The German Music Competition (Der Deutsche Musikwettbewerb or DMW) is a prestigious national musical contest in Germany that focuses on classical soloists and chamber music groups. Organized annually by the Deutscher Musikrat, the competition originated in 1975 and is widely regarded as the premier platform for emerging musical talents in the country.

This year's laureates are the budding cellist Philipp Schupelius and the soprano vocalist Eva Zalenga. Remarkably, this marks the fifth consecutive year that the DMW's top accolade has been clinched by a student, specifically Philipp Schupelius, under the tutelage of Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt. Schmidt is a cello instructor at the Kronberg Academy and has seen previous students such as Friedrich Thiele and Sebastian Fritsch achieve this honor.

Hailing from Berlin and born in 2003, Philipp Schupelius burst onto the scene in 2017 with a performance of Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations alongside the Bergische Symphoniker, an event broadcasted by WDR. His soloist appearances have graced prestigious venues like the Tonhalle Zurich, the Festival Next Generation, the Konzerthaus Berlin, the Philharmonie Berlin, the Dresden Music Festival, the KKL Lucerne, and the Rheingau Music Festival.

Schupelius's ascent has been punctuated by successes in various competitions, including his "First Great Award" at the Manhattan International Music Competition in November 2020. In February 2020, he was also bestowed with the "Discovery Award" from the International Classical Music Awards (ICMA).

Soprano Eva Zalenga's musical journey led her to study under the guidance of Edward Randall and Olaf Bär at the Academy of Music in Dresden. Subsequently, she refined her craft with Caroline Stein at the Academy of Music in Leipzig. Notably, she earned recognition as a prize winner at the SWR Young Opera Stars 2023 competition and received the Emmerich Smola Förderpreis, in addition to the Orchestra Prize granted by the German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra.