1st PLOVDIV OPERA INTERNATIONAL CONDUCTING COMPETITION
SEPTEMBER THE 25th – SEPTEMBER THE 30th 2023
STATE OPERA PLOVDIV – BULGARIA, EUROPEAN UNION
Artes Association, in cooperation with State Opera Plovdiv and Plovdiv Opera Orchestra, proudly presents the first edition of Plovdiv Opera International Conducting Competition.
All the phases of the competition will be held with live orchestra and will be held in Plovdiv from September the 25th until September the 30th 2023.
The candidates are welcome to apply from January the 30th until July the 31st 2023.
The repertoire of the competition is focused on opera and is intended to test in deep the knowledge and the artistry of the admitted conductors.
As an international competition with the aim to help emerging conductors to develop their career, Plovdiv Opera International Conducting Competition provides an impressive set of opportunities to the winners and a huge media exposure to all the admitted candidates.
The first prize, a life changing opportunity, consists in the offer of the position of assistant conductor at the State Opera – Plovdiv for the 2024/2025 season as well as opportunities with prestigious International Opera Houses and institutions such as Friuli Venezia Giulia Orchestra in Italy, Varna Opera in Bulgaria, Budapest Dohnányi Symphony Orchestra in Hungary, Pazardjik Symphony Orchestra in Bulgaria, Astana Opera in Kazakhstan.
All the three finalists will conduct during 2023/2024 season of Plovdiv National Opera.
The three finalists will also have the opportunity, according to the choice of M° Allemandi, to assist him in an opera production in one of the prestigious opera houses where he performs regularly.
The wide geographic distribution along with the prestige of the institutions and personalities involved guarantees a wide range of opportunities to the winners, a unicum in the current panorama of classical music competitions.
RULES
1. GENERAL INFORMATION
1a. The competition is open to musicians of any nationality, of both sexes and without any age limit;
1b. The competition is structured in two main phases: ELIMINATORY PHASE and FINAL PHASE;
1c. The ELIMINATORY PHASE starts January the 30th 2023 and ends on July the 31st 2023 and consists in the examination of videos and CVs (please check the guidelines for the videos at the bottom of the page);
1d. The FINAL PHASE will take place from September the 25th until September the 30th 2023 in Plovdiv (Bulgaria) and consists on rehearsals and a concert with the Orchestra of Opera Plovdiv ;
1e. In order to participate the candidates have to fill the on-line application form on the website and send all the required documents;
2. ELIMINATORY PHASE
2a. The candidates are requested to make available to the jury two videos (please check the guidelines at the bottom of the page) and a recent CV;
2b. The candidates selected to take part to the FINAL PHASE will be informed a few days after the end of the ELIMINATORY PHASE, July the 31st 2023 and their names will also be published on the website and on the social media of the competition;
3. CANDIDATES ADMITTED TO THE FINAL PHASE
3a. The FINAL PHASE consists on a First Round, a Second Round, a Semifinal and a Final in which the candidates will have to conduct Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra with full instrumentation and the vocal cast of the Opera House, according to the schedule below;
3b. The admitted candidates will have to choose the pieces they want to conduct among the given repertoire, except for the Semifinal and Final phase;
3c. In each Round the candidates will have a limited amount of time to show their proficiency to the jury; the exact amount of time can vary according to the decision of the jury;
3d. All the candidates admitted to the FINAL PHASE will receive a diploma attesting that they have reached this stage of the competition;
4. SCHEDULE OF THE FINAL PHASE
Venue: Studio 2019” Eksarh Josif str. 16 Plovdiv
4a. FIRST ROUND – September 25th, 26th and 27th
Maximum number of admitted candidates: 50
Podium time for each conductor: about 25 minutes
Each candidate will have to choose one Ouverture and two arias (in total 3 pieces) from the following lists plus the mandatory Sprechszene – “Die Weisheitslehre dieser Knaben” from die Zauberflöte; the candidates will have to decide the pieces they want to conduct at the moment of their confirmation of their acceptance to the FINAL PHASE;
OUVERTURE (1 piece to be chosen) – Instrumentation: Chamber Orchestra
W.A. Mozart, Ouverture from “Don Giovanni” (concert version);
W.A. Mozart, Ouverture from “Così fan tutte”;
W.A. Mozart, Ouverture from “Le nozze di Figaro”;
VOCAL (2 pieces to be chosen) – Instrumentation: voice and piano
W. A. Mozart, from Die Zauberflöte: Sprechszene – Die Weisheitslehre dieser Knaben
W. A. Mozart, from Don Giovanni: Don Ottavio, “Son morta… Оr sai chi l’onore”
W. A. Mozart, from Don Giovanni: “Crudele,…Non mi dir”
W. A. Mozart, from Don Giovanni: “In quali eccessi, o Numi… Mi tradi quell’alma ingrata”
W. A. Mozart, from Le nozze di Figaro: “E Susanna non vien!.. dove sono”
W. A. Mozart, from Le nozze di Figaro: “Giunse al fin in momento… De vien non tardar”
C. Gounod, from Roméo et Juliette: “Je veux vivre dans le revê”
J. Strauss II, from Die Fledermauss: “Mein Herr Marquis”
P. I. Tchaikovsky, from Eugene Onegin: letter scene “Пускай погибну я…”
The jury will decide which pieces the candidate will have to conduct, choosing among the two proposed by the candidate; the jury can ask an entire movement/piece or parts of it; the jury can as well ask the candidate to run through or rehearse;
4b. SECOND ROUND – September 28th
Admitted candidates: 16
Podium time for each conductor: about 18 minutes
Instrumentation: symphony orchestra
Each candidate will have to choose two (2) of the following pieces:
G. Puccini, from Manon Lescaut: Intermezzo
P. Mascagni, from Cavalleria rusticana: Intermezzo Sinfonico
G. Verdi, from Nabucco: Sinfonia
G. Bizet, from Carmen: Ouverture
R. Wagner, from Die Walküre: Walkürenritt
R. Wagner, from Lohengrin: Prelude 1st Act
R. Leoncavallo, da Pagliacci: Intermezzo
The jury can ask an entire movement or parts of it; the jury can as well ask the candidate to run through or rehearse;
4c. SEMIFINAL – September 29th
Admitted candidates: 8
Podium time for each conductor: about 30 minutes
Instrumentation: symphony orchestra and singers
Each candidate will have to choose two of the following pieces:
G. Puccini – La boheme – 1st act
G. Puccini – La boheme – 4th act
G. Puccini – Madame Butterfly – 2nd act
G. Puccini – Madame Butterfly – 3rd act
The jury will decide which piece the candidate will have to conduct; the jury can ask the entire act (or acts) or parts of it; the jury can as well ask the candidate to run through or rehearse;
4d. FINAL – September 30th
Admitted candidates: 3
Venue: Palace of Culture “Boris Christoff” Gladstone str. 15
Podium time for each conductor: about 50 minutes rehearsal plus concert
Instrumentation: symphony orchestra and singers
The Final consists on a dress rehearsal and a final concert to be held at Palace of Culture “Boris Christoff” in the evening of Saturday September the 30th 2023;
The candidates will have to prepare the following pieces:
Puccini – La bohème – 1st act;
G. Puccini – La bohème – 4th act;
G. Puccini – Madame Butterfly – 3rd act;
G. Puccini – Manon Lescaut: Intermezzo;
P. Mascagni – Cavalleria Rusticana: Intermezzo Sinfonico;
R. Leoncavallo – Pagliacci: Intermezzo;
Each finalist will conduct one Act and one Intermezzo, drawn by lot.
The final concert is a concert in the regular season of State Opera Plovdiv, at the end of the concert the jury will announce the winner of the competition;
The Final Concert will be entirely recorded;
The recording will be made available to the three finalists;
5. PRIZES
FIRST PRIZE:
– lEv 4.000,00
– position of Assistant Conductor for the season 2024/2025 at State Opera Plovdiv (Bulgaria), conducting at least three opera productions and one symphonic concert;
– 1 concert during 2023/2024 season of State Opera Plovdiv (Bulgaria);
– 1 opera production at Kazakhstan National Opera in Astana (Kazakhstan);
– Official Diploma
SECOND PRIZE:
– lEv 2.000,00
– conducting 1 opera during 2024/2025 season of State Opera Plovdiv (Bulgaria);
– 1 concert during 2023/2024 season of Budapest Dohnányi Symphony Orchestra in Budapest (Hungary);
– 1 concert during 2023/2024 season of State Opera Plovdiv (Bulgaria);
– Official Diploma
THIRD PRIZE:
– lEv 2.0000,00
– 1 concert during 2023/2024 season of State Opera Plovdiv (Bulgaria);
– 1 concert during 2023/2024 season of Pazardjik Symphony Orchestra in Pazardjik (Bulgaria);
– Official Diploma;
SPECIAL PRIZES:
– 1 opera production during 2024/2025 season at State Opera Varna (Bulgaria), upon the decision of the representative of the opera house, M° Davide la Bòllita;
– 1 concert during 2024/2025 season of Orchestra Sinfonica del Friuli Venezia Giulia (Italy), upon the decision of the representative of the orchestra, Ms. Federica Repini;
– 1 position of Assistant Conductor to M° Antonello Allemandi for an opera production in the season 2024/2025, upon the decision of M° Allemandi;
6. CERTIFICATES
6a. The Semi-Finalists will receive an official Diploma of Semi-Finalists at Plovdiv Opera International Conducting Competition;
6b. The candidates that pass the eliminatory phase will receive a certificate to attest their classification to the first edition of Plovdiv Opera International Conducting Competition;
6c. Representatives of International Artists Agencies and music journalists will be invited to all the stages of the competition;
7. THE JURY
The jury is composed of:
M° Antonello Allemandi, President of the jury (Italy)
Wiener Staatsoper; Metropolitan Opera House, New York; Teatro alla Scala di Milano; Semperoper Dresden; Hungarian National Opera; Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow; Opéra de Paris; Dallas Opera; Maggio Musicale Fiorentino; Tokio National Opera
M° Dian Tchobanov (Bulgaria)
General Music Director of State Opera Plovdiv
M° Gábor Hollerung (Hungary)
Music Director of Budapest Dohnányi Symphony Orchestra
Liszt Ferenc Prize winning conductor
M° Davide La Bòllita (Italy)
Artistic Advisor of Varna State Opera
M° Abzal Muhitdin (Kazakhstan)
General Music Director of Astana Opera
M° Grigor Palikarov (Bulgaria)
Music Director of Pazardjik Symphony Orchestra
M° Federica Repini (Italy)
Artistic Consultant of Orchestra Sinfonica del Friuli-Venezia Giulia
M° Andrea Vitello (Italy)
Conductor, Warner Artist
8. APPLICATION
8a. In order to apply the candidates must fill the on-line application form (link in the menu) and upload the required documents;
8b. The applications must be received by 24:00 (Midnight) UTC Monday July the 31st;
8c. The application fee for the ELIMINATORY PHASE is € 90,00; the participation fee to the FINAL PHASE is € 410,00;
8d. The application fee and the participation fee can be paid through bank transfer or Paypal (Paypal inclused a commission fee);
9. COPYRIGHT
9a. The competition is a media event that will be recorded and broadcasted by television, radio and any other media that the organization will consider useful to the promotion of the event;
9b. Submitting their application the competitors authorize the organization to the use of their image either through photographs and audio / video that can be broadcasted via radio, television and other media (internet, etc.);
9c. Submitting their application candidates also authorize the organization to use their name and image in printed publications related to the competition;
9d. The organization expects the candidates to be available for interviews, photo shoots, and any other activity designed to make the competition interesting for the media;
10. FINAL NOTICE
10a. The decisions of the jury are final and cannot be appealed; jury members are not obliged to give any explanation to the participants for their decisions;
10b. The organization is responsible for the fairness of the judgement and will consider any reasonable complain from the participants; possible complaints must be in written form;
10c. The application and participation fee will not be refunded for any reason, except for the cancellation of the competition;
10d. The competition is open to the public from the First Round to the Final; sharing comments, pictures and impressions on social media is welcome; audio or video recording is not allowed;
10e. For any controversy the English text of the announcement must be considered;
GUIDELINES TO THE VIDEOS FOR THE ELIMINATORY PHASE
A. the videos’ aim is to illustrate to the jury the candidate’s skills, thus it is required that the conductor is clearly visible and preferable that at least part of it is filmed in frontal view;
B. any instrumental or vocal ensemble is accepted;
C. the candidates can provide links to videos of performances from any historical period; no more than two videos will be judged, if a candidate sends more than two videos the jury will evaluate only the first two;
D. two movements/parts of the same piece are allowed;
E. the videos must be played in streaming mode (videos don’t have to be downloaded) and must be visible by the jury without any restriction;
F. the candidates shall send one link for each video;
G. the jury will watch all the videos but is not obliged to watch them in their entire length.
