[3] The award was created in honour of Guido Cantelli, a noted Italian conductor, Italy's greatest talent in conducting in his time, and a protégée of Arturo Toscanini.

On November 23, 1958, Cantelli, who by then had become director of La Scala and was performing in the world's greatest theaters and orchestra, died in an airplane clash in Paris, France.

The First Prize, granted by the Fondazione Teatro Coccia; the Critics Award, granted by the Fondazione Banca Popolare di Novara; the Town Award, which in 2020 was conferred by the Councillor for Culture of the City of Novara, the president of the Associazione Amici della Musica Vittorio Cocito and the director of the Guido Cantelli Conservatory; the Teatro Regio Torino Orchestra Award, granted by the members of the Teatro Regio and supported by Amici del Regio; the Youth Award and the Made in Italy Award―conferred by the president of the Teatro Coccia foundation and by the latter's director.

[3] Historically, the purpose of the awards was recognizing the greatest talent in conducting, more specifically, the best young conductors less than 35 years of age.

The prized once included 5,000,000 lire, a gold medal and a diploma, and a contract to conduct a concert at La Scala.

[4] In November 1956, Guido Cantelli, at the time the leading Italian conductor, praised by Toscanini, and the new director of La Scala, died in an airplane crash in France.