The Astana Opera Academy attendees will take part in the 5th Éva Marton International Singing Competition, which will be held from September 5 to 11 in Budapest (Hungary). Dinmukhamed Koshkinbayev and Guldana Aldadossova, along with 70 other young opera performers from 29 countries, will have to go through a tough casting process in front of a professional jury.
“We have high hopes for our guys,” Timur Urmancheyev, artistic director of the Astana Opera International Opera Academy, Honoured Worker of Kazakhstan, notes. “For the up-and-coming opera singers, participation in competitions is an obligatory element of preparation, as they help to concentrate on the main thing – improving vocal abilities, demonstrating natural talent and ability to learn. In addition, it provides a good opportunity to get acquainted with major world cultural figures, art managers. It should be noted that among the academy attendees there is already a laureate of this competition – our talented singer Azat Malik.”
It is important to emphasize that the Éva Marton International Singing Competition is held on the basis of the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music, the leading higher education institution in Hungary. The founder of this prestigious world competition, opera diva Éva Marton, pays great attention to finding and supporting young performers.
Dinmukhamed Koshkinbayev, the International Opera Academy attendee, laureate of the 10th Bibigul Tulegenova International Vocal Competition, has set his heart on becoming a winner.
“Participation in the Éva Marton competition has always been my dream,” he says. “I have been working towards this for a very long time. For three months, Astana Opera’s concertmaster Zaru Zhazykbayeva has been helping us in our preparations. This is my first participation in such a major global competition. The whole preparatory process and its anticipation bring me great pleasure. For the competition, I am preparing works that I have already performed onstage, and only Liszt’s art song Lasst Mich Ruhen is new in my program. At first glance, it seems simple, but in fact it is very complex. Participation in the competition is a valuable experience. It is interesting to immerse yourself in its atmosphere, to see from the inside how everything is organized. It is a great honor for me to perform in front of Éva Marton, and I believe in my abilities.”
“At the end of May, we learned that we had passed the preliminary selection. At that time, the rehearsal process for the premiere of Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni was actively underway, so the preparation for the competition had to be postponed,” Guldana Aldadossova, the International Opera Academy attendee, said. “In total, we are preparing 8 pieces, which were selected taking into account technical capabilities of the voice, in order to show its range, endurance, character. In the first round, it is obligatory for all participants to perform a piece by Franz Liszt. I am also preparing Alcina’s aria from Handel’s eponymous opera, Giulietta’s aria from Bellini’s I Capuleti e i Montecchi, Donna Anna’s aria from Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Tsaritsa of Shemakha’s song from Rimsky-Korsakov’s Zolotoi Petushok. For the third round, an orchestral piece was selected. This is my “showpiece”, Juliette’s waltz from Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette.”
The final of the competition will take place on September 10 with the participation of the orchestra of the Hungarian State Opera.
As a reminder, the Astana Opera International Opera Academy is a program that allows young opera singers to improve their skills by learning from highly qualified specialists. This project is conceived to become an important, fundamental element in the development of Astana Opera, an opera house that has made a name for itself in the international arena.