Rules

GENERAL INFORMATION

1. The Kosciuszko Foundation Marcella Sembrich International Voice Competition was established in 1968 to encourage young singers to study the repertoire of Polish composers and to honor Polish soprano, one of the greatest artists of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

2. The 2024 edition of the Competition will be held on October 12-13, 2024 at the Kosciuszko Foundation's House at 15 E 65th Street, New York, NY 10065

3. The Competition is open to singers of all voice types and all nationalities who, at the time of the Competition, are 20-32 years old

4. The Competition will consist of four rounds:

1. PRE-SELECTION ROUND

Based on the submitted video recording - the deadline was extended to August 15, 2024

2. FIRST ROUND

3. SEMIFINALS

4. FINALS

The first, round, Semifinals and finals will take place at the Kosciuszko Foundation's concert hall.

The final round is open to the public.

PRIZES AND AWARDS

Prizes:

First Prize: $8,000
Second Prize: $5,000
Third Prize: $3,000
A Prize of $2,500 to be awarded for artistic vitality, funded by Ms. Ann C. Zagoreos in honor of Halina Rodzinska.
A Prize of $1,000 for the youngest finalist funded by Drs. Henry and Francine Sikorski
A Prize of $1,000 for the best performance of a Polish work by a foreign entrant funded by Drs. Francine and Henry Sikorski
A solo recital during the Sembrich's Summer Festival
Admission and airfare to the 12th International Stanislaw Moniuszko Vocal Competition organized by the Polish National Opera in June 2025
A future engagement with the Connecticut Lyric Opera
A master class with Tomasz Konieczny, bass-baritone
A stage performance during the Gerda Lissner Foundation Winners Concert to be held at Zankel Hall on April 30, 2025

The Jury, in total independence, will decide on the winner of each of the offered Special Awards respectively (except for the entry into the Stanislaw Moniuszko Competition, which automatically will be awarded to the Competition First Prize winner). The Jury’s selection process is based upon various criteria such as voice quality, maturity of singing, musicality interpretation, or language diction. All Prizes and Special Awards are awarded with the final and indisputable decision of the Jury.

PROGRAM

PRE-SELECTION ROUND

A video recording of two opera arias of candidate's choice. Recording may not exceed fifteen (15) minutes and must match the following criteria:

One opera aria from the 18th century, from Baroque to Mozart
One opera aria from a different period

Works presented in the recording may be included in the program of the Competition.

FIRST ROUND

One opera aria from the 18th century, from Baroque to Mozart
One aria from a different period (can be same as in pre-selection round)
One art song from the 19th-century repertoire in the original language

SEMIFINALS

One opera aria from the 19th century in the original language, with no transposition
One Polish art song or opera aria (in the original language, does not need to be Polish) chosen from the following composers: T. Baird, G. Bacewicz, F. Chopin, H. Czyż, W. Friemann, J. Gablenz, J. K. Gall, H. M. Górecki, M. Karłowicz, S. Kisielewski, S. Laks, J. Lefeld, W. Lutosławski, P. Łukaszewski, F. Maklakiewicz, J. Maklakiewicz, T. Maklakiewicz, F. Mirecki, S. Moniuszko, S. Niewiadomski, Z. Noskowski, M. Nowak, F. Nowowiejski, I. J. Paderewski, E. Pałłasz, K. Penderecki, P. Perkowski, L. Różycki, M. Sołtys, T. Szeligowski, K. Szymanowski, A. Tansman, R. Twardowski, M. Weinberg, W. Żeleński

FINALS

One opera aria or one art song selected by the jury from the previous rounds
One opera aria of the candidate's choice, not previously presented

SCHEDULE

Application deadline: August 15, 2024 (Admission to the Semifinals will be notified by August 30)
FIRST ROUND - Saturday, October 12
SEMIFINALS - Sunday, October 13, 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
FINALS - Sunday, October 13, 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM

The official presentation of the winners will be held on October 13 at the Kosciuszko Foundation.

Please read all the rules below before submitting this application.

All the repertoire must be performed from memory.
The order of the participants’ performances in each Round will be determined by the Competition Jury.
For organization and program-related reasons, the Artistic Director will have the right to change the sequence of a day’s performances. In the event of a contestant’s illness, confirmed by the medical service, the contestant may be permitted to perform outside the established sequence at the end of the current stage.
The Kosciuszko Foundation will provide an accompanist for all contestants. They, however, are also allowed to bring their own pianist.
The Prizes will be awarded with the final and indisputable decision of the Jury. The Jury has the right not to grant a prize.
The Prizes are subject to USA IRS income tax reporting rules. (USA citizen/resident must provide a valid Social Security Number on a fully executed and signed IRS W9 form).
The Foundation will not assist competition participants to obtain USA visas. At the interested party’s request, the competition office will provide a note confirming his/her acceptance to the competition and the abovementioned benefits.
The Foundation takes no responsibility or liability for the Participants’ travel, accommodation, food, medical insurance, and any other expenses incurred with the participation in the competition. Competition participants should have health insurance coverage for the duration of their stay in the USA to participate in the competition.
The First Prize winner will perform, if requested, a recital without remuneration for the benefit of the Foundation at a mutually agreed date.
Each Competition participant will: a) permit the Foundation to make audio and visual recordings of performances during the competition and the winners’ concerts and transfer to the Foundation all economic rights to these performances; b) permit the Foundation to make audio and visual recordings of images, statements, and interviews given during the competition or relating to the competition; c) transfer to the Foundation all property rights to these statements and interviews, and permit the Foundation to disseminate his/her image recorded in connection with his/her participation in the competition.
The contestants will be required to sign a release waiving any rights to recorded material that is archived, published, broadcasted, or used for non-profit and or for promotional and educational purposes.
The Foundation reserves the right to make any changes to the overall competition structure as it sees fit, including changing the number and dates of the competition stages and editing rules and regulations.
Registration to the competition implies the acceptance of the provisions included in the Rules & Regulations, as well as authorization to use the contestant’s personal data for promotions.
Application fee is $50