembles, and conducting, earning the title of the “Olympics of Wind Music.”
In this edition of the World Music Contest conducting competition, 16 young conductors from 11 countries participated. During the competition, Liu Renren conducted works by composers such as Mozart, Stravinsky, and Elgar, advancing to the finals.
In the end, he led the Royal Military Band Johan Willem Friso from the Netherlands in performing “Danse Funambulesque” by Belgian composer Jules Strens, receiving unanimous acclaim from the judges and winning the Golden Baton Award.
Liu Renren, hailing from Banqiao, New Taipei City, Taiwan, stated in an interview with the Central News Agency after the competition that he did not come from a music background. Initially majoring in electrical engineering in college, he gradually found his passion for conducting through participation in school clubs, later pursuing graduate studies at National Kaohsiung Normal University.
Under the encouragement of his mentor, Wang, Liu Renren went to Germany to further his studies in wind conducting. He is currently studying at Leopold Mozart College of the University of Augsburg.
His mentor in Germany, Hamers, a renowned wind conductor and educator in Europe, has dedicated years to wind conducting education and previously achieved 2nd place in the World Music Contest conducting competition in 1989.
According to a press release from the University of Augsburg, Liu Renren not only conducted the entire final competition from memory but also memorized the designated pieces for each round of the competition. Hamers mentioned that participants who can fully memorize all competition pieces are extremely rare.
Hamers praised Liu Renren for not only possessing excellent musical talents and conducting skills but also having good resilience and leadership charm, effectively motivating orchestra members. Describing Liu Renren as a “passionate and daring musician,” he emphasized that students so devoted to the conducting profession are rare to come by.
Furthermore, Hamers highlighted that Liu Renren is the first conductor to receive or be receiving wind conducting education at a German university or music school and win the Golden Baton Award at the World Music Contest, underscoring its significance for wind conducting education in Germany.