The Zagreb Academy of Music’s inaugural Milka Trnina International Singing Competition will take place June 15-19 in Zagreb.

The competition is established in honor of Croatian opera artist Milka Trnina. Its aim is to discover and support exceptional young vocal talents, while also providing professional and educational guidance for the development of vocal artistry and preparation for a professional career.

With more than 150 applications from 33 countries worldwide, over 80 were selected to participate. These singers will perform for the jury made up of bass-baritone Giorgio Surian, mezzo-soprano Prof. Martina Gojčeta Silić, soprano Iva Hraste Sočo, Alex Grigorev, Mattia Campetti, Christian Carlstedt, and Pål Christian Moe.

The final evening of the competition will take place at the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb. The finalists will perform accompanied by the Orchestra of the Croatian National Theatre under the baton of Jan Chalupecký. The total prize fund exceeds EUR 15,000 and includes additional awards and professional opportunities, including performances, engagements, and auditions organized in collaboration with leading cultural institutions and festivals.

“This is not merely a matter of numbers, but evidence of a vibrant artistic space in which different schools, languages, and artistic sensibilities meet around a common form of expression — the human voice,” says the Competition’s Artistic Director, Martina Zadro in a press release.

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