The award will be presented by Pope Leo XIV on 12 December during the Christmas Concert at the Vatican
The Vatican has announced that Riccardo Muti will receive the 2025 Ratzinger Prize, one of the Holy See’s most distinguished honours in the fields of culture and Christian-inspired art. The decision was approved by Pope Leo XIV, following a proposal by the Scientific Committee and the Board of Directors of the Joseph Ratzinger–Benedict XVI Vatican Foundation.
The award ceremony will take place on 12 December in the Aula Paolo VI, during the Christmas Concert conducted by Muti himself.
Artistic excellence and a long-standing connection with Benedict XVI
In its statement, the Foundation notes that the artistic stature of Riccardo Muti is “universally recognised”, and recalls that Pope Benedict XVI regarded the conductor with particular admiration. Muti, for his part, maintained a close and respectful relationship with the late Pope, offering personal gestures of “attention and affection”, including during Benedict XVI’s years of retirement at the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery.
Responding to the announcement, Muti expressed his gratitude for the award, emphasising his enduring esteem for Benedict XVI: “His thoughts, reflections and meditations have been and will continue to be a source of nourishment for men and women of good will. The last private meeting with Benedict will remain for my wife and me a memory filled with faith and hope.”
Riccardo Muti
Born in Naples in 1941, Riccardo Muti has held some of the leading positions in international orchestral life: Music Director of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (1968–1980), the London Philharmonic Orchestra (1972–1982) and the Philadelphia Orchestra (1980–1992). He led La Scala from 1986 to 2005 and served as Music Director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra from 2010 to 2023. He currently directs the Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra, founded in 2004, and established the Riccardo Muti Italian Opera Academy in 2015.
About the Ratzinger Prize
Established in 2011, the Ratzinger Prize is awarded each year, with papal approval, to leading figures in culture and Christian-inspired artistic work. Past recipients include theologians, biblical scholars, philosophers, jurists and artists from various continents and religious traditions. The Foundation highlights that Benedict XVI held a special love for music—both as a listener and a practitioner—and had several personal encounters with Muti, making this year’s award an occasion to recall their “friendship and cultural and spiritual understanding”.
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