October 2003
Keri Alkema, a mezzo-soprano, was the Judy George Grand Prize winner in the Senior category of the 2001 National Voice Competition. The August issue of the Washington Opera magazine featured an article on Keri, who made her Washington Opera debut as Alisa in Lucia di Lammermoor. She recently made her debut with the Spoleto Festival performing in Lakmé. In 2003 she was heard in her New York recital with the Marilyn Horne Foundation. She also sang at the Chautauqua Opera in Little Women and won this year's Regional Finals for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.
February 2003
Paul Mow, YPO's 2001 Senior Division Voice Competition First Prize winner, was back in Miami for FGO's Salome. Paul performed the role of First Jew.
October 2002
Since winning the First Prize in the Junior division of the YPO/FGO Voice Competition in 2001, Elizabeth Caballero has been truly a "diva in the making." She was a National Grand Finalist in the 2001 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and then joined the Merola Opera (which is a division of the San Francisco Opera) performing Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte. This year she will appear as Mimì in La bohème, again for Merola. Miami audiences will be in for a treat when Elizabeth returns to perform in the Temple Beth Am series at Gusman Hall on December 1. In April she will appear as Musetta in the FGO production of La bohème. She has the role of Micaëla in Carmen for the Mobile Opera and will appear at Lincoln Center for the Puccini Foundation Winners Concert on November 2, 2002. Brava, Elizabeth!
September 2002
In 1997, our Student winner, at age 19, was soprano Sandra Lopez, a native Miamian who was studying voice at the University of Miami. Now 24 years old, she has just joined the ranks of the Metropolitan Opera sopranos. Other former winners singing at the Met are: Earle Patriarco and Christopher Schaldenbrand, baritones; Charles Reid, tenor; and Jill Grove, mezzo-soprano.
Our first prize winner in the Junior division (the Junior Opera Guild prize), also in 1997, was soprano Jami Rogers. Her current and extensive résumé lists our award as one of her major prizes. Her very busy schedule has included performances at New York City Opera as Gilda in Rigoletto, Papagena with the Dallas Opera, Musetta in La bohème with Knoxville Opera, Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro at the Hawaii Opera, Sophie in Werther with the Los Angeles Opera, Rosina in The Barber of Seville with the Palm Beach Opera, and Poucette in Manon at the Metropolitan Opera.
May 2002
Tenor Paul Mow, the First Place winner in the Senior category in the 2001 YPO/FGO Voice Competition, will return to Miami to sing for our May Luncheon. Paul has been an enormous success over the past year, winning the Wagner Prize in the George London Vocal Competition (this is one of the biggest competitions in the U.S.) and winning further prizes from the Jensen Foundation and Houston Grand Opera Eleanor McCollum Competition; and he has been nominated for a Richard Tucker Career Grant. He will appear at New York City Opera in 2002, the Utah Festival Opera, the Opera Theater in Washington, D.C., and at Carnegie Hall this May. We are in for a real treat!
Kirstin Marie Chavez, a mezzo-soprano and our Second Place winner in the Senior category in 1999, has just won First Prize in the Jensen Foundation's annual competition. Many of you may remember her "Carmen" at the Opera Preview at the Varelas' home. Her present engagements include: Maddalena in Rigoletto and Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro at New York City Opera, Mercedes in Carmen at the Santa Fe Opera, and appearances at the Milwaukee Opera, Philadelphia Opera, and Orlando Opera.
Don't miss Marquita Lister as Bess in Porgy and Bess. It was live from Lincoln Center last month and is being replayed periodically on Channels 2 and 17. Marquita won one of YPO's Competition Awards in the late 80's. She is appearing at the Montreal Opera as Aida and Bess at New York City Opera and the New Orleans Opera.
April 2002
This star has risen! Countertenor David Walker was the First Place winner in the Senior Young Artist division in 1997. In 1998, he won the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. Since then he has sung many roles with major opera houses and has a full schedule of future engagements. He is considered a top-flight countertenor, according to The New York Times. He debuted with Florida Grand Opera in Giulio Cesare. Since then he has sung Nero in The Coronation of Poppea at Covent Garden, Giulio Cesare at the Los Angeles Opera and the Amsterdam National Opera, Ottone in Agrippina at Glimmerglass, Armindo in Partenope and the Sandman in Hansel and Gretel at the New York City Opera, and roles in Rinaldo at the Munich Opera and Il Tito at the Strasbourg Opera in France. His future engagements include performances at Central City Opera and New York City Opera. The list goes on for the successful young singer who got his start right here with YPO and the Florida Grand Opera!
March 2002
This month we are featuring several stars. Over the past few months I have continued to check web sites, Opera News, and agents' press releases. i was absolutely amazed at the number of success stories there are among our former winners of the Voice Competition!
Charles Reid (tenor), the Marvin A. Fink Award (Junior Young Artist First Prize) from 1997, is appearing at the Metropolitan Opera for the third season. His 2002 appearances include roles in Parade (also featuring Troy Cook) and War and Peace. Other roles include Alfred in Die Fledermaus in Hartford and Zampa at New York City Opera.
Brandon Jovanovich (tenor), a winner in the Junior category, won rave reviews in February 2002's edition of Opera News for his appearance in Sapho at the Wexford Opera in Ireland. He has also appeared at the Bordeaux Opera in Macbeth as Macduff, at the Nantes Opera in Trittico and in Susannah at the Palm Beach Opera, all in 2002!
John Marcus Bindel (bass), winner in the Junior Young Artist category (Third Prize) in 1997, has extensive appearances in 2002 at the Washington Opera — in Carmen, Pique Dame, Tosca, and Sly. In 2001 he appeared at New York City Opera in I Capulete e i Montecchi, in The Magic Flute, and in La bohème as Colline. At the Philadelphia Opera he will appear in Don Giovanni.
Jill Grove (mezzo-soprano), a winner in the Junior division in 1995, sings regularly at the Metropolitan Opera. She is in her fourth season there. She sang in Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg, Die Walküre, Mefistofélè, and Otello at the Metropolitan Opera. She sang in Falstaff and Die ägyptische Helena at the Santa Fe Opera and will appear as Azucena in Il Trovatore at the Tulsa Opera.
February 2002
This month's former Voice Competition winner, Earle Patriarco, was YPO's Student winner 10 years ago. He is a young baritone who has sung at major opera houses around the world and has become a true star in a very short time. He has a strong relationship with the Metropolitan Opera, currently singing Schaunard in La bohème, Nachtigall in Die Meistersinger (heard on the Saturday broadcast in November), the grandfather clock in L'enfant et les Sortilèges, and the husband in Les Mamelles, conducted by James Levine. Other recent engagements have included Valentin in Faust at the Bastille Opera, Figaro in The Barber of Seville at the Welsh National Opera, Marcello in La bohème at the Berlin Staatsoper, and Belcore at Madrid's Teatro Real. He recently recorded the role of Lescaut in Massenet's Manon, also featuring Roberto Alagna and Angela Gheorghiu. This recording won the 2001 UK Gramophone Award for Best Opera and was nominated for Best Opera Recording in 2001 for the 44th annual Grammy Awards. This is very impressive! I'm sure many of you remember him singing for us at our May Luncheon. Weren't we lucky!
December 2001
Troy Cook, this month's former Voice competition winner, won First Place in the Senior Young Artist category in 1999. He is a young baritone, a former Florida Grand Opera Young Artist, and he has quickly established himself as one of the most sought-after new singers in the country. He made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 2000 singing Schaunard in La bohème and Morales in Carmen. This year he appears again at the Met in L'enfant et les Sortilèges and a new production of Sly. He will also appear with the Glimmerglass Opera and in several Marilyn Horne Foundation recitals. He sang the Count in The Marriage of Figaro with the Minnesota Opera and sang at the New York City Opera in The Mother of Us All. What an impressive résumé!
November 2001
This month's rising new star is Jennifer Anne Cooper, the 1999 winner in the Junior catetory, the Marvin A. Fink Memorial given by Renée Fink. Jennifer is our Siebel in Faust to be performed with Florida Grand opera this season. In addition to her performance here, she has many engagements, including: the title role of La Cenerentola with the Knoxville Opera; Dorabella in Cosë fan tutte; and the title role of Mignon with the opera company of Wuppertal, Germany. Next year she will perform Isabella in L'italiana in Algeri and Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro with L'Opéra de Montréal.
Jennifer is a former FGO Young Artist, a Grand Prize winner at the Palm Beach Opera Competition, and one of our favorite YPO performers!
September 2001
The Student winner, Audrey Brutus, went to Rome for the summer to study and sing with the Rome Royal Academy Opera. She will return to New York in the fall to pursue other engagements. Audrey was the First Prize winner, Junior Division, in the Palm Beach Opera Competition, which immediately followed ours.
Keri Alkema, the Judy George Grand Prize winner, Senior division, was awarded a scholarship by Marilyn Horne to study at the Santa Barbara Opera. There is a special program there for mezzo-sopranos and very few are selected.
Elizabeth Caballero, co-winner in the Junior division, who won the Patricia Fuller Harrison Award administered by Kay Carpenter, was hired by the Merola Opera, a division of the San Francisco Opera. Elizabeth recently won the National Metropolitan Opera Council Auditions as one of the top 10 new voices in the U.S.
Christina Villaverde, the other co-winner in the Junior division, has moved to Chicago to continue her voice training. One of our judges, Richard Pearlman, of the Chicago Lyric Opera, is mentoring her.