The Fort Worth Opera hosts the McCammon Voice Competition at the Kimbell Art Museum March 23. Ten rising stars of the opera world will compete for $15,000 in prizes, offering a rare opportunity to witness world-class talent up close. The audience even gets to vote on one of the prizes. Tickets are available for this exciting biennial event at fwopera.org.
Fort Worth Opera Artistic Director
“Every other year since 1985, the McCammon Voice Competition brings Final Four intensity, American Idol vitality, and Oscar Red Carpet style right here to our city,” said Fort Worth Opera General & Artistic Director Angela Turner Wilson. “It’s high-stakes, high-drama, and high artistry — all in one thrilling afternoon.”
The competition started in 1985, after devoted opera supporter Marguerite McCammon donated $30,000 to the Opera Guild to help young singers prove their talents and advance their careers by competing for awards and recognition. Originally open only to Texans, the competition soon became national, and then international. The McCammon Voice Competition has successfully launched careers of opera stars such as Grammy-winning baritone Richard Paul Fink, a world-renowned Wagnerian and frequent Metropolitan Opera guest. Soprano Marjorie Owens, who returned to Texas last season to headline Strauss’ Elektra at Dallas Opera, also launched her career at the competition.
The McCammon is open to singers 21 and above who have never had professional management. This year, nearly 300 hopefuls from around the world applied. Singers from the U.S. (and Texas!), Mexico, Canada, South Korea, Ireland, Spain, Cyprus, Greece, Chile, Denmark, the Netherlands, and France were included. A panel of 17 judges winnowed that field to 48 semi-finalists, who were then evaluated by three industry pros. Mezzo-soprano Michelle DeYoung, Baylor professor and vocal coach Kathleen Kelly, and conductor Tyson Deaton, fresh from Fort Worth Opera’s production of Little Women¸ comprised the panel.
McCammon Voice Competition Finalists
Those judges have narrowed the field further to ten finalists (and five alternates) who will face the final judging panel, and a live audience, at the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth on March 23. Finalists include Winona Martin, Mezzo-Soprano – Dallas, Texas; Sarah Rachel Bacani, Soprano – Toms River, New Jersey; Elana Bell, Mezzo-Soprano – New York, New York; Justin Burgess, Baritone – South Lyon, Michigan; Catherine Creed, Soprano – Highlands, New Jersey; Rolfe Dauz, Baritone – Walnut Creek, California; Alexandra Henderson, Soprano – Oneonta, New York; Julia Maria Johnson, Soprano – Spokane, Washington; Alexia Mate, Soprano – Long Island, New York; and Margaret Tigue, Soprano – Wantagh, New York.
Each contestant submits a list of four arias they are prepared to sing. The arias are chosen to showcase vocal artistry, technical skill, and command of multiple languages, essential for professional opera singers, who often perform in English, Italian, French, German, and even Russian.
At the live event on March 23, each singer chooses their first aria from that list, which they will perform with piano accompaniment. For the second half of the program, the judges raise the stakes by selecting a surprise second aria from the same list.
Those judges will be a tough panel, but each brings real career-launching potential to the dais. Fort Worth Opera’s Turner Wilson will be joined by Chandler Johnson of Santa Fe Opera, Vanessa Uzan of UIA Talent Agency, and Miguel Harth-Bedoya of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.
McCammon Voice Competition Audience Favorite Award
Along with First, Second and Third Prizes, the judges will present an Audience Favorite Award chosen by ticket holders in attendance. During the awards ceremony, Turner Wilson will also deliver a well-earned recognition to Opera board member and friend John Forestner, and a posthumous recognition to Opera board member and staunch advocate Louise Carvey.
Audience members will then have the chance to meet the competitors at a post-awards reception, all in the intimate setting of the Kimbell Art Museum theater.
“The McCammon is a launching pad for the next generation of opera stars,” Turner Wilson said. “Each finalist on that stage could be standing on the brink of a major career. When you come out and support them, you’re getting an afternoon of spectacular voices singing world famous arias — but it’s deeper than that. You’re also helping to shape the future of opera.”
Fort Worth Opera
One of the oldest opera companies in Texas and the U.S., the Fort Worth Opera was founded in 1946. They are committed to producing opera of the highest possible artistic quality and integrity. Also to identifying and training talented young singers; to serving as a crucible for creating new American operas; to joining forces with other arts organizations in significant collaborations; and to enriching the community by stimulating cultural curiosity and creativity in people of all ages, ethnicities, and backgrounds. To learn more about the McCammon Competition, and to purchase tickets for the event, please visit the Fort Worth Opera website at fwopera.org.
