1998 THE WINNERS

Oana-Andra Ulieriu

“Romanian Oana-Andra Ulieriu seemed a bit intimidated by her 1994 Press Prize of ƒ7,500, which she said was three times her father’s annual salary. The Prize was not for the best finalist, but for the one that was expected to grow into something special.” (Wil Derkse, Brabants Dagblad, September 9, 1994)

“The audience had no trouble choosing their winner: Oana-Andra. Following her arias by Rossini and Verdi she was loudly applauded.” (Adriaan Hager, Trouw, September 8, 1998)

After receiving the IVC Press Prize in 1994, Romanian soprano Oana-Andra Ulieriu (b. 1970) reaped a valuable Second Prize. In between she graduated from the Bucharest Conservatory, where she was in the class of 1969 IVC Great Prize winner Maria Slătinaru. Master classes with Mariana Nicolesco, Alberto Zedda, Daphne Evangelatos, Régine Crespin, Kaludi Kaludov, Colin Davis and Carlo Cossutta paved the way to a national Romanian career that has sparked further performances in the main theaters of Venice, Frankfurt, Monte Carlo, Liège, Sofia, Skopje, Belgrade and Manchester. In concert she has appeared in Leipzig, Tokyo, Paris, Birmingham, Tokyo, Cologne and elsewhere. She has collaborated with such conductors as Colin Davis, Alberto Zedda, Marcello Viotti and Fabio Luisi and sung with the likes of Nicolai Ghiaurov, Ruggero Raimondi, Renato Bruson, June Anderson, Inva Mula, Rockwell Blake, Antonino Siragusa, Mariana Cioromila and Elena Mosuc. Two TV portraits were dedicated to her, one made by NDR-Hamburg and broadcast in the Netherlands. Her main roles now include Mozart’s Zerlina, Dorabella, and Cherubino; Rossini’s Rosina, Angelina, Isabella, Marchesa Melibea (Il viaggio a Reims) and Lucilla ( La scala di seta); Verdi’s Maddalena, Fenena and Meg Page; and Donizetti’s Giovanna (Anna Bolena), Bellini’s Adalgisa, Puccini’s Suzuki, Bizet’s Carmen, Gounod’s Siebel, Massenet’s Charlotte, Berlioz’s Ascanio, Ponchielli’s Laura, Olga in Evgeni Onegin and Jocasta in Enescu’s Œdipe.

Pierre-Yves Pruvot

“Pruvot received a Second Prize for his stylish rendition of Duparc’s ‘Phidylé.’” (Aad van der Ven, Limburgs Dagblad, September 7, 1998)

“Pruvot suggested that he may become a fine lyrical baritone with a future in the high romantic French repertoire.” (Roeland Hazendonk, De Telegraaf, September 7, 1998)

Following victories at the Den Bosch (1998), Paris (1999) and Queen Elisabeth Competitions (2000), French baritone Pierre-Yves Pruvot’s remarkable career testifies to his deep commitment to the rediscovery of little-known works, from 17^th-century pieces to contemporary scores. He has became a renowned re-creator, recording many works heard for the first time in the modern era, including Bizet’s Le docteur miracle, Cherubini’s Lodoïska, Kreutzer’s La mort d’Abel and J. C. Bach’s Amadis de Gaule. His discography includes concert works and songs of Bizet, Massenet, Saint-Saëns, Gounod, Thomas, Halévy, Franck, Lesueur, Grétry and Gossec. His major stage roles are Gianni Schicchi, Germont, Nabucco, Figaro, Leporello, Don Alfonso, Golaud, Mephistopheles, Zurga, the High Priest of Dagon – and about 100 more. His vocal and dramatic qualities are highly sought-after for French and Italian operatic works of the 19^th and 20^th centuries. He created Debussy’s Rodrigue et Chimène for St. Petersburg, sang the title role in the first staged version of Milhaud’s Bolivar and appeared in Mascagni’s Iris in Kyoto under Nello Santi. For the past twenty years he and pianist Charles Bouisset have also explored the lesser-known song repertoire. Together they have given recitals throughout Europe and recorded works by Poulenc, Sauguet, Ravel, Chabrier, Duparc, Brahms, Rachmaninoff, Viktor Ullmann, Frank Martin, Pavel Haas and Guy Sacre. Needless to say, many composers have dedicated compositions to him. His staged Nelusko will be heard when Meyerbeer’s L’Africaine in Sofia is released on CD by CPO. He has recorded an album of Meyerbeer excerpts with his wife, soprano Hjördis Thebault.

Margriet van Reisen

“After Ulieriu and Ferri, only alto-mezzo Margriet van Reisen was able to interpret. In the song finals she gave a piano-accompanied selection of heavy romantic pieces a credible presentation – using not gestures, but her voice. She meant what she sang, communicated these feelings and differentiated with colors and shading. She has still to learn, but that is precisely what the Press Prize is there for.” (Roeland Hazendonk, De Telegraaf, September 7, 1998)

1983 THE WINNERS

Judith Malafronte

“The ‘Day of the Mezzos’ became a veritable triumph for the overwhelming American mezzo Judith Malafronte, whose reputation is already established. Malafronte, age 32, has a bell-like voice and fabulous technique, especially in coloratura. The only one to receive a curtain call during the finals, she triumphed even before the jury had a chance to honor her.” (Ferd op de Coul, “Sensationeel optreden Malafronte,” September 1973)

American mezzo-soprano Judith Malafronte (b. August 20, 1951, New Haven, Connecticut) told critic Ferd op de Coul that she had to overcome some fears in order to return to Den Bosch, where in 1982 she had lost in the semifinals. Said Malafronte:

“A little voice inside my head kept bugging me to try again. So many things happened that year, so many people gave all sorts of advice, and I got confused. … I am glad I got the chance to show the people here what I have been doing for the past year. … I learned my trade from Giulietta Simionato, an amazing, indestructible and energetic living legend who taught me to approach each role in any given language individually. … More theoretical and technical things I studied with Nadia Boulanger. I prefer tragic roles to comic opera because in my heart I am a serious person and then, well, comic roles are much more difficult because timing is crucial for the effect. … The IVC was not my Dutch debut: in Utrecht, some years back, I performed in the world premiere of a Steve Reich composition.”

Malafronte had an impressive career in opera, oratorio, and recital. Her operatic roles include major mezzo parts in Serse, Scarlatti’sL’Aldimiro, Dido and Aeneas (singing both Dido and the Sorceress), Tamerlano, L’incoronazione di Poppea and Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria. She recorded for BMG, DHM, EMI, and Koch in a wide range of repertoire, from the 12^th-century chant of Hildegard von Bingen to Richard Strauss, as well as Handel operas, Bach cantatas, medieval music and 17^th-century Spanish music.

Eliz‹abeth Campbell

“Malafronte may be the star of this IVC, yet one should not overlook the excellent competition from considerable talents such as Elizabeth Campbell whose rendition of a song cycle by De Falla was a first-class achievement.” (Ferd op de Coul, “Vier Prijzen,” September 1983)

“The Australian Elizabeth Campbell made a tremendous impact with some Schoenberg songs, rendered with great dramatic power, rich coloring and an enormous compass.” (Ferd op de Coul, “Slotconcert Imponerend,” September 1983)

Australian mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Campbell graduated from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and completed her studies in London and Europe. Apart from winning Second Prize and the Elly Ameling Song Prize in Den Bosch, she represented Australia in the Cardiff Singer of the World Competition. She made her operatic debut as Carmen with West Australia Opera. Her operatic repertoire includes leading roles in Così fan tutte, Evgeni Onegin,Carmen, Serse, Giulio Cesare, Alcina, La clemenza di Tito,Boris Godunov, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Les Troyens, Les contes d’Hoffmann, Werther, Hänsel und Gretel,La forza del destino, Il trovatore, Madama Butterfly, Lulu, Peter Grimes, Die Fledermaus,L’incoronazione di Poppea, Der Ring des Nibelungen, Capriccio, Rigoletto, Andrea Chénier, The Turn of the Screw and Dead Man Walking, as well as the world premieres of Richard Mills’s Summer of the Seventeenth Doll (1996), Batavia (2001) and The Love of the Nightingale (2002) and Moya Henderson’s Lindy (2002). Campbell is one of Australia’s leading concert artists and recitalists. Additionally, she has performed at Covent Garden, toured the United States with the Sydney Symphony and given recitals at Wigmore Hall and in The Hague and Antwerp. Currently she is shifting her repertoire to more mature roles. Her recordings include Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, Elgar’s Sea Pictures, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Messiah, Giulio Cesare, Summer of the Seventeenth Doll and South Australia’s Ring cycle.

Nellie van der Sijde

“The Brabant Orchestra under Jan Stulen accompanied Brabant-born Nellie van der Sijde with Mozartian charm in ‘Porgi amor’ from Le nozze di Figaro , and she sang it to perfection. Her light, agile voice and her musical understanding are magnificent not only in arias but also in lieder, as could be heard in Wolf and, even better, in Schubert’s ‘Gretchen am Spinnrade,’ very accurately accompanied from the piano by Frans van Ruth.” (Ferd op de Coul, Brabants Dagblad, September 8, 1983)