The Jury is composed by international acclaimed artists as orchestra conductors, opera singers, composers.

• Federico Bardazzi Artistic Director
• Carla Zanin Founder and CEO 

The Jury of the 8th edition of Florence International Choir Festival will be composed by the following members:
JÜRGEN PARTAJ - President of the Jury
LUC ANTHONIS
LEONARDO CREMONINI
ALEXANDRE JAMAR DE BOLSE
JAVIER CLAUDIO PORTALES

Jürgen Partaj was born in Vienna into a family of music enthusiasts and so came into early contact with the Austrian choral scene. He studied violin with Eva Bru and attended master classes with Christian Altenburger and Ernst Kovacic.
Initially he was active purely in the field of classical music in solo, chamber music and orchestral projects but his concert activity gradually shifted towards crossover. His musical career is complemented by performances with Oscar winner Glen Hansard, concerts as a guest musician in various international performing groups, several CD productions, broadcasts on international TV and radio stations as well as the musical direction at festivals and theatre productions, among others in the framework of the Wiener Festwochen. Besides his musical activities Jürgen Partaj graduated in law with a focus on arts law and founded a music agency in 2000 that specialized in international orchestral and choral tour management.
Jürgen Partaj had the opportunity to work with outstanding musicians such as Elina Garanca, Julian Rachlin, Joe Zawinul, Randy Newman, Lalo Schifrin and with choral conductors such as Erwin Ortner, Robert Page and Simon Carrington. Jürgen Partaj was founder and director of the contemporary music festival at Schloss Ebelsberg before he founded the “Summa Cum Laude International Youth Music Festival” in 2007 together with the Association Via Musica – a festival for youth choirs and youth orchestras from all over the world. As intendant and artistic director, he annually creates over 200 music events in seven European countries. The festival annually offers concerts, competitions, workshops and intercultural exchange events for around 2.000 participants, among others in the Musikverein (Golden Hall), the Konzerthaus, St. Stephen’s Cathedral, the Imperial Palace, the Vienna City Hall and the University of Music as well as in Prague’s Smetana Hall. With the establishment and the artistic direction of the youth choir “Neue Wiener Stimmen” in 2010 Jürgen Partaj was able to make a lasting impression in his hometown.
Despite its short existence the Neue Wiener Stimmen can already look back on tours in Austria and abroad, CD and DVD recordings, performances in the most important concert venues in Vienna, at the Life Ball, at the EXPO 2015 in Milan and acclaimed projects with the RSO Vienna, the Swiss Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Max Steiner Orchestra.
Jürgen Partaj is working with the Austrian Composers Society and is much sought after as a jury member of international music competitions.
Since 2019 he is Permanent Chairman of the Jury of the brand Florence Music Festivals: Florence Fun & Music Festival – Colors of the world, Florence International Choir & Orchestra Festival, Music Festa Florence.
At the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory of Antwerp Luc Anthonis received qualifications for flute, chamber music, harmony, analyses, choral and orchestral conducting.
He rounded out his knowledge on choral conducting in master classes with Eric Ericson, Simon Halsey, Péter Erdei, Jan Eelkema, Michael Scheck and others.
In 1980 Luc Anthonis took over the choir and he himself founded the Vocal Ensemble Cantando in 1989. He still is the conductor of both choirs. The latter has won a great number of prizes in national and international competitions. He conducts the Flemish Radio Choir on a regular basis and has been choirmaster of an international choir in Italy for four years. He gave choral conducting masterclasses in the Netherlands, Austria, Italy, Poland, Estonia, …
uc Anthonis is a member the World Choir Council. He is adjudicator in several national and international competitions (Belgium, Netherlands, Estonia, France, Austria, Hong Kong, …).
He is professor of choral conducting at the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory in Antwerp (Belgium).
He is also teacher at “Art Academie of Ekeren” (Antwerp-Belgium). Over the years his “String Ensemble” has grown to become the “Symphonic Ensemble of Ekeren” (SEE), one of the few “School Symphonic Orchestras” in Belgium.

At the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory of Antwerp Luc Anthonis received qualifications for flute, chamber music, harmony, analyses, choral and orchestral conducting.
He rounded out his knowledge on choral conducting in master classes with Eric Ericson, Simon Halsey, Péter Erdei, Jan Eelkema, Michael Scheck and others.
In 1980 Luc Anthonis took over the choir and he himself founded the Vocal Ensemble Cantando in 1989. He still is the conductor of both choirs. The latter has won a great number of prizes in national and international competitions. He conducts the Flemish Radio Choir on a regular basis and has been choirmaster of an international choir in Italy for four years. He gave choral conducting masterclasses in the Netherlands, Austria, Italy, Poland, Estonia, …
uc Anthonis is a member the World Choir Council. He is adjudicator in several national and international competitions (Belgium, Netherlands, Estonia, France, Austria, Hong Kong, …).
He is professor of choral conducting at the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory in Antwerp (Belgium).
He is also teacher at “Art Academie of Ekeren” (Antwerp-Belgium). Over the years his “String Ensemble” has grown to become the “Symphonic Ensemble of Ekeren” (SEE), one of the few “School Symphonic Orchestras” in Belgium.

Leonardo Cremonini, born in Florence in 1973, studies music at the State Conservatory “L. Cherubini “of his hometown, graduating in Clarinet with the maximum of votes and praise under the guidance of M ° A. Zambelli, and attending the Composition Course under the guidance of M° S. Sciarrino.
In parallel with the study of the instrument, he devoted himself to the study of languages,obtaining the Certification of English Language at The British School in Florence.He perfected himself, subsequently, attending Masters in Italy and abroad with F. Meloni, S.Meyer, T. Friedly, A. Pay, R. Crocilla and taking part in the Professional Training Courses of the Youth Symphonic Orchestra “A. Toscanini “of Parma (in the years ‘93, ‘94, ‘95, ‘96) and of the Teatro alla Scala Academy Orchestra of Milan (in the years ‘96, ‘97).
He has been awarded, both as a soloist and in chamber ensembles, in many national and international competitions.
He performed intense chamber music with various groups: Clarinet Quartet “Just for Clarinets “, Quintet of Fiati” L. Cherubini “, Quintet Gordon Jacob, performing for the most important Musical institutions and for the main Italian Festivals and Theaters, such as the Friends of Music of Florence, the “Lingotto Musica” Cultural Association of Turin, the Fiesole School of Music,the Roman Philharmonic Academy, the Metastasio Theater of Prato, the Ravello Festival.
He has collaborated with numerous prestigious orchestras: the Instrumental Camerata of Pisa, the Camerata Musicale Padana, the Kammermusik Orchestra of Naples, the Symphonic Orchestra “A.Toscanini “in Parma, the Teatro alla Scala Orchestra of Milan, the Orchestra of Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.
Since 1998 he has been the second Clarinet in the Orchestra of Maggio Musicale Fiorentino,playing under the direction of the most prestigious worldwide conductors: Z. Mehta, C. Abbado, R.Abbado, R. Muti, S. Ozawa, D. Oren, B. Bartoletti, L. Maazel, G. Pretre, to name a few.
For Maggio Musicale Formazione he took part, as a teacher of ensemble music for wind instruments, in the Professional Qualification Courses for Orchestra Teachers, in the years 2004 and 2005.
The orchestral activity combines with that of composer and arranger of pieces for bands and wind groups.

Winner of the 5th International Competition of Choral Composition Ennio Morricone 2018
Alexandre Jamar was born in 1995 in Paris. After a degree in piano and music theory he began his composition studies by following courses in orchestration and harmony at the Conservatory of Nancy. He then joined his present teacher Pierre-Alain Braye-Weppe at the Conservatory of Montereau and also attends regularly private lessons given by Allain Gaussin. His compositions have been premiered at the Belvedere Music Festival of Memphis (3rd Prize) and he received the 1st Price of the Grieg Composition Competition in Oslo, as well as the 1st Price of the Franz Josef Reinl-Stiftung in Vienna. His music has been performed in the United States, in France, Norway, Italy and Austria.
In parallel, he studies singing with Didier Henry at the Conservatoire Paul Dukas in Paris. As a singer, he is working with La Chambre Concertante, an ensemble specialised in Renaissance music, and has given several concerts around German lied and French song repertoire.
In 2018, he graduated from the Paris Institute of Political Science, with a master diploma in the management of cultural institutions.

Javier Claudio Portales -Conductor- (Violin Professor at the Superior Conservatory of Music in Málaga, Dr. professor in the department of Music Education at the University of Málaga, artistic director of Promúsica Project, coordinator of Campus Promúsica and radio music collaborator).
Javier Claudio Portales studied violin in Spain, Luxembourg and Austria, obtaining the highest grades, Extraordiari Award Grade and the II International Violin Grand Prix of Spain. He has studied with violinists from the likes of Igor Ozim, Michael Grube, Bretislav Novotny, T. Adamopoulos, Anna Baget or Agustín León Ara, among others. It has integrated various symphony orchestras and chamber as tutti, concertmaster and soloist, and various chamber ensembles (duo and trio), with concerts in Spain, Algeria, France, Italy, Denmark, Austria and Germany. As a teacher, has a history of nearly three decades in which he participated as a speaker at international conferences and has given lectures, and courses for students and teachers throughout the country (Almería, Huelva, Granada, Murcia, Ibiza, Madrid , etc). He is the author of several articles in professional journals and about twenty books and books with different publishers on learning the violin that are distributed and implemented in various Spanish-speaking countries and the US. He was appointed by the Government of Andalusia as editor-rapporteur of the LEA (Law Education of Andalucía) to the basic teachings of music in Andalucia. He is Doctor from the Department of Education in the Faculty of Education of Málaga and is a member of the research group “Albatros”. He has served on the jury of various competitions such as “Angeles Reina”, Young Musicians of Ayto Malaga or Muñoz Molleda (Cádiz). He recorded an Compact Disc with the Chamber Orchestra “Rosa Faria”, who created and directed for ten years with concerts in and out of Spain and three Compact Disc as Director of Orchestral Project Promúsica of Malaga. He has also directed several meetings to Cuenca Youth Orchestra, Allegro Chamber Orchestra of Andújar, Academy Orchestra of Lisbon and International Orchestre of Eurochestries Festival. For his important professional career he was awarded in 2016: “Ensign of Honor” –Málaga Musical Foundation-.