20 singers from 12 nations advance to the Art Song and Aria semifinals
Montreal, Friday, June 1st, 2018 – Between May 29 and 31, 38 singers from 20 nations participated in the First round of the Art Song and Aria divisions. The jury selected 8 semifinalists in the Art Song division and 12 semifinalists in the Aria division, representing together some 12 nations. The Art Song semifinal starts today June 1st at Bourgie Hall. Here are the Art Song semifinalists by order of appearance:
Art Song Semifinal I – 3 pm
Julien Van Mellaerts (New Zealand – United Kingdom), baritone
Irina Jae-Eun Park (South Korea), soprano
Axelle Fanyo (France), soprano
Rihab Chaieb (Canada – Tunisia), mezzo-soprano
Art song Semifinal II – 7:30 pm
Gemma Summerfield (United Kingdom), soprano
Tomi Punkeri (Finland), baritone
John Brancy (United States), baritone
Clara Osowski (United States), mezzo-soprano
At the end of the semifinal, the jury will select four singers to advance to the Final on June 3 at 3 pm also at Bourgie.
As for the Aria semifinals, these will be held on June 4 and 5 at 7:30 pm at Maison symphonique, where singers perform with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (OSM) led by British conductor Graeme Jenkins. Here are the Aria semifinalists in order of appearance:
Aria semifinal I – Monday, June 4 at 7:30 pm
Dilyara Idrisova (Russia), soprano
Kidon Choi (South Korea), baritone
Mihail Mihaylov (Bulgaria), tenor
Emily D’Angelo (Canada – Italy), mezzo-soprano
Andrew Haji (Canada), tenor
Jongsoo Yang (South Korea), bass
Aria semifinal II – Tuesday, June 5 at 7:30 pm
Konstantin Lee (South Korea), tenor
Petr Nekoranec (Czech Republic), tenor
John Brancy (United States), baritone
Rihab Chaieb (Canada – Tunisia), mezzo-soprano
Mario Bahg (South Korea), tenor
Mikhail Golovushkin (Russia), bass
The Competition closes with the Finals Gala on June 7 at Maison symphonique as six singers perform with the OSM led by maestro Jenkins. The concert will be followed by the proclamation of winners in both divisions at the awards ceremony.
Zarin Mehta, among the world’s leading performing arts administrators and consultants, presides over the Voice 2018 jury comprised of Edith Bers (United States), Ben Heppner (Canada), Soile Isokoski (Finland), Warren Jones (United States), François Le Roux (France), Dame Felicity Lott (United Kingdom), Richard Rodzinski (United States), Joseph Rouleau (Canada), and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa (New Zealand).
SEVERAL ACTIVITIES HELD ALONGSIDE THE COMPETITION ROUNDS
Through a partnership with the Opéra de Montréal, the CMIM presents master classes featuring jury members, all of which begin at 1 pm in Bourgie Hall:
- June 2 with soprano Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, preceded by a short documentary
- June 4 with collaborative pianist Warren Jones
- June 5 with soprano Soile Isokoski
In addition, on June 4 and 5 at 6:45 pm (just prior to the semi-finals at 7:30 pm), in the Foyer Allegro at the Maison symphonique, Jean-Pierre Primiani, Director of Development at the Opéra de Montréal, will host pre-concert talks with jury members Ben Heppner (June 4) and Dame Felicity Lott (June 5).
Through a partnership with the Festival international du film sur l’art (FIFA), the CMIM is presenting CINEMUSE. A chance to discover two exceptional documentaries on artists that have influenced an entire generation of musicians and music fans, on Saturday, June 2 in the Maxwell-Cummings Auditorium at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Host: Mario F. Paquet.
5:30pm: Mstislav Rostropovitch, l’archet indomptable (2017) – A film by Bruno Monsaingeon, followed by a commentary with cellist Denis Brott.
8:00 pm: Bloody Daughter (2012) – A film by Stéphanie Argerich, followed by a commentary with 2004 CMIM First prizewinner pianist Serhiy Salov.
Admission to the master classes and to CINEMUSE is free of charge. Admission to the talks is free of charge upon presentation of a ticket for the following concert.
THE BROADCAST
All rounds of the Competition are webcast live and available on demand at concoursmontreal.ca/live. Master classes will be webcast and available on demand on the CMIM and partner Opéra de Montréal’s websites. Moreover, the Aria Finals Gala will be broadcast live on the program Toute une musique on ICI MUSIQUE and the new ICI MUSIQUE Classique digital radio, on Thursday, June 7 at 7:30 pm. Hosted by Marie-Christine Trottier and Sylvia L’Écuyer.
BOX OFFICE
ART SONG SEMI-FINAL JUNE 1
ART SONG FINAL JUNE 3
ARIA SEMI-FINAL JUNE 4-5
ARIA FINALS GALA JUNE 7
ABOUT THE CMIM
Founded in 2002, the CMIM (Concours musical international de Montréal) aims to further the development of the world’s most promising young singers, violinists, and pianists, while making classical music more accessible to the greatest possible number of people. The CMIM is the only international competition in North America to be held annually and to feature three disciplines (piano, voice, and violin) in a three-year rotation. Since its first edition dedicated to Voice in 2002, 3,500 hopefuls have entered the Competition, and close to 500 have been welcomed to perform in Montreal.
Complete details at concoursmontreal.ca
Facebook/Twitter/Instagram: @CMIMontreal
