The Kathleen Ferrier Award is a prestigious contest for

Opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

singers held each April in

London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

. The first competition was held in 1956. According to the ''

Telegraph Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...

'', the competition has a record of "spotting winners". Originally conceived to offer a prize equivalent to a year's tuition plus support, the competition now offers a first prize of £10,000, a second prize of £5,000 and a Song Prize of £2,500. The competition is open to singers of any nationality who have completed at least one year of study at a UK conservatoire or with a recognised vocal coach in the UK. They must be under 29 years of age at the time of the final audition. There is also an MBF Accompanist's prize, provided in 2005 by Arthur & Gwyneth Harrison. Pianists competing for the accompanist's award must also be under 29. The first recipient of the award was British-born Barbara Anne Robinson. The Kathleen Ferrier Memorial Scholarship Fund, which funds the award, was founded in 1953 in memory of

Kathleen Ferrier Kathleen Mary Ferrier, CBE (22 April 19128 October 1953) was an English contralto singer who achieved an international reputation as a stage, concert and recording artist, with a repertoire extending from folksong and popular ballads to the c ...

following her untimely death from cancer at the age of 41. Ferrier had gained a large following despite having performed for only 12 years as a professional singer, and had a number of influential champions including conductors Sir

John Barbirolli Sir John Barbirolli ( Giovanni Battista Barbirolli; 2 December 189929 July 1970) was a British conductor and cellist. He is remembered above all as conductor of the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester, which he helped save from dissolution in 194 ...

Bruno Walter Bruno Walter (born Bruno Schlesinger, September 15, 1876February 17, 1962) was a German-born conductor, pianist and composer. Born in Berlin, he escaped Nazi Germany in 1933, was naturalised as a French citizen in 1938, and settled in the U ...

and Sir

Malcolm Sargent Sir Harold Malcolm Watts Sargent (29 April 1895 – 3 October 1967) was an English conductor, organist and composer widely regarded as Britain's leading conductor of choral works. The musical ensembles with which he was associated include ...

. The initial appeal for a memorial fund was launched by Sir

, Roy Henderson,

Gerald Moore Gerald Moore CBE (30 July 1899 – 13 March 1987) was an English classical pianist best known for his career as a collaborative pianist for many distinguished musicians. Among those with whom he was closely associated were Dietrich Fischer-Di ...

, Sir

and Hamish Hamilton and seeded with proceeds from the book ''Kathleen Ferrier – a Memoir'' assembled by friends and colleagues. , the Patrons were:

References

External links

* {{Official website Opera competitions