Mr. Michailidis responded by saying “First of all, I would like to thank the judges and all the other people involved in this competition. I am grateful to have been able to participate in such a sophisticated and brilliant competition. I still cannot believe the results. It will take a few days to sink in. I approached the competition as a battle with myself, not with others. It was my first time in Japan, but though I wasn’t able to see much of Tokyo, I was happy to be able to perform with two great orchestras and experience a little bit of Japanese culture. I would like to come to Japan again.
My musical journey started with learning to play the piano and the violin. My older brother was a conductor, but I never thought I would do it myself. However, when I was studying music at university in the United States, I tried conducting and found it interesting. It made me think I may have the disposition to become a conductor. I do find conducting more enjoyable than performing myself.”
Born into a musical family in Greece, Michailidis studied abroad in the United States and Europe and built a career before entering this competition.
