RMP Artistic Director Andrew Wailes has announced the finalists for the 2025 RMP Aria Competition as chosen by the judges:

2025 RMP Aria Results:

• WINNER, 2025 RMP ARIA:
  Amanda Hargreaves, soprano, 26, Heatherton, VIC (b. Melbourne, VIC)

RUNNER UP & PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD:

• Lily Flynn lyric coloratura soprano, 23, Fitzroy North VIC (b. Sydney, NSW)

THIRD PRIZE:

• James Young,  bass-baritone, 32, Greensborough VIC  (b. Melbourne, VIC)

CONDUCTOR’S ENCOURAGEMENT AWARD RECIPIENT:

• Eliza Bennetts O’Connor, soprano, 25, Yarraville VIC (b. Melbourne, VIC)

FINALISTS

• Belinda Dalton,  soprano, 35, Flemington, VIC (b. Truro, UK)
• Stephen Coutts, tenor, 33, Brighton East VIC  (b. Geelong, VIC)
• Billie Tumarkin*, lyric soprano, 28,  Elsternwick VIC (b. Melbourne, VIC)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JUDGES

Joining RMP Artistic Director and Chief Conductor Mr Andrew Wailes as judges on this year’s panel are Ms Sally-Anne Russell (leading Australian oratorio soloist, operatic mezzo-soprano and singing mentor), Mr Andrew Bainbridge (RMP Principal Organist; Director of the National Boys Choir of Australia; former continuo and organ soloist with Melbourne and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras; and organist of both St Mary’s and St David’s Cathedral’s Hobart) and our official accompanist, Mr Peter de Jager (Internationally acclaimed pianist, RMP Associate Accompanist, 2014 Freedman Classical Fellow).  

We encourage you to join us at the 19th RMP Aria Final on Saturday the 16th August at The Edge, Federation Square at 7pm. The evening will also feature a full-scale performance of Dan Forrest’s beautiful  Requiem for the Living. Under the direction of conductor Andrew Wailes, it will be performed by the RMP Oratorio Festival Choir (over 160 voices) and RMP Chamber Orchestra, as well as outstanding soloists and Andrew Bainbridge (organ).

EXTRA AUDIENCE TICKETS can be booked through the RMP website www.rmp.org.au or from the MRC Box Office.

For further information, please visit the RMP Website: www.rmp.org.au

Hear some of the nation’s finest young singers battle it out in the final of Australia’s most prestigious oratorio soloists award, accompanied on piano, as well as a spectacular orchestral performance of Dan Forrest’s stunning “Requiem for the Living” – a beautiful and uplifting work, which has been hailed as “… a twenty-first century masterpiece”. 

Requiem for the Living is a major choral symphonic composition in five movements by young American composer Dan Forrest, who is quickly emerging as one of that country’s most popular and important choral composers. Completed in 2013, it is a non-conventional and extended setting of the Requiem Mass, scored for boy soprano, soprano, choir and orchestra, and organ. The Latin text that Forrest set combines sections from the Requiem with biblical texts from Ecclesiastes and the Book of Job.

About Dan Forrest’s “REQUIEM FOR THE LIVING” “… a twenty-first century masterpiece”

A Requiem, at its core, is a prayer for rest-traditionally, for the deceased. The five movements of Dan Forrest’s Requiem for the Living, (2013), however, form a narrative just as much for the living, and their own struggle with pain and sorrow, as for those already departed. The opening movement sets the traditional Introit and Kyrie texts- pleas for rest and mercy- using ever-increasing elaborations on a simple three-note descending motive. The second movement, instead of the traditional Dies Irae found in the traditional Catholic Mass for the Dead, sets Scriptural texts that dramatically speak of the turmoil and sorrow which face humanity, while yet invoking musical and textual allusions to the Dies Irae. According to the composer, it bitterly portrays the problem of pain that we all wrestle with during our lives, and which causes a crisis of faith for many people. It expounds on the “vanity of vanities, all is vanity” refrain from Ecclesiastes, with no small amount of anger and bitterness and “rage against the machine”. This movement juxtaposes aggressive modern rhythmic gestures with long, floating melodic lines, including quotes of the Kyrie from the first movement. The Agnus Dei is performed next (a departure from the usual liturgical order) as a plea for deliverance and peace for all mankind, not just those departed; the Sanctus, following it, becomes a response to this redemption.The Sanctus offers three different glimpses of the “heavens and earth, full of Thy glory”, all of which develop the same musical motive: an ethereal opening section inspired by images of space from the Hubble Space Telescope, a stirring middle section inspired by images of our own planet as viewed from the International Space Station, and a closing section which brings the listener down to Earth, where cities teem with the energy of humanity.The Lux Aeterna which closes the work, portrays light, peace, and rest – for both the deceased and the living in an uplifting and comforting way. Lux Aeterna (Eternal light), also includes text from the Gospel of Matthew, “Come unto me, all ye that labour” (Matthew 11:28–29) was set before by Handel in Messiah, and features a tenor solo.In most of Forrest’s movements in this work, long melodies often begin mysteriously and softly, and develop towards a brilliant ending. A single singer would not be able to hold their breath for the duration of the long phrases, but by using staggered breathing, a choir can create the impression of endless melodies.Requiem for the Living was commissioned by the Hickory Choral Society (Hickory, NC) in the USA, as part of their ongoing commitment to funding new major works for the choral repertoire. Several other performances quickly followed, including one with full orchestra in Carnegie Hall in New York in January 2014. Since that time, the work has been performed by many of the world’s leading choirs, across the United States, in Europe, throughout Asia and now in Australia.Featuring :

Royal Melbourne Philharmonic Choir

Melbourne University Choral Society, Box Hill Chorale 

with soloists, organ, and orchestra 

conducted by Andrew Wailes 

 

3pm, Matinee performance (concert only)  JOIN THE FACEBOOK EVENT

7pm, Evening Gala (includes concert at the Final of the 2025 RMP Aria)  JOIN THE FACEBOOK EVENT

 

RMP Artistic Director Andrew Wailes has just announced the finalists for the 2023 RMP Aria Competition as chosen by the judges:

2023 RMP Aria Finalists:

• Tom Buckmaster, tenor, 26, Perth WA (b. Melbourne , VIC)
• Talia Garrett-Benson, mezzo-soprano, 25, Brisbane QLD (b. Brisbane, QLD)
• Jack Jordan, tenor, 24, Melbourne VIC (b. Melbourne, VIC)
• Chloe Lankshear soprano, 29, Sydney NSW (b. Canberra ACT)
• Hannah Kostros, mezzo soprano, 29, Melbourne VIC (b. Melbourne, VIC)
• Benjamin Glover, tenor, 29, Melbourne VIC (b. East Melbourne, VIC)
• Alla Yarosh, mezzo soprano, 22, Logan City QLD (b. Tal’ne, Ukraine)

Reserve Finalist: 

• Alex Owens, baritone, 24, Melbourne VIC (b. Camperdown VIC)

Official Accompanist: Stefan Cassomenos

JUDGES

Joining RMP Artistic Director and Chief Conductor Mr Andrew Wailes as judges on this year’s panel are Ms Sally-Anne Russell (leading Australian oratorio soloist, operatic mezzo-soprano and singing mentor), Mr Andrew Bainbridge (RMP Principal Organist; Director of the National Boys Choir of Australia; former continuo and organ soloist with Melbourne and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras; and organist of both St Mary’s and St David’s Cathedral’s Hobart) and our official accompanist, Mr Stefan Cassomenos (Internationally acclaimed pianist, RMP Principal Accompanist, Founder of Plexus Ensemble and Co- Director of Port Fairy Festival).  

We encourage you to join us at the 17th RMP Aria Final on Saturday the 12th at Melbourne Recital Centre at 5pm. The evening will also feature a full-scale performance of Handel’s spectacular Dixit Dominus. Under the direction of conductor Andrew Wailes, it will be performed by the RMP Choir and Orchestra, as well as outstanding soloists Mia Robinson (s), Astrid Girdis (s), Michael Burden (a), Timothy Reynolds (t), Nicholas Dinopoulos (bb), Stefan Cassomenos (hpchd)  and Andrew Bainbridge (chamb organ).

EXTRA AUDIENCE TICKETS can be booked through the RMP website www.rmp.org.au or from the MRC Box Office.

For further information please visit the RMP Website: www.rmp.org.au

Calling all aspiring oratorio soloists:

Widely regarded as Australia’s most prestigious singing award for oratorio singers, the 17th RMP Aria Competition will take place this year on Saturday 12 August 2023 at 5pm.

For the first time, the Final will be performed in Elisabeth Murdoch Hall, Melbourne Recital Centre.

NB: DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES IS 5pm TUESDAY 1st AUGUST 2023.

ENTRIES HAVE NOW CLOSED.

The RMP Aria Competition is open to all classical singers, amateur or professional
Eligible entrants must be:
i) under 35 years at 12 August, 2023
ii) an Australasian citizen or current resident.

Any previous or current member of the RMP choir, or a previously engaged soloist with the RMP is still permitted to enter the competition, provided they meet the two criteria above.

2. Repertoire for finalists
Contestants must perform repertoire strictly from oratorio, and no operatic repertoire or artsong / lieder et
will be permitted, irrespective of period. Any recitative, aria, or excerpt will be permitted from oratorio,
sacred cantata, mass, mass fragment, liturgical work or a musical composition (originally or generally not intended to be staged) whose text is generally religious, serious or philosophical in nature.

Any queries regarding permitted repertoire should be directed to the RMP Artistic Director,
Mr Andrew Wailes via email: musicdirector@rmp.org.au or SMS: 0433 661 971

TO ENTER, PLEASE DOWLOAD THE ENTRY FORM AND RULES HERE

Prizes:

First prize will be a cash award of $2500, plus a professional photographic portrait sitting and package (over $500 value), as well as a paid professional future engagement and recording with the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic and two private coaching sessions with the RMP Chief Conductor and accompanist.

Second prize will be a cash prize of $1000, with an optional offer of a paid professional future engagement with the RMP and two private coaching sessions with the RMP Chief Conductor and accompanist.

Third prize will be a cash prize of $750, with an optional offer of a paid professional future engagement with the RMP.

There will also be a Conductor’s Encouragement Award of $500, awarded by the RMP Artistic Director.

A special People’s Choice Award will take the form of a cash prize of $350. This will be judged by the audience.