For Singers

1.

Applicants must be between 20 and 30 years of age for any position.

2.

Candidates to apply are singers born between August 1, 1994 to August 1, 2004.

3.

For the first stage of pre-selection it is necessary to send 1 video of good visual and acoustic quality, recorded between January 1 and July 1, 2024, plus a photograph of your face and your c.v. through the Resonance platform.

4.

Registering for the virtual preselection round is free of charge.

5.

Singers selected for an in-person audition in a MetOpera Laffont Competition District will be notified on September 1, 2024.

6.

The next step for the selected singers is to choose the District where they want to audition. (https://www.metopera.org/about/auditions/competition/districts-and-regions/) and pay the District registration fee, $30USD. The only district in Mexico, the Mexico District, is located in San Miguel de Allende.

VERY IMPORTANT IF YOU WANT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE MEXICO DISTRICT:
In order to deliver the prizes to its winners, the District of Mexico needs them to have the following documentation ready and in order: https://www.sanmiguelmetoperatrust.org/documentos. In the event that there is an error in a document, it must be corrected before the Competition. Without these documents we will not be able to deliver your prize, without exceptions.
Auditioning and winning in the Mexico District will offer you the benefit of 3 days of coaching and support at UDLA/P to prepare you for the next round in the US and also a week of intensive rehearsals and learning to participate in the presentation of a winners concert in San Miguel de Allende.

Benefits of participating in the Laffont Competition

Feedback from international opera experts:

At the end of the day of the Competition, the singers will receive feedback on their participation from the three judges that make up the jury in each of the stages of the contest, who are chosen from a select list of professionals in the opera world.

Assess your vocal development:

An important part of the singer’s growth in her study and professionalization stage is having the opportunity to measure her abilities and skills by participating in auditions, which would allow the contestant to continue refining her skills for future opportunities.

Professional Connections:

The Laffont Competition judges are part of an extensive network of opera industry professionals. Many of them are in a position to recommend them for a job, higher studies or joining Opera Studies. Auditions can open doors for the future.

Adding to the above, participating and being a winner of the Mexico district has the additional benefits of the Rocky Mountain Prelude coaching program and participation in the Winners Concert:

Prelude to the Rocky Mountains

The winners of the Mexico District will have intensive training sessions for the next stage of the Contest at the hands of national and international Masters of great experience, which include individual sessions of vocal technique, musical coaching and stage coaching. It should be noted that the Mexico District is unique in offering this type of training prior to the regional round. At the end of the program, the singers will present a concert to show their results and learning, and will have one more round of feedback from the Masters.

Winners Concert:

In addition to the training during the Prelude to New Orleans, the singers will also have a week of preparation for the staging of a staged concert where the faculties and abilities of the winners of the Mexico District will shine. This experience has been described by the participants as a watershed in their growth as artists, as well as generating visibility and projection of young talents in the operatic world. In turn, it is an important event that allows us to repay the support received from our sponsors, whose generosity makes it possible to hold the contest in Mexico.

Are you ready?

Guidelines for deciding if you are ready to participate

The question that many young singers ask themselves is whether they are ready for an international competition. The profile of applicants for the Laffont Competition is:

• Young singers beginning their professional stage and/or
• Advanced singing students interested in developing an international career, gaining experience in international auditions, as well as obtaining feedback from prestigious international judges.

The singers must have developed an advanced artistic and vocal level. The judges will evaluate the following:

• Voice quality

• Musicality

• Interpretation: Language skills and artistic ability.

• Potential for an international career

 

FROM OUR SINGERS:

Thank you, San Miguel MetOpera Trust, for giving me wings and letting me dream.

Efrain Corralejo, 2018 & 2021 Competition winner; artist in residence 2022-24 with the Minnesota Opera; Santa Fe Opera Apprentice, summer 2023

 

FROM OUR SINGERS:

Thank you for believing in me and encouraging me.  My wish for all of my Mexican singer colleagues is that they be supported as well as I have  been.  I will always feel your support with me.  I left San Miguel for Chicago with excitement, with fear sometimes, but always sure that a lot of the tools for even being able to be in the Ryan Opera Center of the Lyric Opera of Chicago came from those days;  from those classes, those rehearsals, those concerts and coachings.  I will always be grateful and will always think of San Miguel as one of my hometowns.

 Alejandro Luevanos, 2020 & 2021 Competition winner; Ryan Opera Center/Chicago Lyric Opera Young artist in residence, 2022-24

FROM OUR SINGERS:

I want you to know how very grateful I am for the entire week of rehearsals and performances [for the 2023 Winners’ Concert, March, 2023].  I was a singer when I arrived; now I am an artist.  Thank you, Ragnar Conde for the new challenges, for showing me an amazing path to better interpretation, for being the light at the end of the tunnel in my evolution as an artist.  Thank you, Andres Sarre, for your passion, your talent, your love of music, for turning us into total performers; you are incredible.  Thank you, Joan Mitchell, for the work you do make all of this possible, for your love of opera and your love of Mexican singers.

Soprano Dulce Guadarrama, 2022 Mexico District Competition winner & co-star of La Voix humaine, our 2023 Winners’ Concert.

FROM OUR SINGERS:

I want to thank all who are involved in the Mexico District of the Laffont Competition for making these auditions possible.   It does not matter if you pass to the next round.  Having yourself heard and seen by an international panel of judges is a BIG step, and having their feedback is what I personally have won by doing these auditions.  Thank you, Joan, for the effort, support, and motivation you give us to carry on!

Soprano Jacinta Barbachano, 2019 & 2020 Mexico District Competition winner

FROM OUR SINGERS:

Thank you, San Miguel MetOpera Trust, for giving me wings and letting me dream.

Efrain Corralejo, 2018 & 2021 Competition winner; artist in residence 2022-24 with the Minnesota Opera; Santa Fe Opera Apprentice, summer 2023

FROM OUR SINGERS:

Thank you for believing in me and encouraging me.  My wish for all of my Mexican singer colleagues is that they be supported as well as I have  been.  I will always feel your support with me.  I left San Miguel for Chicago with excitement, with fear sometimes, but always sure that a lot of the tools for even being able to be in the Ryan Opera Center of the Lyric Opera of Chicago came from those days;  from those classes, those rehearsals, those concerts and coachings.  I will always be grateful and will always think of San Miguel as one of my hometowns.

 Alejandro Luevanos, 2020 & 2021 Competition winner; Ryan Opera Center/Chicago Lyric Opera Young artist in residence, 2022-24

FROM OUR SINGERS:

I want you to know how very grateful I am for the entire week of rehearsals and performances [for the 2023 Winners’ Concert, March, 2023].  I was a singer when I arrived; now I am an artist.  Thank you, Ragnar Conde for the new challenges, for showing me an amazing path to better interpretation, for being the light at the end of the tunnel in my evolution as an artist.  Thank you, Andres Sarre, for your passion, your talent, your love of music, for turning us into total performers; you are incredible.  Thank you, Joan Mitchell, for the work you do make all of this possible, for your love of opera and your love of Mexican singers.

Soprano Dulce Guadarrama, 2022 Mexico District Competition winner & co-star of La Voix humaine, our 2023 Winners’ Concert.

FROM OUR SINGERS:

I want to thank all who are involved in the Mexico District of the Laffont Competition for making these auditions possible.   It does not matter if you pass to the next round.  Having yourself heard and seen by an international panel of judges is a BIG step, and having their feedback is what I personally have won by doing these auditions.  Thank you, Joan, for the effort, support, and motivation you give us to carry on!

Soprano Jacinta Barbachano, 2019 & 2020 Mexico District Competition winner