1974 PARTICIPANTS

<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong> • <br /> <br /> PRESS </strong>
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<p style="text-align: justify;">The correspondent for Eindhoven’s Dagblad, Johan van Dongen, openly favored five out of 9 semi-final tenors, and suggested that a brave Jury would allow them all to pass to the finals, a the cost of the other vocal categories where talent was far less present. Indeed, jurys can at times argue among themselves that some diversity is better for the audience, for the competition, and especially for the final concert. Given the final result with two soprano winners, and only two second prizes for the tenors, such arguments had not played a part in the Jury’s motives regarding who was to pass to the finals and who not. They chose the basses Etienne Battens (SWI) and Anton Thissen (NL), the mezzos Nicole Oxombre (FR), and Anne Malewicz-Madey (PO), the tenors Geoffrey Shovelton (UK), Patrick Costeloe (UK), Jean Jacques Schreurs (BE), and Frans van Daalen (NL), and the sopranos ElzbietaNiziol (PO), Romy Gundermann (GE), Marie Pauline Hayward (UK), Janka Békas (HU), Bozena Kinasz-Micolajczak (PO), and Tineke van Wallinga (NL).</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Not allowed to pass to the finals was tenor Nicolaas Boer, who impressed the correspondent of Eindhovens Dagblad with Verdi’s ‘Ingemisco,’ and Puccini’s ‘Che gelida manina,’ in which he first approached the high notes with a lot of falsetto or voix mixte, only to let his voice blossom to full strength on top of that – a most peculiar effect.If the Jury passed Boer over completely,one can’t help but wonder as to exactly how this intriguing effect sounded!</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">An earlier article by Van Dongen focused on the 15 sopranos that had made it to the semi-finals. He judged most soprano’s disappointing, except Marie Pauline Hayward from the UK, ‘the only one to harbor hopes for the Aaltje Noordewier Reddingius Prize.’ The later winners, Janka Békas and Bozena Kinasz-Micolajczak, were judged respectively large voiced but sharp edged, and insecure in the lower register. To his credit, Van Dongen did suggest to let these three pass to the finals, along with Dutch soprano Tineke van Wallinga, who had impressed in her favorite genre oratoria, although she as les talented in opera. Van Dongen’s choice indeed passed to the finals</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Touched by Ghislaine Claude Dupont</strong>
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<p style="text-align: justify;">H. Hn., in an unidentified newspaper, summarized the usual discrepancies between the favorites of the press and the jury most tellingly, when he wrote:</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">‘It is a fine tradition with vocal competitions of any kind, to disagree with the Jury.’</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">However, H. Hn. Seemed to regret that there was little to disagree about with respect to the 11th IVC. The only thing he couldn’t agree with was Polish soprano Elzbieta Nizol’s promotion to the finalists. He found her lacking in bach and Die <em>Entführung aus dem Serail</em>, and guessed that she owed her election only to her fine rendition of an easy vocalize by Rachmaninov, that suited her voice very well. If that was still within the realm of what one could forgive, the Jury broke his heart by rejecting the Beglian sopanino Ghislaine Claude Dupont post semi finals. Acccrording to Hn., she was:</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">‘The most peculiar musical appearance in the semi fianls. The most touching one. Ghislaaine Dupont posseses a rsther thin, but very beautifully lined soprano. Paradozically: within the limitations of her vocal shortcomings. […] She makes music in a silent way, almost unnoticeable, to the pint where a composer might have wished he had intended it in this manner. Sh sould be given the scholarship award of Den Bosch. If only because she and those like her keep this sort of events alive. Except for technique, singing is also living in the music. The Polish soprano shall win, the Belgian has understood the music.’’</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>A personal note</strong>
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<p style="text-align: justify;">How righteous Hn.’s words – both with respect to the sport of disagreeing with the Jury, and with respect to the emotions that make vocal competitions so fascinating; the discover of the heart in music that you never heard like that before, not even from a great singer. At times aspiant singers can surprise you in a way that the most renowned stars cannot achieve. I have heard young singers singing ‘Un bel di vedremò’ with more panache than Renata Scotto, I’ve heard mere students belt out all the High C’s in ‘Ah mes amis’ from le fille du regiment with a freshness that equaled the renditions of Alfredo Kraus and Juan Diego Florez. I have never heard these singers again, but I would have wished that those preliminary rounds had been recorded. Likewise, Hn. and Johan Van Dongen have set my mind adrift for Ghislaine Dupont and Nicolaas Boer at the IVC in 1964 – RS</p>