21 october 2023 Brilliant Coda Of the "Stoyan Popov" Competition With The Gala

This evening /October 21/, the II NATIONAL COMPETITION FOR OPERA SINGERS "STOYAN POPOV" with international participation was set in the hall of the Burgas State Opera.
A wonderful concert, under the "iron" baton of maestro Grigor Palikarov and the accompaniment of the orchestra of the Burgas Opera, was presented by the laureates of the Second National Competition for young opera singers with international participation in the name of the World Baritone Stoyan Popov - exactly on the day when the Maestro would have turned 90 years. Maestro Stoyan Popov is undoubtedly among the constellations of bright personalities who continue their spiritual path, paving new tracks for the development of his followers.

At the beginning of the festive concert, those present in the hall of the Burgas Opera had the privilege of watching a recording on the video wall of Stoyan Popov's impressive performance of the famous "Te Deum" from the opera "Tosca" by Giacomo Puccini. The recording is from the same stage that today hosted the event in his honor and is on the occasion of the great Bulgarian singer's 70th birthday, with the performance under the baton of Mihail Angelov.
An interesting fact was also noticed - Vanya Zlateva was the concertmaster again, as well as at today's gala concert - already in memory of maestro Stoyan Popov.
The competition for young opera singers was held again this year with the assistance of the Municipality of Burgas. The event was honored by Deputy Mayor Diana Savateva, who also presented some of the prizes to the laureates and emphasized that it is a good attestation for the Burgas Opera and for the city that two prestigious international competitions - the ballet "Sara" - were held in the building of the cultural institute. Nora Prima" and the opera "Stoyan Popov".
The Director of the State Opera - Burgas - Assoc. Dr. Alexander Tekeliev did not hide his joy at the fact that the level of participants in the competition supports his belief that people need art and the interest in it on the part of young performers is alive. Prof. Tekeliev, who was a student of the famous Stoyan Popov, emphasized that he is happy with the realization of a long-standing dream - the competition named after the Maestro, even more so - the forum continues over time and will establish itself as one of the prestigious vocal competitions for young opera singers. Initially, the idea was to hold the contest every two years, but due to the fact that this year we are celebrating the 90th anniversary of Stoyan Popov's birth, a contest was held this year, 2023. We will expect the next edition in 2025.

For his part, the chairman of the jury - maestro Kaludi Kaludov, congratulated all the laureates for their wonderful performance at the competition and shared his memories on world stages with Stoyan Popov.
Each of the prize winners of the "Stoyan Popov" competition showed class, stable preparation, simultaneous and explainable excitement, and stage composure - they fully defended the high recognition awarded to them by the jury. A real aesthetic pleasure for those present at the gala concert was each of the stage appearances of the young performers, who were exceptional in their performance. The audience appreciated it and rewarded them with shouts of "Bravo!" and a standing ovation.
As a festive addition, during the concert, there was a colorful greeting on stage from the Municipality of Burgas - a basket of flowers, and on behalf of the management of the Burgas Opera, each of the laureates was presented with a bouquet of flowers and a diploma / in addition to the cash prizes provided for in the regulations and the future participation in the production of the State Opera - Burgas/.

The winners of the competition were selected by an authoritative jury, consisting of the renowned opera singer of world fame Kaludi Kaludov - chairman, and members: Prof. Niko Isakov, Prof. Dr. Toni Shekerdzhieva-Novak - Rector of AMTI "Prof. Asen Diamandiev", distinguished opera and chamber singer, vocal pedagogue; Prof. Dr. Grigor Palikarov - conductor, chief artistic director of the Symphony Orchestra - Pazardzhik; Ognyan Draganov - director of the State Opera - Burgas, and Associate Professor Alexander Tekeliev - director of the Burgas Opera.

The program of the gala concert included arias from world opera literature: "Fidelio" Overture by Ludwig van Beethoven, Leila's Aria from the opera "Pearl Hunters" by Georges Bizet - performed by Stephanie Krasteva, Onegin's Aria from the opera "Eugene Onegin" by P. I. Tchaikovsky - performed by, Escamilio's Aria ("Couples of the Toreador") from "Carmen" by Georges Bizet - performed by Mindaugas Mishkinis /Lithuania/, Lisa's Aria from "The Queen of Spades" by P. I. Tchaikovsky - performed by Yu Ting /China/, Werther's aria from the opera of the same name by Jules Massenet - performed by He Qingfan /China/, Philip's aria from the opera "Don Carlos" by Giuseppe Verdi - performed by Bartosz Kęskowski /Poland/, and " Nazdravitsa" from "La Traviata" by Giuseppe Verdi - as a brilliant finale of the holiday concert, in which the world tenor Kaludi Kaludov, chairman of the jury of the "Stoyan Popov" competition, took part.
The host of the festive concert was the bass and artistic secretary of the Opera Delyan Slavov.