The Tchaikovsky Competition announced the names of the laureates in the nomination “Solo singing”

In the Mariinsky-2 at night from Thursday to Friday, the winners of the Seventeenth International Tchaikovsky Competition in the nomination “Solo Singing” were announced. The winner of the first prize among men was the Korean tenor Chi Hoon Son, among women – the Russian mezzo-soprano Zinaida Tsarenko.

The decisions of the vocal jury of the seventeenth convocation struck with objectivity, which one can only dream of at any competition held in Russia. And although the process of discussing the winners was slightly delayed, the jury prepared a list of 14 finalists who made it to the third round of the competition so accurately that it only remained to choose the best of them. And the contestants themselves chose the programs of the finals in such a way that they made it possible to compare who will sing King Rene’s aria from Iolanthe or Lensky’s arioso from Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin better. The chairman of the jury, Khibla Gerzmava, who was given the floor, handed it over to Valery Gergiev, who, referring to the late hour, was extremely brief and immediately returned the floor to her. Gerzmava, in the presence of the rest of the jury, with the exception of the American pianist and coach Craig Rutenberg, who listened to the tours of the competition from across the ocean online, sternly read out the laureates and diploma winners, wishing everyone great success. I had to choose from four basses, four tenors and two baritones, as well as three sopranos and one mezzo-soprano.

Of the four basses, 26-year-old Konstantin Fedotov and Hou Liwei (27 years old) received diplomas for participation in the third round, yielding in brightness, maturity and technical performance to their colleagues 28-year-old Gleb Peryazev (IV prize) and 32-year-old Chung In Ho (II prize). premium). But Fedotov will definitely take his toll at other competitions, considering what marvelous trump low notes he owns. Russian tenors also became diploma winners: 32-year-old Alexander Mikhailov, whose tremulation increased from excitement in the finale, and 29-year-old Roman Shirokikh, who in vain chose the famous “Nessun dorma” from Puccini’s “Turandot” among two arias, where he did not have enough freedom, nor the beauty and confidence of sound.

Soloist of the Mariinsky Theatre, bass Gleb Peryazev, who received the IV Prize, confidently, without hesitation, went to the final from the first round, demonstrating the full range of qualities of the winner: from language and style to charisma and artistry, the predictability and deliberateness of which, perhaps, slightly fed up the jury. 32-year-old tenor Igor Morozov sang just for his IV prize: the soloist of the Helikon-Opera chose for the finale a small, sparing, but very expressive aria of Turiddu “Mamma, quel vino e generoso” from Mascagni’s Rural Honor and Lensky’s aria. 24-year-old soprano Polina Shabunina was also awarded the IV prize, having bribed, perhaps, with the greatest sincerity of her singing. But if the Russian girlish soulfulness was enough for her in Natasha’s song “The Nightingale in the Oakwood” from Tchaikovsky’s “Oprichnik”, then she would have to grow up to the complex female feelings of Leonora in “Tacea la notte” from Verdi’s Il trovatore.

If the third prizes went to the performers of a strong average level, 27-year-old Belarusian soprano Albina Tonkikh and 32-year-old Chinese baritone Hong Zhenxiang, then the second prize winners turned out to be those who are said to be no worse than the first ones. Korean bass Jung In-ho II received the prize for his splendid, large, overtone-rich voice. True, unlike the previous competition, where other foreign participants had better articulation of the Russian text than native speakers, this time without exception, the Chinese and Koreans showed a very careless attitude to the language, making an unimaginable number of mistakes in consonants and distorting many words beyond recognition. Another finalist, who received the II Prize, 24-year-old baritone Maxim Lisiin, a participant in the Bolshoi Theater Youth Program, amazed everyone not only with his enviable athletic performance in all rounds, but also with his rare intelligence and irresistible male charisma. The phenomenal quality of his bright and juicy sound, the inseparable connection between word and music helped him create images of the ideal Prince Yeletsky in the arioso from Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades and the enchanting troublemaker Figaro from The Barber of Seville. The 31-year-old soprano Olga Maslova, originally from Voronezh, is a soloist with the Mariinsky Theatre, setting the bar high at this competition. She received a silver medal (and a 2nd prize) for her pure drum soprano audition—these are born every few decades and are chased by managers all over the world. Maslova stunned the jury with her voice in Turandot’s aria “In questa reggia” from Puccini’s opera of the same name and in Lisa’s aria “Where do these tears come from” from Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades.

The gold medalists were 32-year-old tenor Chi Hong Song, who prudently chose Lensky’s aria and a rarity for the final – Arnold’s virtuoso aria “Asile hereditaire” from Rossini’s “William Tell”, and 30-year-old Zinaida Tsarenko. She won first place in no small measure thanks to her senior colleague Olga Borodina, who sat on the jury and knows a lot about what a very good mezzo is, especially since she performed two of her favorite crown arias – “Yes, the hour has come” by Joanna from Orleans Virgin” by Tchaikovsky and Eboli’s aria “O don fatale” from “Don Carlos” by Verdi.

Vladimir Dudin