From November 2, 2009, Brian Dickie, Life As General Director of Chicago Opera Theater.
This was the sixth Neue Stimmen that I have been involved with.  I started out in 1999.  And it was by far the closest contest.  On each previous occasion the first three places were really clear with the remainder some way behind and quite easily separated.
We the jury came out at the intermission of the Finals Concert on Saturday evening unanimous that this was too close to call - and could we not just have 6 first prize winners?!  Well that would have been a cop out of course!  But I think it illustrated the situation that we found ourselves in very clearly.
So we set our minds during the second half to trying to get a good order for the winners.  And there emerged a clear advantage for Eunju Kwon; she had led in all the previous rounds and continued to astonish both public and jury with her special magic.  This was the young Korean I heard in Dusseldorf in June about whom I wrote in my post of June 25.  She is studying with Rudolph Piernay in Mannheim.
When we came to the next five places there was a difference of opinion, but these were ones of tiny subtle shading so we ended up with five singers whose scores were separated by slivers. But we had to get the first three decided if only because of the significant difference in the prize money!
In the end the first three places went to Korean singers.  And I think that this may need some explanation.  It has certainly not happened before.  The fact is that each of these three young people possessed voices of unusual beauty.  This alone set them apart.  They also displayed a remarkable grasp of the various languages they need to sing in.  Not least English – and that is a challenge even for the English!  And above all they each had the power to move.  I think that each have some way to go before becoming fully finished artists.  But they are all very young – and they have already demonstrated a magnetic appeal.
Pavel Kolgatin, the 22 year old Russian, won the audience prize at the semi-finals.  So he also showed that there is an indefinable something that comes into play in these circumstances.  He sang extremely well but there was clearly more than that.  A kind of magic for sure.
There were two other exceptionally accomplished singers in this group, the Canadian Andriana Chuchman and the Israeli Rachel Frankel.  They are not “works in progress” at all.  They are both completely polished accomplished singers who would adorn the rosters of the best companies.  And indeed they do that already, for Frankel is a member of the Berlin Staatsoper Studio, and Chuchman is in the Ryan Center at Chicago’s Lyric Opera.
The seventh place went to the splendid Russian Mikhail Korobeynikov.  He is a fabulous bass baritone who started with a terrific La calunnia from Rossini’s Barbiere.  It was a performance owing something perhaps to that from someone like Ruggero Raimondi.  But he then had to deal with Verdi’s Banquo.  And this revealed a slightly less favorable comparison with Burak Bilgili who won the 2001 first place with the same aria. 
And what about the others?  Well we had some other wonderful people in the semifinals as well as those who did not make it to the final..  No shame about that.  The semi finalist Narine Yeghiyan, a beautiful Armenian soprano, was so impressive that she received a fantastic consolation in gaining admittance to the Berlin Staatsoper studio with a scholarship from the Liz Mohn Foundation. The Argentine mezzo Mariana Carnovali, the Russian/Italian soprano Anna Princeva, the South African Luthando Qave, and the Swedish tenor Daniel Johansson were all impressive.  The gorgeous soprano voice of Princeva won us over in Bellini in the preliminary round.  In the semi final she had to contend with Mozart’s Konstanze – a huge challenge and maybe an unfair one.  But she is certainly someone to watch.
And what of those who did not get past the first round last week?  Thirty nine were selected from a thousand.  Twelve made it to the last two stages.  So twenty seven already elite singers were left behind.
Non qualifiers included the irresistibly delightful Georgian soprano Sofia Gordeladze, the Ukrainian 20 year old baritone Iurii Samoilov, the New Zealander bass Wade Kernot, a lovely Russian soprano Gelena Gaskarova, the Polish mezzo with stunning blue eyes Barbara Majewska, and an Irish American soprano from Vienna Ariana Strahl.  These were all big personalities who are clearly going to be winners one way or another.  Kernot has a contract with the St Gallen Opera – a really first class opportunity for him.  And there was also a remarkable Turkish coloratura soprano, Cigdem Soyarslan.  So these are some names to look out for.
Two COT company members also made an impression, the Columbian soprano Catalina Cuervo and the baritone John Chest.  Cuervo was mightily impressive and was much liked and unlucky not to get to the semis.  Chest is already on his way and at the beginning of his first year at the Bavarian State Opera’s studio.  But he is only 24.
 The week brought some wonderful opportunities to get together with old friends and colleagues – notably fellow jury members Evamaria Wieser and Anja Silja.  Dominique Meyer assumed the Chairmanship of the jury in succession to Gerard Mortier and, with his own gentle diplomatic style, worked wonders in sometimes tricky circumstances. 
Our wonderful colleague Jutta Ohlsson from Buenos Aires celebrated her tenth anniversary with Neue Stimmen, as did I. You see us here looking rather solemn at the Saturday press conference.  Most of the time we were laughing and enjoying ourselves!
Ines Koring, the amazingly efficient manager of the Neue Stimmen project worked miracles with her remarkable team.  She and they are indispensable.
And above all we must pay tribute to Liz Mohn, the guiding spirit behind Neue Stimmmen, who continued to inspire us all and is a living testament to the values of her late husband Reinhard Mohn, creator of the Bertelsmann empire, who died as recently as October 3 this year.  Without these two remarkable people this would never have happened.