MOJCA LAVRENČIČ WINS
LA MAESTRA COMPETITION 2026
Mojca Lavrenčič, member of the Passion for Conducting Academy, has won First Prize at La Maestra 2026 — the world's most important conducting competition for women conductors. She also took home five of the six remaining special prizes, awarded by the Orchestre de Paris musicians, ECHO, ARTE, French Concert Halls, and the International Orchestras Committee.
She had been studying at the Passion for Conducting Academy through weekly individual online conducting lessons for the eighteen months leading up to that moment.
This is what dedicated conducting mentoring looks like in practice.
Where She Started
Mojca first discovered Passion for Conducting in 2020. When she rejoined the Academy in September 2024, she came with a clear sense of what she wanted to develop. Through structured, weekly conducting lessons online, we worked on everything that separates a good conductor from a truly compelling one:
• Deep score analysis and musical understanding
• Conducting technique and physical expressiveness
• Left hand independence and intention
• Rehearsal psychology and communication with musicians
• Interpretive exploration — what she called the "World of Possibilities"
• Career strategy and applying to the right opportunities, including conducting competitions
She prepared thoroughly for every engagement during this period, including a full opera production of Lakmé, and brought that same rigour to every lesson.
One Week to Prepare
Mojca applied to La Maestra 2026. She was placed on the reserve list. With Lakmé taking priority, competition preparation stayed on the back burner — until one week before the first round, when she received the call that a place had opened.
We immediately moved into emergency mode, meeting every day. We mapped out her strategy round by round, worked through the full competition repertoire, explored the contemporary works in depth, and focused on exactly what would make her stand out in front of a world-class orchestra and an international jury. The preparation was precise, intensive, and purposeful.
The Competition
Round One — Brilliant. Smiles from the players and focused attention from the jury. A finalist was clearly in the room.
Round Two — Exceptional control accompanying a singer, and striking interpretive ideas in the Gubaidulina work.
The Final — Two performances: one with the Paris Mozart Orchestra, one with the Orchestre de Paris. Overwhelming and fully herself from first beat to last.
The Result
🥇 First Prize — La Maestra Competition 2026
🏆 International Orchestras Committee Prize
🏆 ECHO Committee Prize
🏆 French Concert Halls and Orchestras Committee Prize
🏆 Orchestre de Paris Musicians' Prize
🏆 ARTE Committee Prize
A near-unanimous message from Europe's leading orchestras, concert halls, and cultural institutions:
She was the outstanding conductor of this competition
In her own words
In the autumn of 2024, I felt called to rejoin the academy, as I felt “incompetent and lost.” I knew I could grow and continue to develop; I wanted to live my full potential, but I did not know how to take the first step. Eduardo “took me by the hand” and set me in motion.
"My victory at La Maestra 2026 is your victory! You were the gardener who helped me bloom."
— Mojca Lavrenčič, First Prize Winner, La Maestra 2026
Learn Conducting Online With the Same Methodology as Mojca
Mojca's result was not a coincidence. It was the outcome of consistent, structured work over months — the kind of work that only happens through genuine conducting mentoring.
If you are a conductor who wants to go deeper — technically, musically, and professionally — Passion for Conducting Academy offers individual coaching tailored precisely to where you are and where you want to go. Whether you are preparing for a conducting competition, building your international profile, or simply ready to learn conducting online with a methodology that produces real results, this is where that journey starts.