Eurovision Young Musicians 1998
The Eurovision Young Musicians 1998 was the ninth edition of the Eurovision Young Musicians, held at Konzerthaus in Vienna on 4 June 1998.[1] Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Österreichischer Rundfunk (ORF), musicians from eight countries participated in the televised final. Austria and broadcaster ORF previously hosted the contest at Musikverein in 1990. A total of eighteen countries took part in the competition therefore a semi-final was held two days earlier. All participants performed a classical piece of their choice accompanied by the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Dennis Russell Davies.[1]
Eurovision Young Musicians 1998 | |
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Dates | |
Semi-final | 2 June 1998 |
Final | 4 June 1998 |
Host | |
Venue | Konzerthaus, Vienna, Austria |
Presenter(s) | Julian Rachlin |
Musical director | Dennis Russell Davies |
Host broadcaster | Österreichischer Rundfunk (ORF) |
Participants | |
Number of entries | 18 |
Number of finalists | 8 |
Debuting countries | ![]() |
Returning countries | ![]() ![]() |
Non-returning countries | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Participation map
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Vote | |
Voting system | Jury chose their top 3 favourites by vote. |
Winning musician |
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Slovakia made their début, while Croatia and Sweden returned to the contest. Three countries withdrew from the 1998 contest; they were Belgium, France, and Russia.[1]
The non-qualified countries were Cyprus, Estonia, Ireland, Norway, Spain and Switzerland. Lidia Baich of host country Austria won the contest, with Croatia and United Kingdom placing second and third respectively.[2] Baich had represented Austria at the previous edition in 1996, placing second.
Location

The Konzerthaus, a concert hall in Vienna, Austria, was the host venue for the 1998 edition of the Eurovision Young Musicians.[1] Opened in 1913, it is situated in the third district just at the edge of the first district in Vienna. Since it was founded it has always tried to emphasise both tradition and innovative musical styles.
The Konzerthaus has the Vienna Symphony, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, the Wiener Singakademie and the Klangforum Wien in residence. Several subscriptions also include concerts by the Vienna Philharmonic and other organizations.
Format
Julian Rachlin was the host of the 1998 contest and performed during the interval.[1]
Results
Preliminary round
A total of eighteen countries took part in the preliminary round of the 1998 contest, of which eight qualified to the televised grand final. The following countries failed to qualify.[1][3]
Cyprus
Estonia
Germany
Greece
Ireland
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Spain
Switzerland
Final
Awards were given to the top three countries. The table below highlights these using gold, silver, and bronze. The placing results of the remaining participants is unknown and never made public by the European Broadcasting Union.[2]
Draw | Country | Performer | Instrument | Piece | Result |
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01 | ![]() | Adrian Spillett | Percussion | Concerto for Percussion and Orchestra, mov. 3 by Joseph Schwantner | 3 |
02 | ![]() | Kalle Toivio | Piano | Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, no. 2, 1st Mov. by Sergei Prokofiev | - |
03 | ![]() | Lauma Skride | Piano | Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, no. 2, 3rd Mov. by Camille Saint-Saens | - |
04 | ![]() | Borut Zagoranski | Accordion | Concierto para bandoneon presto by Astor Piazzolla | - |
05 | ![]() | Michal Sťahel | Cello | Concerto for Violoncello and Orchestra, adagio by Edward Elgar | - |
06 | ![]() | Lidia Baich | Violin | Violin Concerto no. 5, 1st Mov. by Henri Vieuxtemps | 1 |
07 | ![]() | Monika Leskovar | Cello | Concerto for Violoncello and Orchestra, adagio by Edward Elgar | 2 |
08 | ![]() | David Sjögren | Violin | Violin Concerto 3rd Mov. by Peter Tchaikovsky | - |
Jury members
The jury members consisted of the following:[1]
United States – Yehudi Menuhin (head)
Ukraine – Vadim Brodski
France – Gérard Caussé
- Friedrich Doligal
Slovakia – Jack Martin Händler
Georgia – Nana Yashvili
- Eric Kushner
Russia – Alexei Lyubimov
Broadcasting
EBU members from the following countries broadcast the final round. The Final was also broadcast in Germany.[4]
Country | Broadcaster | Channel(s) | Commentator(s) | Ref(s) |
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ORF | ORF 2 | Otto Brusatti | |
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HRT | |||
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CyBC | |||
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ETV | [5] | ||
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YLE | TV1 | [5] | |
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3sat | [6] | ||
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RTÉ | |||
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LTV | |||
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NRK | NRK1[lower-alpha 1] | [7] | |
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TVP | |||
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STV | |||
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RTVSLO | |||
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TVE | |||
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SVT | |||
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SRG SSR | SF2 | [8] | |
TSR 2 | Jean-Pierre Pastori | |||
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BBC | BBC Two[lower-alpha 2] | Stephanie Hughes | [9] |
Official album
Eurovision Grand Prix For Young Musicians | |
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Compilation album by | |
Released | 1998 |
Recorded | June 1998 |
Venue | Großer Saal, Konzerthaus, Vienna |
Genre | Classical |
Label | ORF, Casinos Austria Classic |
Producer | Raimund Langner |
Eurovision Grand Prix For Young Musicians was the official compilation album of the ninth edition of the contest, put together by the European Broadcasting Union and released by the host broadcaster ORF shortly after the contest in June 1998. The album featured live recordings of the eight finalists.[3]
See also
Notes and references
Footnotes
References
- "Eurovision Young Musicians 1998: About the show". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 2 January 2014. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
- "Eurovision Young Musicians 1998: Participants". youngmusicians.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 2 January 2014. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
- https://www.discogs.com/release/23596622-Various-9-Eurovisions-Grand-Prix-F%C3%BCr-Junge-Musiker-1998
- "Eurovision Young Musicians Folge 9: Wien 1998". Retrieved 16 April 2020 – via www.fernsehserien.de.
- "Telekava" [TV schedule]. Eesti Päevaleht (in Estonian). 4 June 1998. p. 11. Retrieved 26 April 2024 – via DIGAR Eesti artiklid.
- "Radio og TV" [Radio and TV]. Moss Dagblad. 4 June 1998. pp. 47–48. Retrieved 26 April 2024 – via National Library of Norway.
- "Radio og TV" [Radio and TV]. Moss Dagblad. 7 June 1998. pp. 30–31. Retrieved 26 April 2024 – via National Library of Norway.
- "Jeudi 4 juin" [Thursday 4th June]. Le Matin (in French). Lausanne, Switzerland: Tamedia Publications. 28 May 1996. pp. 53, 55. Retrieved 25 April 2024 – via Scriptorium Digital Library.
- "BBC Young Musicians 98". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 10 October 2022.