Kentucky District

 
 

 

 

“For me, the auditions have shaped my career into what it is today. They began opening opera house doors from the very first round. If it weren’t for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, I most certainly would not have the kind of career that I have today.”
                                               
      Gregory Turay, Tenor

 

 

“I met a lot of wonderful friends and associates in the business through the National Council Auditions. We continue to stay in touch throughout the years, and enjoy getting together and catching up whenever possible.”

Denyce Graves, Mezzo-Soprano

 

 

 

"The Met Auditions meant everything to my career. Because I won, I was asked to enter the Met's Lindemann Young Artists Program and it really saved me. James Levine took an interest in me after the final Auditions concert and I was very careful to listen to his advice. Of course, he was right on the money."

Paul Groves, Tenor

 

 

"An Auditions winner is a special person, someone recognized for his or her talent, challenged to galvanize that potential as a professional, and, like myself, as an artist eternally grateful for the support and dedication of so many who have given us so much."

Thomas Hampson, Baritone
   

 

FROM LEXINGTON

TO LINCOLN CENTER

The fabled stage of the Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center in New York is the desired destination for all young singers participating  in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.  Winning the Kentucky District competition - and being rewarded a ticket to the Mid-South Regional Finals - is the first hurdle to overcome in this career steeplechase.

Since the beginning of the new millennium,  Memorial Hall, a landmark of the University of Kentucky in Lexington,  serves as the Kentucky starting point for the thrilling annual ritual to discover  the most promising new opera talent in North America. The Kentucky District Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, sponsored by the Lexington Opera Society are open to eligible singers from all over the country and Canada. (The Mid-South Region consists of the Arkansas, Middle/East Tennessee, North Alabama, West Tennessee/Mississippi and Kentucky Districts.)

We invite you to make your not so impossible dream a reality with an impressive appearance at the Kentucky District Auditions. You can trust the experience of our judges and be assured that you are welcomed with open arms.

 

Click for details about the 2012 Kentucky District Competition dates and rules.
If you want to know more about Lexington (lodging etc.)
please visit www.visitlex.com

 

MISSION STATEMENT

The purpose of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Program is:

1.         To discover exceptional young talent.
2.         To provide a venue for young opera singers from all over the country and at all different levels of experience to be heard by a representative of the Metropolitan Opera and to assist those with the greatest potential in their development.
3.         To search for new talent for the Metropolitan Opera and the Met’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program.

The Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions is a program designed to discover promising young opera singers and assist in the development of their careers. The auditions are held annually in fourteen Regions of the United States and Canada. The are forty-two Districts within these Regions, each providing an opportunity for talented singers to enter the Auditions Program at the local level. The Auditions are administered by National Council members and volunteers in each region.

The winners of the District auditions advance to their Region Finals where they compete to win a trip to New York to participate in the National Semi finals, a competition held on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera. Approximately ten of the Semi-finalists are selected as National Finalists and compete the following Sunday in a public concert, The Grand Finals Concert, accompanied by the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. The jury awards approximately five Grand Winner awards of $15,000 each. The concert is broadcast nationwide on the Metropolitan Opera Radio Network. The remaining National Finalists receive $5,000 each, and those singers who were National Semi-Finalists but did not advance to the National Finals will be given $1,500 to further their studies.

Many of the world's foremost signers, among them Renee' Fleming, Susan Graham, Thomas Hampson, Ben Heppner, Jessye Norman, Samual Ramey, Frederica von Stade, Deborah Voight and Dolora Zajick have received awards from the National Council. Annually approximately 100 former auditioners appear in Metropolitan Opera productions.

To Reach the Metropolitan Opera Council National Audition website, click here.

       
   
   

Created with Full Permission from THE METROPOLITAN OPERA. This page is best viewed using the latest version of Internet Explorer. Please submit any difficulty viewing this website to info@lexingtonopera.com