Contestants/deltagere 2021

Megan Moore & Francesco Barfoed

Singer: Megan Moore

Pianist: Francesco Barfoed

Duo Youth and Love

Singer: Rolfe Dauz

Pianist: Gabriele Zemaityte

Uirapuru Duo

Singer: Julieth Lozano

Pianist: João Araújo

Guy Elliott & Hamish Brown

Singer: Guy Elliott

Pianist: Hamish Brown

Ullner & Branner

SPECIAL PRIZE: Best performance of a song by Carl Nielsen

Singer: Anne Sophie Hjort Ullner

Pianist: Mattias Branner

Lorenz/Kassebeer

SPECIAL PRIZE: Best performance of Danish repertoire

Singer: Victor Emil Kassebeer

Pianist: Stella Marie Lorenz

Voss/Honkamaa

Singer: Kirsten Voss

Pianist: Sonja Honkamaa

Labourdette/Mena

Singer: Natalia Labourdette

Pianist: Albert Mena

Duo Nadia & Lucie

Singer: Lucia Szabová

Pianist: Nadia Okrusko

Video fra finalen

Lyt til finalen 2021

Billeder 2021

Announcement of the winners 2021

Megan Moore & Francesco Barfoed

MEGAN MOORE: Singer

American Mezzo-soprano Megan Moore has won first prize at the Young Concert Artist International Auditions and the Jensen Foundation Vocal Competition.

She has also taken home top honors from the Naumburg Foundation International Competition in Concert Repertoire and the Gerda Lissner Lieder & Song Competition.

In the 21-22 season, Megan creates the role of Ino in the world premiere of Lord of Cries at Santa Fe Opera and concert highlights will include recitals at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C and Merkin Hall in New York City in collaboration with Francesco Barfoed.

FRANCESCO BARFOED: Pianist

Danish pianist Francesco Barfoed currently studies at The Juilliard School, where he is a proud recipient of the Kovner Fellowship. Francesco frequently collaborates with Megan Moore and in the past year they won 1st prize in the Young Concert Artists International Auditions, 2nd prize at the Naumberg International Vocal Competition, performed at Lincoln Center’s renowned Alice Tully Hall and worked with Renée Fleming at Carnegie Hall’s SongStudio.

Francesco is on the vocal coaching faculty at Saluzzo Opera Academy in Italy and teaches sight-reading for pianists at Juilliard.

Duo Youth and Love

ROLFE DAUZ: Singer

San Francisco native, Filipino-American baritone Rolfe Dauz studied at Bard College, NY, came to the Netherlands to continue his studies at the National Opera Academy and is a recipient of the Holland Scholarship and the Non-EU Talent Grant.

Recently, Dauz toured the Netherlands with Opera2Day, covered Leporello with the Orchestra of the 18th century, gave a Grote Zangers live stream concert in the Muziekgebouw and, was seen at the 2021 Holland Festival performing the role of Wotan/Hingaan Jann in a new opera entitled Ine Aya’ by Indonesian composer Yadi Nursalim Anugerah.

GABRIELE ZEMAITYTE: Pianist

Gabriele Zemaityte was born in Vilnius, Lithuania. At the age of six she began her studies at the National M. K. Ciurlionis Art School in Vilnius. Laureate of numerous national and international piano competitions, she has taken part in masterclasses with such renowned teachers as Dmitry Bashkirov, and Stefan Vladar among others.

In 2019, Gabriele completed her Master degree at Koninklijk Conservatorium, Den Haag in the class of Prof. Naum Grubert. Since 2017 Gabriele is privileged to have an opportunity to practice on a Bechstein grand piano loaned by Nationaal Muziekinstrumenten Fonds.

Uirapuru Duo

JULIETH LOZANO: Singer

Colombian soprano awarded a Master in Vocal Performance and Artist Diploma in Opera at RCM where she studied with Dinah Harris. An Irene Hanson and Independent Opera at Sadler’s Wells scholar.

In 2016 she participated in Georg Solti’s Academy and sang Zerlina at the Verbier Festival’s Project Opera; being awarded the Prix Thierry Mermod. She has had masterclasses with Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and Angela Gheorghiu, among others.

Among her roles are Vixen in The cunning little Vixen and Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro directed by Sr Thomas Allen. 2019/20 Young artist at the National Opera Studio UK

João Araújo: Pianist

João Araújo graduated from the Royal College of Music in London where he was tutored on the lied genre by Simon Lepper and Roger Vignoles.

He was awarded best pianist prizes at the Art Song division of the Montreal International Music Competition and in the Maureen Lehane Vocal Awards at Wigmore Hall.

He played in masterclasses of Kiri Te Kanawa, Graham Johnson, Simon Keenlyside, Ann Murray and performed at festivals such as the Oxford Lieder Festival and Schubertiade Espace 2.

João is a staff pianist at Aveiro University in Portugal where he works with the singing and strings classes.

Guy Elliott & Hamish Brown

GUY ELLIOTT: Singer

Guy Elliott is a tenor based in London where he studied on a full scholarship at the Royal College of Music.

He has won several awards and scholarships including the Britten-Pears YAP Prize at the Wigmore Hall Song Competition with his duo partner Hamish Brown.

Guy is an experienced opera, concert and recital soloist with highlights including Messiah (Handel) at the Royal Albert Hall and Requiem (Mozart) at St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Vienna. In 2019, he made his Wigmore Hall debut as part of their French Song Exchange.

HAMISH BROWN: Pianist

Hamish Brown is a British pianist, whose work includes performances as a vocal accompanist, chamber musician, orchestral pianist and soloist.

Hamish read music at the University of Manchester, continuing with postgraduate studies under Simon Lepper and Roger Vignoles at the Royal College of Music, graduating with Distinction.

He has won prizes at the Kathleen Ferrier Awards, Wigmore Hall Song Competition, Mozart Singing Competition and Somerset Song Prize. He has performed at Oxford Lieder Festival, Internationaal Lied Festival Zeist, Heidelberger Frühling, and live on BBC Radio 3.

Ullner & Branner

Anne Sophie Hjort Ullner: Singer

The Danish soprano Anne Sophie Hjort Ullner studied at The Royal Danish Academy of Music and at the Opera Academy at The Royal Danish Theatre.
She made her stage debut in 2015 at The Royal Danish Opera as Papagena in The Magic Flute and her repertoire includes roles such as Nedda in Pagliacci (Leoncavallo) and Agnès in Written on skin (George Benjamin).

Alongside her operatic performances she has worked extensively as a lied and oratorio singer and she works regularly with leading members of the baroque scene in Denmark.

She has performed with several of the major orchestras in Denmark in works such as
Nielsen’s 3rd symphony and Mahler’s 4th under Adam Fischer.
In 2016 Anne Sophie was the recipient of the Edith Aller Memorial Scholarship.

Mattias Branner: Pianist

Mattias is a danish pianist who studied at RDAM with Amalie Malling and Søren Rastogi, and in Paris with Eugen Indjic. In summer 2021 Mattias was admitted to the advanced postgraduate diploma class at RDAM with accompaniment and chamber music as main subjects. He is currently studying there with Christen Stubbe Teglbjærg, Berit Johansen Tange and Jens Elvekjær.

The intimate collaboration between singer and pianist with the lied art form has long been a preferred area of activity. A song of the smallest scale by a great composer can in an unpretentious manner open up experiences of sublimity and eternity - experiences for which Mattias feels there is an urgent need in his own generation.

Mattias holds a bachelor degree in psychology from the University of Copenhagen (2016). He has played in masterclasses for i.a. Roger Vignoles, Helmut Deutsch, Bo Skovhus, Yonti Solomon and The Tokyo String Quartet.

Duo Lorenz/Kassebeer

VICTOR EMIL KASSEBEER: Singer

Victor is a Danish baritone with previous studies at the Royal Academy of Music.

In his duo with Stella Lorenz he has recently been selected for the young artist programme of the Leeds Lieder Festival, and has won the ‘Historical Women Composers Prize’ at the Royal Academy of Music.

While the german lied has been his most prevalent focus, contemporary music is a great interest of his, and a field of music he feels great responsibility in perpetuating.

Furthermore, spreading awareness of non-male, marginalized and otherwise forgotten composers is of great importance to him.

STELLA MARIE LORENZ: Pianist

Stella Marie Lorenz is a German pianist currently studying on the advanced diploma at the Royal Academy of Music. She was awarded a Master of Vocal Accompaniment with distinction at the MDW in Vienna.

Stella is passionate to juxtapose the known and unknown in classical music, encouraging listeners to engage and discover. She has played serveral world premieres, and compositions of female composers represent a growing part of her repertoire, having recorded songs for Swap-ra’s Forgotten Voices this year and having won the Historical Women Composers Prize with her duopartner Victor Kassebeer.

Voss/Honkamaa

KIRSTEN VOSS: Singer

Kirsten Voss er mezzosopran og solistklassestuderende ved Reinaldo Macias på Det Jyske Musikkonservatorium.

Hun arbejder bredt både med kunstsange, kirkemusik og opera, og har en særlig interesse for at bringe klassisk musik frem igennem særligt designede konceptkoncerter såsom ”KØN”, ”Meditation over havet” og ”Endelighed/Uendelighed”.

Kirsten har tidligere optrådt som solist ved Aarhus Kammermusikfestival 2020, som solist med Aalborg Symfoniorkester og været finalist i Rued Langgaard konkurrencen 2021. Kirsten er derudover også modtager af Ejnar Hansens legat 2020.

SONJA HONKAMAA: Pianist

Finnish pianist Sonja Honkamaa has studied music at a professional level in Finland and Denmark.

In June 2021 she finished her Master’s with the highest marks in the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus.

Her most important teachers have been Søren Rastogi and Martin Qvist Hansen. She has performed at professional venues, such as ArtSong Aarhus, Silkeborg Classic and Aarhus Chamber Music Festival.

In addition, she has participated in the Nordic Piano competition and the Finnish National Piano Competition. She has been granted scholarships by

Holger Arndts Mindelegat and Viggo Makwarths Musiklegat.

Labourdette/Mena

NATALIA LABOURDETTE: Singer

This madrilean soprano studied voice at the UdK Berlin. She has won prizes at various international competitions. She made her debut in 2016 as Oscar from Un ballo in maschera in Teatro Municipale di Piacenza, where she also embodied Rosina from Il Barbiere di Siviglia. She has debuted at theatres such as the Teatro de la Maestranza (Nannetta and Despina, a.o.) and the Teatro Real (Tebaldo in Don Carlo and 2nd Niece in Peter Grimes).

Invited to various Lied festivals, she will release her first recording project in this genre in 2022. She has also sung purely symphonic repertoire.

ALBERT MENA: Pianist

After his studies at Musikene, the Higher School of Music of the Basque Country, young Spanish pianist Albert Mena is pursuing his Masters Degree in piano at the University of the Arts, Berlin with Prof. Markus Groh, specialising in Chamber Music and Lied.

He has participated in festivals such as “Quincena Musical” in San Sebastián (Spain), Leeds Lieder Festival (England) and Zeist Lied Festival (Holland).

Since 2017 he works in the singing classes of Prof. Aris Argiris and Prof. María José Montiel as well as in the contemporary lied class of Axel Bauni at the University of the Arts, Berlin.

Duo Nadia & Lucie

LUCIA SZABOVÁ: Singer

Lucia Szabová is a mezzosoprano from Slovakia. At the age of 19 she was a guest soloist at the Slovak National Theatre in Svätopluk (E. Suchoň).

She continued her studies at the Janáček’s Academy of Music in Brno, where she has also performed roles of Olga in Eugen Onegin and Dorabella from Cosi fan tutte at the Chamber Opera Brno.

In Denmark you could hear Lucie i.e., as a soloist at the Copenhagen Opera Festival in OPERAP (2018) and as a DUO with N. Okrusko in a solo pop-up concerts (2020), with opera trio Les Voix at the Herning Opera Festival or at The Royal Danish Opera House where she sings at the opera chorus and regularly takes chorus solos and smaller roles.

NADIA OKRUSKO: Pianist

Nadia Okrusko (born 1989) is a graduate of Sankt Petersburg’s Rimksy-Korsakov Conservatoire and has a masters degree from Royal Danish Academy of Music.

She debuted as soloist at 15 years old, performing Mozart concerto with Kaunas chamber orchestra. In 2008, she won 1st prize at Rosalyn Tureck Bach competition in New York, USA. She has performed as soloist and chamber musician in many European countries, as well as in Mexico, Ecuador, USA and China.

In Denmark, Nadia has performed at Jewish Culture Festival, Copenhagen Opera Festival, Copenhagen Piano Festival, as well as as a soloist with Percurama percussion orchestra at Radiohuset hall in Copenhagen.

Duo 2 - A
Lucie Szabova (S) & Nadia Okrusko (P)

#1 I Seraillets Have A-minor
Carl Nielsen (1865-1931) / Jens Peter Jacobsen 1:30

#2 Genoveva med sit Barn i Fængslet D-minor
Peter Heise (1830-1879- / Ludwig Tieck 4:30

#3 Jag har ett hem vid havet E-minor
Gösta Nystroem (1890-1966 / Ragnar Jändel 4:00

#4 The forest is quiet all around (A les je tichy kolem)
Opus no. 55, G-major
Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904) / Adolf Heyduk 3:00

#5 Songs my mother taught me (Kdyz mne stara matka)
Opus no. 55, H-major
Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904 / Adolf Heyduk 2:30

#6 Wide sleeves (Siroke rukavy) Opus no. 58, F-major
Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904) / Adolf Heyduk 2:30

#7 The string is tuned (Struna naladena)
Opus no. 55, A-minor
Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904) / Adolf Heyduk 1:10