Born in Vienna in 2007, Leonhard Baumgartner gained international recognition after winning the Eurovision Young Musicians Competition in 2024, making his debut with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra conducted by Eivind Aadland.
He is also a laureate of numerous other prestigious awards, including First Prize at the Zhuhai International Mozart Competition (2022), First Prize and the Special Prize at the Ilona Fehér International Violin Competition, the Discovery Award at the International Classical Music Awards (2023), and the First and Audience Prizes at the Osaka International Music Competition (2024).
He made his orchestral debut at the age of 15 with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at the Wiener Konzerthaus. Since then, Leonhard has appeared as a soloist with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, the NFM Philharmonic Wrocław, the Berliner Baroque Soloists, the Württemberg Chamber Orchestra, the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra, among others.
He was chosen for the world premiere and recording of a newly discovered work by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, released by Deutsche Grammophon. The project became one of the most celebrated classical launches of 2024.
The Stretton Trio: Leonhard recently recorded Felix Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No. 1 and Maurice Ravel’s Piano Trio for Bayerischer Rundfunk, together with Alexander Warenberg (ARD Competition laureate, cello) and Nikola Meeuwsen (winner of the 2025 Queen Elisabeth Competition, piano). The trio will continue to perform and play at festivals in the upcoming seasons.
He is a selected artist of the Stretton Excellence Mentorship Program, where he is mentored by Vilde Frang. His participation is generously supported by the Nina Gscheider & Florian Schwarz Scholarship of the Stretton Society. He is also a scholarship holder of the Music Academy Liechtenstein and was invited to Kronberg’s Chamber Music Connects the World festival, where he performed alongside Gidon Kremer.
Leonhard studied with Dora Schwarzberg in Vienna and Ingolf Turban in Munich, and has received additional guidance from Leonidas Kavakos and Ana Chumachenco. Highlights of the current season include Brahms’ Violin Concerto at the Musikverein Vienna and with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, as well as Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto with the Munich Symphony Orchestra at the Isarphilharmonie and Bruch’s Violin Concerto with the Mozarteumorchester Salzburg.
The 2025 season culminates in Leonhard’s first tour to Australia, featuring his debut performance of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra.
Leonhard plays a fine violin by Antonio Stradivari, Cremona 1683, known as the “ex Petherick”, a generous loan from a member of the Stretton Society.
Selected Press Reviews
“He and the orchestra built the climax together, carried by Schumann’s overflowing lyrical emotion. His cadenza had great rhetorical flair and flow, and his phrasing of the final arpeggios was pure poetry.”
— Seen and Heard International, August 2023
“Leonhard Baumgartner combines naturalness and extraordinary skill.”
— Der Standard, August 2024
“Child prodigies among themselves.”
— Rheinische Post, March 2025, on his performance of Mozart’s Violin Concerto in A major
“Leonhard’s ability to convey profound musical emotion, coupled with technical mastery, earned him the unanimous praise of a distinguished jury of renowned musicians. Extraordinary virtuosity, deep musical understanding, and the ability to fill the concert hall as a true soloist.”
— European Broadcasting Union (EBU)
“He impressed from the very first moment with his genuine musicality and his joy in communication. He played in complete admiration of Mozart’s divine art, with a deep inner delight in bringing that art to life. What followed was an inspired, delicate, and profoundly felt Adagio, in which the sweet pain of this music was movingly expressed.
With the sheer elegance of his animated, extremely flexible playing and his absolute command of a work he was performing for the first time, the young soloist captivated the audience.”
— Pizzicato