NEUE STIMMEN International Singing Competition

Next edition

No future edition is announced on the official pages we could check.

Overview

Gütersloh-based international singing competition held every two years, with video pre-selection, live preliminary auditions at opera houses worldwide, and a final round in Gütersloh with piano and orchestra. Each live round is scored 0-5 on four criteria (technical skill, musical interpretation, vocal quality, artistic presence).

Organiser

Liz Mohn Stiftung (per official site links); prizewinners' press releases by Bertelsmann Stiftung

Instruments

Voice, Opera

Category

Opera & general voice

Jury & prizes

Jury

• 2026 jury chaired by Alexander Neef (Paris Opera). Members: Samuel Gelber, Xenia Hofmann, Boris Ignatov, Sophie Joyce, Sophie de Lint, Bernd Loebe, Christoph Seuferle, Neil Shicoff, Evamaria Wieser

Prizes

• EUR, for women and men separately: 1st 15,000; 2nd 10,000; 3rd 5,000. Special: Audience Prize 1,000; Junior Jury Prize 1,000; Brian Dickie Young Talent Award 5,000; Patagonia Voice Award (performance in Chile, no cash amount)

Past editions

• 2026 — Stadthalle Gütersloh, Germany (21st edition since 1987) source
  1st prize (EUR 15,000 each): Arpi Sinanyan (soprano, Armenia); Jiazhou Wang (baritone, China)
• 2024 — Stadthalle Gütersloh, Germany source
  1st prize (EUR 15,000 each): Magdalena Lucjan (soprano, Poland); Alejandro Baliñas Vieites (bass, Spain)