Operalia, The World Opera Competition
Encyclopedia
Operalia, The World Opera Competition is an annual international competition for young opera
singers. Founded in 1993 by renowned tenor
Plácido Domingo
, the competition has helped launch the careers of several important artists, such as Brian Asawa
, José Cura
, Joyce DiDonato
, Elizabeth Futral
, Inva Mula
and Ana María Martínez
.
, France
but hosts its competition in a different city each year. Cities which have hosted the competition include Paris
at both the Palais Garnier
and Théâtre du Châtelet
, Mexico City
at the Televisa Recording Studios
, Madrid
at the Teatro de la Zarzuela
, Bordeaux
at the Grand Théâtre
, Tokyo
at the Kan-I Hoken Hall, Hamburg
at the Hamburg Music Hall, Puerto Rico
at the Luis A. Ferré Performing Arts Center
, Los Angeles
at both UCLA
's Royce Hall
and the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
, Washington, D.C.
at George Washington University
's Lisner Auditorium
, the Lake Constance
region in Austria
, Germany
and Switzerland
, Madrid
at the Teatro Real
, Valencia at the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía, and Québec
at the Palais Montcalm and Grand Théâtre de Québec
.
The competition is open to singers between the ages of 18 and 30 who are already performing at a highly skilled level. All voice type
s of both sexes are able to compete. Participants in the competition are selected by audition through a submitted recording to Operalia. A panel of three judges listens and evaluates the audition tapes. Only the top 40 submissions are invited to compete in the competition. Typically the organization receives 800 to 1,000 submissions each year, making entry into the competition alone an honor.
The competition is presided over every year by Plácido Domingo, although he himself does not judge the competition. A jury of 10 opera directors from important opera house
s all over the world is assembled to judge the competition. Competitors must prepare 4 aria
s for the competition which consists of four rounds. In the first round each singer gets to choose one aria they want to sing and then the jury selects the other aria from their list of four for them to perform. Singers can also compete in a separate zarzuela
competition. If they choose to do so they would perform an additional zarzuela piece in each round. Of the 40 singers, half of them are eliminated in the first round. The second round involves the performance of one more aria, after which only 10 singers move on to the next round. Likewise, the third round eliminates half of the singers, leaving only five participants in the final round. The first three rounds are performed with piano accompaniment and the final round is sung with a symphonic orchestra conducted by Plácido Domingo.
Although only five singers make it into the final round, the competition has a total of 10 prizes which total up to 175,000 US dollars. In the general competition 1st prize, 2nd prize, and 3rd prize are awarded, one of each to both sexes, making a total of 6 prizes. Within the zarazuela competition two prizes are awarded, one to a male singer and one to a female singer. There is also a prize awarded by the audience of the final competition to one female singer and one male singer. It is possible for a singer to win more than one award. More important than the money received by the prize is the recognition and career boost given by the competition. It is normal for the opera directors judging the competition to engage competition winners for future opera performances with their companies, or for them to connect artists with other opera directors.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singers. Founded in 1993 by renowned tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
, the competition has helped launch the careers of several important artists, such as Brian Asawa
Brian Asawa
Brian Asawa is a Japanese-American countertenor.He began his studies as a piano major at the University of California, Santa Cruz, ultimately switching his studies to singing under tenor Harlan Hokin. After two semesters there he transferred to UCLA where he studied under Virginia Fox and Kari...
, José Cura
José Cura
José Cura is a prominent operatic tenor known for his intense and original interpretations of his characters, notably Verdi’s Otello and Saint-Saëns’ Samson, as well as for his unconventional and innovative concert performances. He is also able to perform high baritone roles with the extended...
, Joyce DiDonato
Joyce DiDonato
Joyce DiDonato is an award-winning American operatic mezzo-soprano particularly admired for her interpretations of the works of Handel, Mozart, and Rossini...
, Elizabeth Futral
Elizabeth Futral
Elizabeth Futral is an American coloratura soprano who has won acclaim throughout the United States as well as in Europe, South America, and Japan....
, Inva Mula
Inva Mula
Inva Mula is an Albanian opera soprano and actress. She began her soprano career at a very early age. Her father and mother were also opera singers. -Life and Career:...
and Ana María Martínez
Ana María Martínez
Ana María Martínez is a Grammy award–winning operatic soprano from Puerto Rico. "The most beautiful voice of Latin America", [Martínez] "requires ranking among the top lyric sopranos of the day...[with] immaculate musicality underpinning every utterance." -Early life:Ana María Martínez was born...
.
Overview
Operalia is based in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
but hosts its competition in a different city each year. Cities which have hosted the competition include Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
at both the Palais Garnier
Palais Garnier
The Palais Garnier, , is an elegant 1,979-seat opera house, which was built from 1861 to 1875 for the Paris Opera. It was originally called the Salle des Capucines because of its location on the Boulevard des Capucines in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, but soon became known as the Palais Garnier...
and Théâtre du Châtelet
Théâtre du Châtelet
The Théâtre du Châtelet is a theatre and opera house, located in the place du Châtelet in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France.One of two theatres built on the site of a châtelet, a small castle or fortress, it was designed by Gabriel Davioud at the request of Baron Haussmann between 1860 and...
, Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
at the Televisa Recording Studios
Televisa
Televisa is a Mexican multimedia conglomerate, the largest mass media company in Latin America and in the Spanish-speaking world. It is a major international entertainment business, with much of its programming airing in the United States on Univision, with which it has an exclusive contract...
, Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
at the Teatro de la Zarzuela
Teatro de la Zarzuela
The Teatro de la Zarzuela is a theatre in Madrid, Spain. The theatre is today mainly devoted to zarzuela , as well as operetta and recitals. In the past, in the city's long absence of an opera theatre , this was Madrid's theatre where most major opera performances were shown...
, Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
at the Grand Théâtre
Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux
Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, is a Theatre in Bordeaux, France, first inaugurated on 17 April 1780. It was in this theatre that the ballet La Fille Mal Gardée premiered in 1789, and where a young Marius Petipa staged some of his first ballets....
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
at the Kan-I Hoken Hall, Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
at the Hamburg Music Hall, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
at the Luis A. Ferré Performing Arts Center
Luis A. Ferré Performing Arts Center
The Luis A. Ferré Performing Arts Center, or Centro de Bellas Artes Luis A. Ferré in Spanish, is a multi-use performance centre located Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico. It features three main concert and theater halls for performing arts displays, including ballet, plays, operas and concerts, as...
, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
at both UCLA
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
's Royce Hall
Royce Hall
Royce Hall is a building on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles . Designed by the Los Angeles firm of Allison & Allison in the Italian Romanesque Revival style and completed in 1929, it is one of the four original buildings on UCLA's Westwood campus and has come to be the...
and the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion is one of the halls in the Los Angeles Music Center . The Music Center's other halls include the Mark Taper Forum, Ahmanson Theatre, and Walt Disney Concert Hall.The Pavilion has 3,197 seats spread over four tiers, with chandeliers, wide curving stairways and rich décor...
, Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
at George Washington University
George Washington University
The George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...
's Lisner Auditorium
Lisner Auditorium
Lisner Auditorium is an auditorium, located on the campus of The George Washington University, at 730 21st Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C.. It is named for Abram Lisner, a trustee of the University who donated the money for its construction....
, the Lake Constance
Lake Constance
Lake Constance is a lake on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps, and consists of three bodies of water: the Obersee , the Untersee , and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein.The lake is situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria near the Alps...
region in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
at the Teatro Real
Teatro Real
The Teatro Real or simply El Real , is a major opera house located in Madrid, Spain.-History:...
, Valencia at the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía, and Québec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
at the Palais Montcalm and Grand Théâtre de Québec
Grand Théâtre de Québec
The Grand Théâtre de Québec is an arts complex in Quebec City, Canada. It was conceived to commemorate the Canadian Centennial of 1967 and the Quebec Conference, 1864, one of the key meetings leading to the Canadian Confederation of 1867....
.
The competition is open to singers between the ages of 18 and 30 who are already performing at a highly skilled level. All voice type
Voice type
A voice type is a particular kind of human singing voice perceived as having certain identifying qualities or characteristics. Voice classification is the process by which human voices are evaluated and are thereby designated into voice types...
s of both sexes are able to compete. Participants in the competition are selected by audition through a submitted recording to Operalia. A panel of three judges listens and evaluates the audition tapes. Only the top 40 submissions are invited to compete in the competition. Typically the organization receives 800 to 1,000 submissions each year, making entry into the competition alone an honor.
The competition is presided over every year by Plácido Domingo, although he himself does not judge the competition. A jury of 10 opera directors from important opera house
Opera house
An opera house is a theatre building used for opera performances that consists of a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and set building...
s all over the world is assembled to judge the competition. Competitors must prepare 4 aria
Aria
An aria in music was originally any expressive melody, usually, but not always, performed by a singer. The term is now used almost exclusively to describe a self-contained piece for one voice usually with orchestral accompaniment...
s for the competition which consists of four rounds. In the first round each singer gets to choose one aria they want to sing and then the jury selects the other aria from their list of four for them to perform. Singers can also compete in a separate zarzuela
Zarzuela
Zarzuela is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular song, as well as dance...
competition. If they choose to do so they would perform an additional zarzuela piece in each round. Of the 40 singers, half of them are eliminated in the first round. The second round involves the performance of one more aria, after which only 10 singers move on to the next round. Likewise, the third round eliminates half of the singers, leaving only five participants in the final round. The first three rounds are performed with piano accompaniment and the final round is sung with a symphonic orchestra conducted by Plácido Domingo.
Although only five singers make it into the final round, the competition has a total of 10 prizes which total up to 175,000 US dollars. In the general competition 1st prize, 2nd prize, and 3rd prize are awarded, one of each to both sexes, making a total of 6 prizes. Within the zarazuela competition two prizes are awarded, one to a male singer and one to a female singer. There is also a prize awarded by the audience of the final competition to one female singer and one male singer. It is possible for a singer to win more than one award. More important than the money received by the prize is the recognition and career boost given by the competition. It is normal for the opera directors judging the competition to engage competition winners for future opera performances with their companies, or for them to connect artists with other opera directors.
List of winners
| Name | Voice type | Country | Prize | Competition place and year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simone Alberghini | bass Bass (voice type) A bass is a type of male singing voice and possesses the lowest vocal range of all voice types. According to The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, a bass is typically classified as having a range extending from around the second E below middle C to the E above middle C... |
Italy Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and... |
Winner | 1994, Mexico City Mexico City Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole... |
| Maria Teresa Alberola Banuls | soprano Soprano A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody... |
Spain Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... |
3rd Prize & Zarzuela Prize | 2006, Valencia |
| Kate Aldrich Kate Aldrich Kate Aldrich is an American mezzo soprano.She has performed with the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, the Hamburg State Opera, Teatro Regio of Torino, Los Angeles Opera, L'Opéra de Montréal, the Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Düsseldorf, Teatro Nacional de São... |
mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above... |
United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
CulturArte — Puerto Rico | 2002, Paris Paris Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region... |
| Orlin Anastassov | bass | Bulgaria Bulgaria Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east... |
1st Prize | 1999, Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an... |
| Konstyantyn Andreyev | tenor Tenor The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2... |
Ukraine Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia... |
3rd Prize & Zarzuela Prize | 2000, Los Angeles Los Ángeles Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants... |
| Thiago Arancam Thiago Arancam Thiago Arancam is an Italian-Brazilian lirico spinto tenor.He graduated from the La Scala Academy in 2007. In 2008, he won three prizes at Operalia.-Biography and career:... |
tenor Tenor The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2... |
Brazil Brazil Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people... |
2nd Place & Zarzuela Prize & Audience Award | 2008, Québec Quebec Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level.... |
| Oxana Arkaeva | soprano | Ukraine | Winner | 2008, Québec |
| Ainhoa Arteta Ainhoa Arteta Ainhoa Arteta Ibarrolaburu, born 24 September 1964 in Tolosa , Spain, is a Spanish soprano.- Biography :After studying in Tolosa and Italy, she later studied under Ruth Falcon.... |
soprano | Spain | Winner — Audience | 1993, Paris |
| Brian Asawa Brian Asawa Brian Asawa is a Japanese-American countertenor.He began his studies as a piano major at the University of California, Santa Cruz, ultimately switching his studies to singing under tenor Harlan Hokin. After two semesters there he transferred to UCLA where he studied under Virginia Fox and Kari... |
countertenor Countertenor A countertenor is a male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of a contralto, mezzo-soprano, or a soprano, usually through use of falsetto, or far more rarely than normal, modal voice. A pre-pubescent male who has this ability is called a treble... |
United States | Winner | 1994, Mexico City |
| Jae Chul Bae | tenor | South Korea South Korea The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south... |
CulturArte | 1998, Hamburg Hamburg -History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808... |
| Isabel Bayrakdarian Isabel Bayrakdarian Isabel Bayrakdarian is a Grammy Award-nominated Armenian Canadian opera singer.-Early life:Born in Lebanon in 1974, she moved to Canada as a teenager. Bayrakdarian graduated in 1997 from the University of Toronto with an honours B.A.Sc... |
soprano | Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... |
1st Prize- Zarzuela | 2000, Los Angeles |
| Vitaly Bilyy | baritone Baritone Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or... |
Ukraine | 4th Prize | 2004, Los Angeles |
| David Bizic David Bizic David Bižić is an operatic baritone. He was born in Belgrade, Serbia.-Career:He studied singing with at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance and received scholarships from the International Vocal Arts Institute and the America Israel Cultural Foundation... |
bass-baritone Bass-baritone A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing three Wagnerian roles: the Dutchman in Der fliegende... |
Serbia Serbia Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans... / Israel Israel The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea... |
2nd Prize | 2007, Paris |
| Angel Blue Angel Blue Angel Joy Blue is an American operatic soprano. Blue's voice has been recognized for its shining and agile upper register, "smoky" middle register, and beautiful timbre. She has performed internationally and won numerous awards such as Operalia and Miss Hollywood... |
soprano Soprano A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody... |
United States | 2nd Prize & Zarzuela Prize | 2009, Pécs Pécs Pécs is the fifth largest city of Hungary, located on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the south-west of the country, close to its border with Croatia. It is the administrative and economical centre of Baranya county... /Budapest Budapest Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter... |
| Andrei Breous | baritone | Israel Israel The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea... |
Russie Zarzuela | 2000, Los Angeles |
| Joseph Calleja Joseph Calleja Joseph Calleja, , is a Maltese tenor. He began singing at the age of 16 and, having been discovered by Paul Asciak, continued his studies with him. At 19, he made his operatic debut as Macduff in Verdi's Macbeth at Astra Theatre in Gozo and went on to become a prize winner at the Belvedere Hans... |
tenor | Malta Malta Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in... |
CulturArte | 1999, Puerto Rico |
| Mariola Cantarero | soprano | Spain | Zarzuela | 1999, Puerto Rico |
| Marco Caria | baritone | Italy | 2nd Prize & Audience Prize | 2007, Paris |
| Mario Cassi | baritone | Italy | Zarzuela | 2003, Bodensee |
| Arturo Chacón Cruz Arturo Chacón Cruz Arturo Chacón-Cruz is a Mexican operatic tenor. A winner of the Operalia competition in 2005, he went on to sing leading roles at many North American opera houses, including Los Angeles Opera, Washington National Opera, and Houston Grand Opera... |
tenor | Mexico Mexico The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of... |
Zarzuela & CulturArte | 2005, Madrid Madrid Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan... |
| Jennifer Check | soprano | United States | Zarzuela | 2003, Bodensee |
| Carlos Cosías Carlos Cosías Carlos Cosías is a Spanish operatic tenor born in Barcelona, Spain.Cosías studied music and piano in the Conservatori Superior de Música del Liceu in Barcelona... |
tenor | Spain | Zarzuela | 1998, Hamburg |
| José Cura José Cura José Cura is a prominent operatic tenor known for his intense and original interpretations of his characters, notably Verdi’s Otello and Saint-Saëns’ Samson, as well as for his unconventional and innovative concert performances. He is also able to perform high baritone roles with the extended... |
tenor | Argentina Argentina Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires... |
Winner — Audience | 1994, Mexico City |
| Adriana Damato | soprano | Italy | 1st Prize | 2003, Bodensee |
| Maya Daskuk | soprano | Russia Russia Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... |
3rd Prize | 2001, Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution.... |
| Stéphane Degout | baritone | France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... |
2nd Prize | 2002, Paris |
| Maria Cecilia Diaz | mezzo-soprano | Argentina | Winner | 1994, Mexico |
| Joyce DiDonato Joyce DiDonato Joyce DiDonato is an award-winning American operatic mezzo-soprano particularly admired for her interpretations of the works of Handel, Mozart, and Rossini... |
mezzo-soprano | United States | 2nd Prize | 1998, Hamburg |
| Kinga Dobay | mezzo-soprano | Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
Zarzuela | 2005, Madrid |
| Andión Fernández Andión Fernández Andiòn Fernàndez is a Spanish-Philippine operatic soprano, born in Manila.A soloist of the Deutsche Oper Berlin since 2001, she graduated with honors from the Hochschule der Künste, Berlin, and has studied voice with Karan Armstrong and Ira Hartmann, and contemporary music with Aribert Reimann... |
soprano | Philippines | Zarzuela | 1998, Hamburg |
| Giuseppe Filianoti Giuseppe Filianoti Giuseppe Filianoti is an Italian lyric tenor from Reggio Calabria.-Early years:Born in 1974, the Italian tenor obtained his degree in Literature from the Università Degli Studi di Messina, in the Sicilian town of Messina. In 1997, he graduated from the 'Francesco Cilea' Conservatory in his... |
tenor | Italy | 2nd Prize | 1999, Puerto Rico |
| Maria Fontosh Maria Fontosh Maria Fontosh, born 5 June 1976 is a Ukrainian born Russian soprano residing in Sweden. She is a part of the Royal Swedish Opera's ensemble for which she made her debut as Rosina in The Barber of Seville in 2001.- Background :... |
soprano | Russia | 3rd Prize | 2002, Paris |
| Bruce Fowler Bruce Fowler (tenor) Bruce Fowler is an American classical tenor who has had a major international performance career in operas and concerts since the early 1990s. He is particularly known for his appearances in bel canto operas. His first recording, as the tenor soloist for Handel's Messiah with Telarc, was nominated... |
tenor | United States | Winner | 1994, Mexico |
| Elizabeth Futral Elizabeth Futral Elizabeth Futral is an American coloratura soprano who has won acclaim throughout the United States as well as in Europe, South America, and Japan.... |
soprano | United States | 2nd Prize | 1995, Madrid |
| Aurelio Gabaldon | tenor | Spain | Zarzuela | 2007, Paris |
| Antonio Gandia | tenor | Spain | Zarzuela | 2001, Washington, D.C. |
| Jesus Garcia | tenor | United States | 3rd Prize | 2003, Bodensee |
| Eugenia Garza | soprano | Mexico | Zarzuela | 2001, Washington, D.C. |
| Oziel Garza-Ornelas | baritone | Mexico | Zarzuela | 1996, Bordeaux Bordeaux Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture... |
| Carmen Giannattasio Carmen Giannattasio Carmen Giannattasio is an operatic Italian soprano. In 2002 she won first and audience prize at Operalia competition in Paris.She has recordered with OPERARARA: La donna del lago by Gioacchino Rossini, Parisina d'Este by Gaetano Donizetti, Ermione by Gioacchino Rossini and Il Pirata by Vincenzo... |
soprano | Italy | 1st Prize | 2002, Paris |
| Rachele Gilmore | soprano | United States | Zarzuela | 2007, Paris |
| Jozef Gjipali | tenor | Albania Albania Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea... |
2nd Prize | 2003, Bodensee |
| Nancy Herrera | mezzo-soprano | Spain | Zarzuela | 1996, Bordeaux |
| He Hui | soprano | China China Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture... |
2nd Prize | 2000, Los Angeles |
| Carla Maria Izzo | soprano | Italy | 1st Prize & Audience Prize | 1997, Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
| Maria Jooste | soprano | South Africa South Africa The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans... |
4th Prize | 2004, Los Angeles |
| Joseph Kaiser Joseph Kaiser Joseph Kaiser is a Canadian operatic tenor. In 2005 he won 2nd prize in Placido Domingo's Operalia International Opera Competition. He has performed as a soloist with the New York Metropolitan Opera, making his debut in 2007.... |
tenor | Canada | 2nd Prize | 2005, Madrid |
| Hyoung-Kyoo Kang | baritone | South Korea | 2nd Prize | 2001, Washington, D.C. |
| María Katzarava | soprano | Mexico | 1st Prize & Zarzuela | 2008, Québec |
| Ketevan Kemoklidze | mezzo-soprano | Georgia Georgia (country) Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of... |
Zarzuela | 2008, Québec |
| Jae Hyoung Kim | tenor | South Korea | Zarzuela | 2002, Paris |
| Sung Eun Kim | soprano | South Korea | 1st Prize | 1995, Madrid |
| Woo Kyung Kim | tenor | South Korea | 1st Prize | 2004, Los Angeles |
| Anna Kiknadze | mezzo-soprano | Georgia | Zarzuela | 2002, Paris |
| Arnold Kocharyan | baritone | Armenia Armenia Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia... |
Zarzuela | 2000, Los Angeles |
| Dmitry Korchak | tenor | Russia | 4th Place & Zarzuela | 2004, Los Angeles |
| Maija Kovalevska Maija Kovalevska Maija Kovalevska is a Latvian soprano opera singer.Kovalevska rose to international prominence in 2006 after winning the Operalia, The World Opera Competition, judged by Plácido Domingo... |
soprano | Latvia Latvia Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden... |
1st Place | 2006, Valencia |
| Nataliya Kovalova | soprano | Ukraine | 2nd Place & Audience Award | 2004, Los Angeles |
| Vitalij Kowaljow | bass | Ukraine | CulturArte | 1999, Puerto Rico |
| Oksana Kramaryeva | soprano | Ukraine | 2nd Place & Audience Award | 2008, Québec |
| Vasily Ladyuk | baritone | Russia | 1st Place | 2005, Madrid |
| Valeriano Lanchas | bass | Colombia Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the... |
Zarzuela | 2001, Washington |
| Joshua Langston Hopkins | baritone | Canada | 3rd Place | 2005, Madrid |
| Ekaterina Lekhina | soprano | Russia | 1st Place | 2007, Paris |
| Chang Yong Liao | baritone | China | 1st Place | 1997, Tokyo |
| David Lomeli | tenor | United States | 1st Place & Zarzuela Award | 2006, Valencia |
| Israel Lozano | tenor | Spain | 3rd Place & Zarzuela Award & Audience Award | 2003, Bodensee |
| Irina Lungu | soprano | Russia | CulturArte | 2004, Los Angeles |
| Aquiles Machado | tenor | Venezuela | 2nd Place & Zarzuela Award | 1997, Tokyo |
| Elena Manistina | mezzo-soprano | Russia | 1st Place | 2002, Paris |
| Ana María Martínez Ana María Martínez Ana María Martínez is a Grammy award–winning operatic soprano from Puerto Rico. "The most beautiful voice of Latin America", [Martínez] "requires ranking among the top lyric sopranos of the day...[with] immaculate musicality underpinning every utterance." -Early life:Ana María Martínez was born... |
soprano | Puerto Rico | Zarzuela | 1995, Madrid |
| Elisaveta Martirosyan | soprano | Georgia | Audience Award | 2001, Washington, D.C. |
| John Matz | tenor | United States | 2nd Place & Zarzuela Award | 2002, Paris |
| David Menendez Diaz | baritone | Spain | 3rd Place | 2005, Madrid |
| Carlos Moreno | tenor | Spain | 3rd Place | 1996, Bordeaux |
| Maki Mori | soprano | Japan Japan Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south... |
3rd Place | 1998, Hamburg |
| Inva Mula Inva Mula Inva Mula is an Albanian opera soprano and actress. She began her soprano career at a very early age. Her father and mother were also opera singers. -Life and Career:... |
soprano | Albania | Winner | 1993, Paris |
| Lasha Nikabadze | tenor | Georgia | CulturArte | 2001, Washington |
| Julia Novikova | soprano Soprano A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody... |
Russia | 1st Prize & Prize of the Audience | 2009, Pécs/Budapest |
| Carmen Oprisanu | mezzo-soprano | Romania Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea... |
3rd Place | 1995, Madrid |
| Lisette Oropesa Lisette Oropesa Lisette Oropesa is an American soprano, who was raised in Baton Rouge, where she studied at Louisiana State University... |
soprano | United States | 3rd Place & Zarzuela Award | 2007, Paris |
| John Osborn | tenor | United States | 1st Place | 1996, Bordeaux |
| Eric Owens Eric Owens (bass-baritone) Eric Owens is an American operatic bass-baritone born July 11, 1970 in Philadelphia. He attended Central High School "247", Temple University's Boyer College of Music, and the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia... |
bass | United States | 2nd Place | 1996, Bordeaux |
| Phyllis Pancella | mezzo-soprano | United States | 2nd Place | 1996, Bordeaux |
| Olga Peretyatko Olga Peretyatko Olga Peretyatko is a Russian operatic soprano. As a child, Peretyatko was a singer of the children's choir of the Mariinsky Theater. As a student of the Hamburg Opera Studio, she received the second prize at the Operalia Competition , an event sponsored by tenor Plácido Domingo. Her large... |
soprano | Russia | 2nd Place | 2007, Paris |
| Ailyn Perez | soprano | United States | 2nd Place | 2006, Valencia |
| Jossie Perez | mezzo-soprano | United States | Zarzuela Award | 2001, Washington |
| Mikhail Petrenko Mikhail Petrenko Mikhail Petrenko is a Canadian Cinematographer .Ukrainian-born Mikhail graduated from University of Indianapolis and York University with BFA in Cinematography... |
bass | Russia | 4th Place | 2004, Los Angeles |
| Susanna Phillips Susanna Phillips Susanna Phillips is a soprano opera singer. She has appeared at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Metropolitan Opera, among others. Though born in Birmingham, Alabama she and her family moved two weeks after she was born, to Huntsville, Madison County, Alabama; where she grew up and attended... |
soprano | United States | 1st Place & Audience award | 2005, Madrid |
| Robert Pomakov Robert Pomakov Robert Pomakov is a Canadian operatic bass.Born in Toronto, Pomakov graduated from St. Michael's Choir School, Toronto, in 1999, and later studied at the Curtis Institute of Music. He performed at the LuminaTO "Luna Gala"... |
bass | Canada | 3rd Place | 2000, Los Angeles |
| Dmytro Popov | tenor | Ukraine | 2nd Place | 2007, Paris |
| Joel Prieto | tenor | Spain / Puerto Rico | 1st Place & Zarzuela Award & CulturArte | 2008, Québec |
| Sabina Puertolas | soprano | Spain | Zarzuela Award | 2003, Bodensee |
| Diogenes Randes | bass | Brazil | 2nd Place | 2005, Madrid |
| Alessandra Rezza | soprano | Italy | 2nd Place | 2001, Washington |
| Angel Rodriguez Rivero | tenor | Spain | Zarzuela Award | 1997, Tokyo |
| Rafael Rojas | tenor | Mexico | Zarzuela Award | 1995, Madrid |
| Trevor Scheunemann | baritone | United States | 3rd Place | 2006, Valencia |
| Erwin Schrott Erwin Schrott Erwin Schrott is an operatic bass-baritone, particularly known for his interpretation of the title role in Mozart's Don Giovanni.-Career:... |
bass | Uruguay Uruguay Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area... |
1st Place & Audience Award | 1998, Hamburg |
| Carine Sechehaye | mezzo-soprano | Switzerland Switzerland Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition.... |
Zarzuela Award | 2007, Paris |
| Jung-Hack Seo Jung-Hack Seo Chinese：徐 廷學 Hangle:서정학 Japanese:ソ・ジョンハク】Performance Name in Japan: SEO Classical Vocalist-1990s and 2000s:South Korean Baritone to Perform with the Metropolitan Opera Company .... |
baritone | South Korea | 2nd Place | 1997, Tokyo |
| In-Sung Sim | baritone | South Korea | Zarzuela Award | 2004, Los Angeles |
| Daniil Shtoda | tenor | Russia | 2nd Place | 2000, Los Angeles |
| Carmen Solis Gonzalez | soprano | Spain | CulturArte | 2007, Paris |
| Nina Stemme Nina Stemme Nina Stemme is an opera singer known for her warm, solid spinto soprano voice, with some qualities of a dramatic soprano.... |
mezzo-soprano | Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.... |
Winner | 1993, Paris |
| Xiu Wei Sun | soprano | China | 3rd Place | 1997, Tokyo |
| Karoly Szemeredy | baritone | Hungary Hungary Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The... |
3rd Place | 2008, Québec |
| Lynette Tapia | soprano | United States | 1st Place & Audience Award | 1996, Bordeaux |
| Masako Teshima | mezzo-soprano | Japan | Winner | 1994, Mexico City |
| Ludovic Tezier | baritone | France | 2nd Place | 1998, Hamburg |
| Dimitra Theodossiou | soprano | Greece | 2nd Place & Audience Award | 1995, Madrid |
| Virginia Tola | soprano | Argentina | Zarzuela & Audience Awards | 2000, Los Angeles |
| Rolando Villazón Rolando Villazón Emilio Rolando Villazón Mauleón is a Mexican tenor. He settled in France and in 2007 became a French citizen.-Early life and education:... |
tenor | Mexico | 2nd Place & Audience & Zarzuela Awards | 1999, Puerto Rico |
| Vittorio Vitelli | baritone | Italy | 3rd Place | 1996, Bordeaux |
| Dimitry Voropaev | tenor | Russia | 3rd Place | 2004, Los Angeles |
| Karen Vuong | soprano | United States | Cultuarte | 2006, Valencia |
| Yali-Marie Williams | soprano | Puerto Rico | 3rd Place | 1999, Puerto Rico |
| Elena Xanthoudakis | soprano | Greece Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe.... / Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... |
3rd Place | 2008, Québec |
| Guang Yang | mezzo-soprano | China | 1st Place | 2001, Washington, D.C. |
| Tae Joong Yang | baritone | South Korea | 1st Place | 2007, Paris |
| Kwangchul Youn | bass | South Korea | Winner | 1993, Paris |
| Miguel Angel Zapater | bass | Spain | 1st Place | 1995, Madrid |