The Berlin Philharmonic has announced that Lorenzo Messina, a 22-year-old Italian flautist, has won the audition for the position of Second Flute and Piccolo — becoming one of the youngest musicians to join what is widely regarded as the most competitive orchestra in the world.
The Numbers
A position in the Berlin Philharmonic typically attracts 200 to 400 applicants from around the world. The audition process involves multiple rounds — preliminary, semi-final, and final — held behind screens, followed by a trial period with the full orchestra and, ultimately, a vote by the existing members.
The Berlin Philharmonic is one of the few major orchestras where the musicians themselves vote on new members. It is a democracy of the highest order — and the bar for admission is correspondingly extreme.
To win that audition at age 22 is a feat that places Messina in rare company.
The Journey
Messina graduated from the Conservatorio di musica "G. Verdi" di Milano in 2021 — at age 17 or 18. He continued studies at conservatories in Milan and Stuttgart.
From 2022 to 2024, he performed with LaFil — Filarmonica di Milano. He then served as Co-Principal Flute with the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra in Sweden.
In September 2024, he entered the Karajan Academy — the Berlin Philharmonic's prestigious training program for exceptionally talented young musicians, where he studied under Emmanuel Pahud, one of the most celebrated flautists in history.
In 2026, he won the audition. Academy scholar to orchestra member in under two years.
What the Karajan Academy Is
The Karajan Academy (Karajan-Akademie) is not a conservatory. It is the Berlin Philharmonic's own finishing school — a program that places a small number of young musicians alongside the Philharmonic's members, giving them the opportunity to rehearse, perform, and learn at the highest possible level.
The Academy was founded in 1972 by Herbert von Karajan himself. Its alumni include dozens of musicians who have gone on to hold principal positions in major orchestras worldwide. But the transition from Academy scholar to full member of the Berlin Philharmonic itself is the rarest and most coveted outcome — a sign that the existing musicians have recognized one of their students as a peer.
Why It Matters
At 22, Messina has decades of performing ahead of him. He will play thousands of concerts in the Philharmonie, record for major labels, tour the world, and contribute to one of the most storied musical traditions in existence.
His appointment is a reminder that the pathway into elite orchestral music still works — that talent, training, and determination can still carry a young musician from a conservatory in Milan to the front desk of the Berlin Philharmonic.
In an industry obsessed with its problems, Lorenzo Messina is a solution.
Sources: Berlin Philharmonic press release, The Violin Channel.
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