New prize and new jury New prize and new jury

PRESS RELEASE
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NEW PRIZE AND NEW JURY
AT THE MONTREAL INTERNATIONAL MUSICAL COMPETITION

Montreal, December 8, 2014 – A week before the closing of registration for the Voice edition of the Montreal International Musical Competition (MIMC), which will run from May 25 to June 5, 2015, the organizationis pleased to announce the creation of a new prize and the arrival of a new member on the international jury.

NEW PRIZE

  

Created under the patronage of Clarence and Arija Stiver, the Lied and French Art Song Prize, which will be awarded starting with the 2015 Voice edition, comes with a $5,000 scholarship. Mrs. Stiver, a devoted music lover who is a member of the Board of Directors of the Toronto Summer Music Festival, explains: “Our goal is to encourage young singers to discover and perpetuate a repertoire that we don’t seem to hear very often these days, one that offers a very rich and diverse musical literature.”

To see all the prizes, please click here.

  

NEW MEMBER ON THE INTERNATIONAL JURY

  

After announcing his retirement from opera last April, Ben Heppner regretfully informed us that he would not be able to sit on the MIMC’s international jury this year, as he will be will be making his musical theatre debut around the same time. We wish him every success in the role of Isidor Straus in the production of Titanic that will be presented at the Princess of Wales Theatre in Toronto this spring.

The Canadian tenor will be replaced by Korean-born coloratura soprano Sumi Jo. “I am thrilled to sit on the jury of this prestigious competition and look forward to being back in Montreal,” commented Sumi Jo, who was in town for her latest concert on December 1.

The jury of the 2015 Voice edition will also include artistic director and conductor David Agler (Canada); conductor Richard Bonynge (Australia); opera administrator and artistic consultant Brian Dickie (United Kingdom); baritone Wolfgang Holzmair (Austria); mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne (United States); bass Joseph Rouleau (Canada); mezzo-soprano Birgitta Svendén (Sweden); and soprano Deborah Voigt (United States).

  

$130,000 FOR THE MIMC FOUNDATION

  

On November 26, 2014, the MIMC Foundation held a major benefit evening at Montreal’s Ritz-Carlton Hotel under the honorary presidency of Jacqueline Desmarais. The event, attended by over 200 guests, including many members from the arts and business communities, helped raise the sum of $130,000. Following the announcement of the result, MIMC Co-Founder and President André Bourbeau commented: “This is fantastic! I wish to convey my sincerest thanks to all the partners, buyers, donors and volunteers who helped make this evening a success, thereby ensuring that the Competition can take place.” In fact it is still time for those who were unable to attend and would like to show their support to make a donation to the Foundation.