International Vocal Competition 2015
The American Protégé International Vocal Competition is designed for singers who would like to challenge themselves in a very competitive environment. The Competition is open to solo vocalists and vocal groups of all ages, nationalities and countries.
Participants are required to submit video recording materials for the audition.
A panel of qualified judges evaluates audition materials. All judges are independent, their students are not allowed to apply this season.
Eligibility
We invite school students and adults to participate in the Competition. There is no age limit for the adult participants.
Multiple winners will be chosen in each of the following age groups:
| Category: | Age: |
| Young Singers | 5 - 10 |
| Junior | 11 - 14 |
| Intermediate | 15 - 17 |
| Amateur (without Professional Degree) | 18 and older |
| College students and professional singers | 18 and older |
Awards
First and Second Place Winners performed on
Saturday, December 19th, 2015 at 7:30 PM at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall
Saturday, December 26th, 2015 at 7:30 PM at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
$300 Scholarship, Jury’ Favorite Award Trophy and Judges’ Distinction Award Trophies and other Special Awards were granted based on the judges recommendations.
International Vocal Competition 2015 Results:
Jury's Favorite ($330 Scholarship and Plaque Trophy) Award Winner:
Elias Tyson Venegas is a 9 year old singer with an old soul and a young heart. He loves to sing and has been jazzing up songs since he could sing his ABCs. Tyson loves to also play piano and drums, dance and write songs. He won 2013’s British Columbia Junior Talent and Pacific National Exhibition’s Star Showdown, contest won previously by Michael Buble and Carly Rae Jepson. Much to Tyson’s surprise, Michael Buble came to surprise him at this event. He has been invited to perform at various events and fundraisers, such as Canada Winter Games, Canuck Place gala, Variety’s Children’s Charity events, Global TV’s Christmas breakfast wish, Hospital Galas, Canada Summer Special Olympics and both Canadian and American anthems at National Hockey League Canucks game and a Vancouver Canadians baseball. Tyson’s also been able to perform with Michael Kaeshammer and Bobby McFerrin (2014 Vancouver Jazz Festival at the Orpheum).
Judges’ Distinction (Plaque Trophy) Award Winners
Maggie Liu, age 12, is a lyric soprano, violinist, flautist, and pianist. She was born in San Diego, CA. Maggie expressed strong interest in music at a young age and started taking piano lessons at 4 and a half years old. When she was 11, Maggie began to study singing. She loves opera, classical music, & musicals. And she can sing in Italian, English, Chinese and German. Maggie has participated in many recitals, festivals, and competitions for piano. She enjoys performing for others. She plays violin in the Inland Valley Youth Symphony and plays flute in her school’s wind ensemble. After about one year of vocal study, Maggie began to sing in public. She performs locally for senior residents and at library recitals. In 2015, Maggie was selected to sing “O mio babbino caro” in the 2nd American Chinese Youth Art Festival in San Diego, CA. In 2014, as a winner of American Protégé International Competition of Romantic Music 2013, Maggie performed a Chopin piano etude at the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
Aimee Banks is a 13-year old soprano from Galway, Ireland. This present year Aimee has secured eight National Titles at Irelands prestigious Classical Festival Feis Ceoil 2015, Dublin, Sligo and Midlands. She was also awarded Overall Vocalist Award and Bursary 2015 for Midlands Feis Ceoil in the last week. In June of last year, Aimee had the honour of performing for The Papal Nuncio to Ireland His Excellency Charles Brown at a 10 year anniversary celebration and was also the recipient of a High Achievers Award from The Royal Irish Academy of Music, in November. Aimee recorded her first cd“My Classical Spirit” and donated all of the proceeds to“Laura Lynn – Irelands only Children’s Hospice. She is one of three children and her hobbies include sport and playing the Fiddle. Aimee has always set her standards very high and even though she only 13, her dream is to be the next Maria Callas and perform on the world stage.
| First Place Winners: | ||
| Young Singers Category, Age 6 to 10: | ||
| Harrison Sturgeon, Folk/Traditional | 8 | Gloucester, MA |
| Student of Yeghishe Manucharyan | ||
| Hayley Ji, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 8 | Syosset, NY |
| Student of Bob Marks | ||
| Elias Tyson Venegas, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 9 | Port Moody, Canada |
| Student of Camille Henderson | ||
| Jacob Skiba, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 10 | Oakville, Canada |
| Student of Kinga Mitrowska | ||
| Michael Robinson, Folk/Traditional | 10 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Sophia Parigi, Classical | 10 | Gretna, LA |
| Student of Melanie Hirschfeld and Joseph Pham Cuoc | ||
| Shermaine HuiQi Saw, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 10 | Singapore |
| Student of Kuo Po | ||
| Shermaine HuiQi Saw, Classical | 10 | Singapore |
| Student of Kuo Po | ||
| Junior Category, Age 11 to 14: | ||
| Abby Fletcher, Opera Aria | 11 | Cape Coral, Fl |
| Student of Susan Niekamp | ||
| Mun Hoi Fan, Folk/Traditional | 11 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Daleyna Dunlap, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 12 | Rolling Hills, CA |
| Student of Susan Wong | ||
| Kai Alivia Koren, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 12 | Lake Worth, FL |
| Student of Jill Switzer | ||
| Laya Madison Koder, Opera Aria | 12 | Richmond , VA |
| Student of Shelby Milgram | ||
| Maggie Liu, Opera Aria | 12 | Temecula, CA |
| Student of Wei Feng | ||
| Mia Mancera, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 12 | RSM, CA |
| Student of Kathleen Martin | ||
| Aimee Banks, Opera Aria | 13 | Moycullen, Ireland |
| Student of Michel Durham | ||
| Grace Mozitis, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 13 | Linwood, NJ |
| Student of Julie Zarukin Handlon | ||
| Casandra Ortiz, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 14 | Lake Worth , FL |
| Student of Michael Soper | ||
| Emily Muramoto, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 14 | Yorba Linda, CA |
| Student of Dr. Maria Lazarova | ||
| Ziyao (Chelsea) Guo, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 14 | Darien, CT |
| Student of Cynthia Sanner and Sooyeon Kim | ||
| Intermediate Category, Age 15 to 17: | ||
| Aleesha Yan, Classical | 15 | Manhattan Beach, CA |
| Student of Elisabeth Howard | ||
| Anna Wojcik, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 15 | Mississauga, Canada |
| Student of Kinga Mitrowska | ||
| Cheryl Bains, Classical | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Cheryl Bains, Folk/Traditional | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Niko Mancera, Opera Aria | 15 | RSM, CA |
| Student of Kathleen Martin | ||
| Savannah Rae Almeida, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 15 | Cooper City, FL |
| Student of Mike Soper | ||
| Stephanie Chee, Classical | 15 | Sunnyvale, CA |
| Student of Amy Heumann | ||
| Claire Diamond, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 16 | Lockport, IL |
| Student of Kristin Young | ||
| Gwyneth Campbell, Opera Aria | 16 | New York, NY |
| Student of Maria Lyudko | ||
| Katryna Marttala, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 16 | Cibolo, TX |
| Student of Irma Taute | ||
| Priya Radhakrishnan, Classical | 16 | Bangalore, India |
| Student of Sandra Oberoi | ||
| Emma Richardson, Opera Aria | 17 | Oshawa, Canada |
| Student of Dr. Robert Loewen | ||
| Katherine Langelier, Opera Aria | 17 | San Francisco, CA |
| Student of Erin Neff | ||
| Lucas Guzman, Classical | 17 | Weston, MA |
| Student of Thomas Oesterling | ||
| Nicole Dostanic, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 17 | Irivine, CA |
| Student of Dubravka Zubovic | ||
| Nicole Dostanic, Opera Aria | 17 | Irivine, CA |
| Student of Dubravka Zubovic | ||
| Rebecca Reavley, Classical | 17 | Singapore |
| Student of Tan Sin Sim | ||
| Category College Students and Professional Singers: | ||
| Rachel Eve Holmes, Opera Aria | 28 | Fitchburg, WI |
| Suhyoung Lee, Opera Aria | 22 | Huntington, NY |
| Student of Peter Castaldi | ||
| Xi wen Li, Opera Aria | 31 | Shenzhen, China |
| Ying Yu, Opera Aria | 27 | Beijing, China |
| Student of Lanqing Lu and Lei Lu | ||
| Amateur Category: | ||
| Kristina Petric, Classical | 20 | Belgrade, Serbia |
| Student of Ana Lackovic | ||
| Maricel Obieta, Classical | Quezon City, Philippines | |
| Second Place Winners: | ||
| Young Singers Category, Age 6 to 10: | ||
| Beeland Anderson Parker Rogers, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 7 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Beeland Anderson Parker Rogers, Folk/Traditional | 7 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Ria Chhabra, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 6 | Singapore |
| Student of Roderick Teh | ||
| Zebedee Cher, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 7 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Zebedee Cher, Folk/Traditional | 7 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Tiara Abraham, Classical | 9 | Sacramento, CA |
| Student of Kate Murphy and Daniel Paulson | ||
| Alyssa Marella, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 10 | North Tonawanda , NY |
| Student of Zach Carr | ||
| Bridgette Oh, Classical | 10 | Arroyo Grande, CA |
| Student of Deanna Delore | ||
| Elise Sun, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 10 | Singapore |
| Student of Grace Ng and Elle-May Patterson | ||
| Elodie Orkin, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 10 | Los Angeles, CA |
| Student of Adrianna Mcphee | ||
| Katherine Silverman, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 10 | Tarzana, CA |
| Student of Evelyn Hauls | ||
| Lauren Galin, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 10 | Wellington, FL |
| Student of Adriana Zabala | ||
| Michael Robinson, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 10 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Margaret Parrino, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 10 | Richmond, VA |
| Student of Shelby Milgram | ||
| Michael Robinson, Classical | 10 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Junior Category, Age 11 to 14: | ||
| Arjun Chhabra, Classical | 11 | Singapore |
| Student of Roderick Teh | ||
| Hadley Magaziner, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 11 | Manahawkin, NJ |
| Student of Christina Skleros | ||
| Laurelle Oh Qi Wen, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 11 | Singapore |
| Student of Shelly Chong Choy Har | ||
| Mun Hoi Fan, Classical | 11 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Mun Hoi Fan, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 11 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Shavinne Tsai Yi Ling, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 11 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Shavinne Tsai Yi Ling, Classical | 11 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Zoe Martinez, Classical | 11 | North Tustin, CA |
| Student of Kathleen Martin | ||
| Brooke Besikof, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 12 | Newport Beach , CA |
| Student of Darcie Roberts Magino | ||
| Daleyna Dunlap, Classical | 12 | Rolling Hills, CA |
| Student of Susan Wong | ||
| Hilton Augusta Parker Rogers, Folk/Traditional | 12 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Hilton Augusta Parker Rogers, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 12 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Mia Drazin, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 12 | Hampstead, Canada |
| Student of Simone Pitot | ||
| Patheerapat Sireevaranunt, Classical | 12 | Bangkok, Thailand |
| Student of Lullalit Supatravanij | ||
| Prasheela Ramesh, Classical | 12 | Singapore |
| Student of Shelly Chong Choy Har | ||
| Prasheela Ramesh, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 12 | Singapore |
| Student of Shelly Chong Choy Har | ||
| Yu Qi Melanie Wan, Classical | 12 | Singapore |
| Student of Roderick Teh | ||
| Amelia Sewing, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 13 | Perry, KS |
| Student of Etta Fung | ||
| Ananya Gurumurthy, Classical | 13 | Scarsdale, NY |
| Student of Anna Veleva | ||
| Ewan MacRae, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 13 | Singapore |
| Student of Shelly Chong Choy Har | ||
| Ewan MacRae, Classical | 13 | Singapore |
| Student of Shelly Chong Choy Har | ||
| Kimi Sturgeon, Folk/Traditional | 13 | Gloucester, MA |
| Student of Victoria Avetisyan | ||
| Intermediate Category, Age 15 to 17: | ||
| Celyna Hui Wen Peck, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Shelly Chong Choy Har and Kuo Po | ||
| Celyna Hui Wen Peck, Classical | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Shelly Chong Choy Har and Kuo Po | ||
| Kai Wallace Nishihara Low, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Matija Tomas, Opera Aria | 15 | Glen Allen, VA |
| Student of Anne O’Byrne | ||
| Sarah Anais Buxton-Leow, Classical | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Shelly Chong Choy Har | ||
| Sarah Anais Buxton-Leow, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Shelly Chong Choy Har | ||
| Shalynn Tsai Qi Yun Shalynn, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Siwon Kim, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Stephanie Tan, Classical | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Corinna Chang and Elena Ng | ||
| Andrew Liang, Classical | 16 | Alpharetta, GA |
| Student of Bradley Howard and Rhonda Fossum | ||
| Anna Chowaniec, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 16 | Legnickie Pole , Poland |
| Student of Anna Czerska | ||
| Asha Iyer, Opera Aria | 16 | Glen Allen, VA |
| Student of Anne O’Byrne | ||
| Morgan Misk, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 16 | Old Westbury, NY |
| Student of Mason G. Senft and Angela Luftig | ||
| Neha Gupta, Classical | 16 | Bethesda, MD |
| Joshua Dinetz, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 17 | Roslyn Heights, NY |
| Student of Mason G. Senft and Angela Luftig | ||
| Shanisse Tsai, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 17 | Singapore |
| Student of Khor Ai Ming | ||
| Category College Students and Professional Singers: | ||
| Catherine Huang, Classical | 24 | Irvine, CA |
| Student of Julian Wu | ||
| Jiayi Xu, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 26 | Beijing, China |
| Student of Dr. Jue Shen | ||
| Tamara Podolskaya, Classical | 31 | Moscow, Russia |
| Amateur Category: | ||
| Victor Navarro, Classical | 28 | Madrid, Spain |
| Natalya Kudryavtseva, Classical | 32 | Moscow, Russia |
| James Wallard, Broadway/Musical Theatre/Jazz | 38 | Los Angeles, CA |
Third Place and Honorable Mention Winners will be notified of their standing via email.
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WINNERS!