Koninklijk Conservatorium Rudi Martinus van Dijk Conductor’s Prize

The first recipient of the Koninklijk Conservatorium Rudi Martinus van Dijk Conductor’s Prize in The Hague will be the Cuban born conductor César Eduardo Ramos. The €5000 gift will be presented on June 12th, 2025 at the Amare Concert Hall in The Hague directly after Cesar’s final exam concert conducting the Residentie Orkest in a programme of Poulenc and Shostakovich. The prize is awarded to help fund the first year of a conductor’s artistic development after graduation, a time which can seem daunting for many young professional musicians embarking on a career. This will aid in attending masterclasses, travel to and from such masterclasses, visas, the purchase of musical scores, and other related projects connected to their professional artistic development.

César Eduardo Ramos served as assistant conductor of the Cuban National Symphony Orchestra and Associate Conductor of Matanzas Symphony Orchestra. In addition, he founded the Ensemble Habana XXI, dedicated to connecting contemporary music with other artistic expressions such as visual arts, contemporary dance, opera, theater, and audiovisuals.

He obtained a bachelor’s degree in Orchestral Conducting from the Havana University of the Arts and is currently pursuing a master’s in the National Master in Orchestral Conducting (Koninklijk Conservatorium Den Haag – Conservatorium van Amsterdam) with Ed Spanjaard, Jac van Steen and Antony Hermus.

His most recent performances include conducting at the Dutch National Opera and Ballet during the Opera Forward Festival 2024 and conducting Boulez’s Dérive II with the Ensemble Royaal. Among the orchestras to he has worked with as assistant conductor are the Residentie Orkest, PhilZuid, Noord Nederland Orkest, Asko|Schonberg and the Belgian National Orchestra.