It is the third time that the Zinka Milanov International Competition for Young Singers is expecting about seventy candidates in Rijeka, namely, from Poland, Germany, Israel, Turkey, Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Serbia, Slovenia, Rumania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Moldavia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Russia, China, Hong Kong, South Korea, Thailand, USA, Brazil, Mexico and from Croatia!
The competition is dedicated to one of the greatest soprano singers of the twentieth century, to Zinka Kunc, better known as Zinka Milanov in the world of opera.
As usual, the competition makes part of the Rijeka Summer Nights, for the first time also part of the Summer in the City project. The audience will be able to follow the competition in all of its phases from 12th to 18th July. The culmination is the Gala concert – the Competition finale on 18th of July at 20 hours, when Maestro Boemi will be conducting the Opera Orchestra with the finalists performing the most famous arias of their voice type. Do not miss it if you like any kind of a singing competition! Come and support young singers who deserve your attention; cheer for your favourite ones hoping the jury will agree with you.
The contestants, aged between 21 and 35, will be evaluated by the expert jury (http://www.zinkamilanov-competition.com/hr/ziri-2018/) composed of prominent personalities of the operatic world. Apart from performing at the Gala concert, the best of them will also receive money prizes and engagements in the productions of the CNT Ivan pl. Zajc Opera.
Let us remind ourselves, the winner of the first competition in 2015, who also won the Audience Prize, was soprano Ana Petričević (Croatia). She featured in the cast of Giordano’s opera Andrea Chénier in 2015, then making her debut as Desdemona in Verdi’s Otello in 2017. The second prize went to tenor Ibrahim Yesilay (Turkey), while, also in 2015, the third to baritone Domen Križaj (Slovenia). In 2016, Yesilay sang in Bach’s St. John Passion and, in the same year, Križaj sang in Massenet’s Werther in the direction of the famous Fabrizio Melano. The winner of the 2016 Competition was soprano Elvira Hasanagić (Germany). The second prize that year went to soprano Mojca Bitenc (Slovenia), also the winner of the Audience Prize. Tenor Piotr Buszewski (Poland) was the third. Nine finalists performed in the final evening of that year, accompanied by the Rijeka Opera Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Tibor Bogány.
There were also Albina Smajlović and Luka Ortar who stood out at the first competition. Luka sang in the Rijeka Opera production of Aida as King of Egypt, as Colline in La Bohème and as Montano in Otello, while Albina Smajlović made her debut as Mimì in La Bohème.
You can follow the news on the Competition at www.zinkamilanov-competition.com and the Facebook page of the Competition. For further information, feel free to contact us at: zinkamilanov.competition@hnk-zajc.hr