MS EUROPA’s Classical Music Star 2011: San Francisco Opera Soprano, Nadine Sierra Wins Audience Priz

Hapag-Lloyd Cruises - 26.07.2011

• Audience prize worth 15,000 Euros – donated by Hapag-Lloyd Cruises
• Representatives of seven international opera houses
• Three female laureates impressed the jury and audience

On the occasion of the Stella Maris International Vocal Competition taking place aboard MS EUROPA every year, seven up-and-coming talents from the field of classical music took to the stage in 2011. With their performances, they demonstrated their skills in the categories of opera, lied and oratorio. The audience prize worth 15,000 Euros, donated by Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, was awarded to Nadine Sierra from the San Francisco Opera. Mezzo-soprano Gala El-Hadidi from Semperoper Dresden, won no less than two of the coveted jury prizes – the test recording with Deutsche Grammophon, and a guest engagement at the Vienna State Opera.

Another jury prize was conferred on Grazia Doronzio from The Metropolitan Opera New York. She received a guest engagement at the Hamburg State Opera, ceremoniously handed over by jury member Simone Young, Director of the Hamburg State Opera. Besides the laureates, this year’s participants included representatives of the Canadian Opera Company, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the Washington National Opera and the Accademia della Scala. Under the direction of celebrity tenor Michael Schade, a jury featuring well-known personalities such as Simone Young, Dominique Meyer, Director of the Vienna State Opera, and Marita Prohmann with the Deutsche Grammophon, decided on the conferral of the jury prizes.

“We have once again successfully gathered outstanding male and female singers on board and offered the jury and the audience first-class concerts“, stated Sebastian Ahrens, Managing Director of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises.

The next Stella Maris International Vocal Competition will be taking place from November 6-25, 2012 on a EUROPA cruise from Dubai to Port Louis (Mauritius).

Information on the competition is available at www.stella-maris-competition.com

For more information about the cruise please contact:

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