Russian baritone Ilya Kutyukhin has been announced the winner of the 2019 Paris Opera Competition. He is this year’s recipient of both the “Claude Dassault” First Prize and the Audience Prize.

Facing off against nine other finalists, Kutyukhin performed Yeletsky’s aria “Ya vas lublyu” from “Pique Dame,” and “Ebben, cosi si narra! – Quando le soglie paterne” from Donizetti’s “La Favorite,” a duet with Zlata Khershberg, on the stage of the Théâtre des Champs Elysées. The performances were live streamed to Facebook and YouTube.

Kutyukhin is a native of Pyatigorsk, Russia, and is an ensemble member of the Bolshoi Theatre.

He will be returning to the stage as Yeletsky at the Vilnius City Opera, and will be performing the lead role of Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin” at the Bregenzer Festspiele later this year.

Winning second prize in the competition was Jérôme Boutillier, while third prize went to Melissa Petit.