After a ten-year pause, this autumn the Jāzeps Vītols International Vocal Competition will once again take place in Riga, the capital city of Latvia. The first competition was organized by the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music (JVLMA) 20 years ago – since then the event has generated a substantial artistic legacy and in 2025 it will celebrate its fifth edition.
The competition jury will be chaired by the exceptional Latvian opera singer Marina Rebeka. She will adjudicate the young talents in the Semi-Final Round and Final Round together with the Head of the Vocal Department of the JVLMA Aira Rūrāne, the Casting Director of the Latvian National Opera and Ballet (LNOB) Ilze Sprancmane, the Artistic Director of the Halle Opera House Axel Kohler, and the Artistic Director of Opéra national du Capitole de Toulouse Christophe Ghristi.
The Jāzeps Vītols 5th International Vocal Competition will take place from October 8 to October 13, climaxing in the Final Round on the stage of the Latvian National Opera and Ballet, where the young and aspiring contestants will have the opportunity to collaborate with the Latvian Festival Orchestra under the baton of Kaspars Ādamsons. The Semi-Final Round will take place at the JVLMA and the Preliminary Round – at the Jāzeps Mediņš Riga 1st Music School.
In the three rounds of the competition the participants will demonstrate their artistic skills in a wide range of repertoire – from baroque opera to romantic and contemporary music, from opera arias to chamber music, also devoting attention to a song from their own country of origin and to the valuable vocal oeuvre of Jāzeps Vītols.
The competition cordially invites applications from female singers born after October 14, 1993 and male singers born after October 14, 1990. The applications will be accepted until August 1, 2025. Detailed information on the regulations and schedule is available at the webpage of the competition - www.vitolakonkurss.lv.