The way to the final

Since February 22, young singers from 23 nations have been giving their best in front of the jury of the 11th Immling International Singing Competition and their audience. On Sunday evening, 24.2.2019, the first decision was made: the jury selected 28 singing talents for the second round.

Already on Monday, February 25, these candidates will have another opportunity to convince the jury: Intendant Ludwig Baumann, Dr. Peter Czernin, Artists Manager Kalle Kanttila, Professor Marga Schiml from the University of Music Karlsruhe and Professor Frieder Lang from the University of Music and Theater Munich will decide on the same evening which singers will be allowed to enter the final.

The festive opera gala of the finalists will take place on March 2 from 6 p.m. in the Festspielhaus Immling. For the finalists, it’s then all about winning one of the coveted prizes. They sing highlights of the opera literature. In the audience award, viewers can vote for their favorite. The award ceremony will take place after the gala.

Our participants in the second round:

Daniel Weiler, Margaret Newcomb, Tea Trifkovic, Hanna Tverdova, Antonia Dunjko, Shixuan Wei, Stefanie Wagner, Daehoo Kim, Natalie Weinberg, Shiki Inoue, Kseniia Belolipetskaya, Shimon Yoshida, Yohan Ji, Veronika Seghers, Hyuna Lim, Chelsea Dolman, Kyeyoung Kim, Xuewei Liu, Teaa An, Myungin Lee, Eunsoo Lee, Rosanna Cooper, Ines Constantino, Ahyoung Kim, Sung Jin Lee, Julia Danz, Tae-Hwan Yun, Yeani Lee.

Questions for the jury:

Dr. Czernin, this is not the first time you have been on the prestigious jury of the singing competition. Why are you there?
I am very convinced of the overall concept of Immling, which combines first-class performances in summer with the promotion of young talent. It is a pleasure to hear and see many young singers in all their professional seriousness. I also learn a lot listening to the young voices every year, especially by talking to the other jury members, who have so much experience in terms of voices, voice leading, technique, interpretation and repertoire.

 

Professor Lang, does the voice need stroking?
Yes. Definitely. Today, it seems to be a principle that singers should sing increasingly difficult roles at younger and younger ages. This is not correct. We are allowed to decelerate. My advice to singers is: let the voice mature and keep rest periods so that the voice is not broken. The voice is like suspenders: once worn out, they no longer hold. You can’t fix that anymore. Singers should stay in their subject, not sing too hard. In addition, they must also have the courage to cancel once, not to take every commitment with them. Because there is no one waiting for them. If the voice is broken, the singing career is over.

 

Mr. Kanttila, what makes a good singer?
I always look for a ‘total package’. The modern singer not only brings an excellent voice, but can also play well, is a good musician and has mastered all the major ‘opera languages’: German, Italian, French & Russian. It’s also important to me that the singer has a pleasant personality, that I can talk openly with him about everything and that he can handle criticism. As a singer you should never have the feeling that you already know everything, but always be ready to learn something new.

 

Professor Schiml, what do you think is special about the Immling International Singing Competition?
I think this is what the world should look like: Many nations that get along with each other. Music and singing are human education and all these artists have no difficulties among themselves. You can’t offer enough events where young people of all nations get to know each other. Maybe the world will be better then.

 

March 2, 2019, 6:00 p.m.: Festive Opera Gala with Orchestra

For health reasons, Cornelia von Kerssenbrock cannot conduct that evening. The Bad Reichenhall Philharmonic Orchestra will perform under the direction of Kai Röhrig, professor at the University Mozarteum Salzburg, with whom the Philharmonic Orchestra has a long-standing collaboration.

Tickets online at
www.immling.de
, ticket hotline: 08055 9034-0

Photos at www.immling.de
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