IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition Finals Concert
September 19 @ 7:00 pm
Following a competitive semi-finals concert at Sydney’s Independent Theatre last weekend, the five finalists for the 2024 IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition were announced.
They are, sopranos Georgia Cooper 24, Ariana Ricci, 22 Molly Ryan 22 and Eden Shifroni, 24 all from New South Wales and baritone Jake Lyle, 20 from Queensland.
The national adjudicator, Armenian-Australian soprano Natalie Aroyan, with assistance of fellow adjudicators Opera Australia’s Language Coach Nicole Dorigo, Conductor and Head of Music, Tahu Matheson, tenor Benjamin Rasheed and baritone and Sydney Conservatorium of Music’s educator Barry Ryan OAM, selected these five impressive young singers who will compete at the Finals Concert of the on Thursday 19 September at The Concourse in Chatswood.
The finals concert is a rare chance to hear the next generation of opera stars perform some of the most important and memorable work in the classical singing canon. Each performer will sing two pieces accompanied by the Opera Australia Orchestra under the baton of Opera Australia’s Head of Music, Tahu Matheson. The special guest artist will be 2022 ABC Young Performer Award Winner flautist Eliza Shephard.
Other awards in the IFAC Handa ASC included the Andrea Catzel Prize of 10 private German diction singing lessons with soprano, Andrea Catzel, was won by 24-year-old baritone Aidan Hodder from Queensland. The Goethe-Institut Prize, a scholarship to attend a 10-week language course at the Goethe-Institut in either Sydney or Melbourne was won by 25-year-old soprano Lisette Bolton from New South Wales. The Ingrid Davidson Award providing the use of an upright piano made by Richard Lipp of Stuttgart for two years was awarded to Molly Ryan. The Istituto Italiano Di Cultura Award, 25 hours of study in Italian at the Italian Cultural Institute of Sydney, was awarded to Georgia Cooper.
The Jane Ede Prize of 10 one-hour private lessons or mentoring sessions with soprano, Jane Ede, in Sydney, was won by mezzo soprano Ruth Burke, 23, from Western Australia who also won the Tinkler Encouragement Award, awarded to a singer not selected as a finalist. The Radzyminski Family Prize of French tuition at an Alliance Française Centre in the singer’s city was won by Leon Vitogiannis, 25, baritone, from New South Wales. The Songmakers Prize, participation in a 3-day master class in 2024 presented by Songmakers Australia was won by soprano Bonnie Staude, 22, WA from Western Australia.
Prior to the semi-finals, all semi-finalists attended a workshop at the Sydney Opera House hosted by Natalie Aroyan and Nicole Dorigo. Nicole, spoke with the singers about role preparation with a focus on the importance of language. Natalie shared her experiences as an opera singer and the many challenges that come with navigating the industry.
The gives you a unique chance to hear the next generation of opera stars perform some of the most loved and memorable work in the classical singing canon. Each performer sings two pieces accompanied by the incomparable Opera Australia Orchestra under the baton of Opera Australia’s Maestro Tahu Matheson. The special guest artist will be 2022 ABC Young Performer Award Winner flautist Eliza Shephard.
The IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition is open to opera and classical singers under the age of 26 and offers a number of career-building awards making it Australia’s premier competition.
Bookings Or call 02 8075 8111/ Adult $80 |Concession $50 | Child $50
Image: Finalists (l-r): Molly Ryan, Ariana Ricci, Jake Lyle, Georgia Cooper and Eden Shifroni with the National Adjudicator Natalie Aroyan (centre).