A Time to Judge

As the World Federation of International Music Competitions celebrates its 60th anniversary, we take a look at its history.

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Cold War clashes, the chaos of colonial conflicts and existential fears about life in a nuclear age inspired the launch of a raft of transnational organisations in the 1950s. The World Federation of International Music Competitions (WFIMC) sprang to life in Geneva in 1957, 11 like-minded groups from both sides of the Iron Curtain convening to bring nations and individuals together through music.

The Federation’s founder members included the Geneva International Music Competition, the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition in Brussels, Warsaw’s International Chopin Piano Competition, the Prague Spring International Music Festival and the Budapest International Music Competition. Over the past 60 years, its constituency has followed the arc of globalisation to encompass competitions on six continents and in almost 40 countries.