The Australian Singing Competition (ASC) evolved from the Marianne Mathy Scholarship, established in 1982 through a bequest made in the will of Marianne Mathy-Frisdane, a coloratura soprano opera singer and distinguished teacher of opera and classical singing. __TOC__ The ASC rules and repertoire requirements are designed for young opera and classical singers, under 26 years of age. The competition is now recognised as one of the longest-running events of its kind, offering a range of scholarships, prizes, career and network opportunities, which also make the competition one of the richest in terms of financial and career opportunities available to recipients. Since 1982 the premier award of the competition has been the Marianne Mathy Scholarship, known by its participants and within its industry as "The Mathy".
Since 1998 the final concert of the competition has taken place in various capital cities around Australia, featuring many prominent conductors and some of Australia's leading orchestras.
The competition has had the patronage of several Governors-General of Australia, most recently David Hurley. In 2014 the ASC formally welcomed Haruhisa Handa as patron of the renamed IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition in recognition of his ongoing sponsorship and support, both personally and as chairman of the International Foundation for Arts and Culture (IFAC).
The winner of the Opera Awards (Australia) is acknowledged and invited to perform as a guest artist at the finals concert of the IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition.
The competition is widely regarded as the most prestigious opera competition in the Australasian region and is recognised within the opera community in Australia and internationally. Many finalists have successfully established their careers, with several going on to become influential artists both in Australia and abroad.
Marianne Mathy Scholarship winners ("The Mathy")
Year Scholarship winners Category National adjudicator 1982 Nicola Waite soprano Stefan Haag 1983 Jeffrey Black baritone Stefan Haag 1984 Miriam Gormleysoprano Nance Grant 1985 David Lemke baritone Douglas Craig 1986 Fiona Janes soprano Jenifer Eddy 1987 Paul Whelan bass Elizabeth Fretwell 1988 Joanna Cole soprano Ronald Maconaghie / Margreta Elkins 1989 Clare Gormley soprano Margreta Elkins 1990 Christina Wilson mezzo-soprano Joseph Ward 1991 Stuart Skelton tenor Loh Siew-Tuan 1992 Jason Barry-Smith baritone Joseph Ward 1993 Amelia Farrugia soprano Myer Fredman 1994 David Quah tenor Joseph Ward 1995 Natalie Christie soprano Sharolyn Kimmorley 1996 Rebecca Nash soprano Patricia Price 1997 Alexandra Sherman soprano Eilene Hannan 1998 Goknur Shanal soprano Geoffrey Chard 1999 Janette Zilioli soprano Patricia Price 2000 Rachelle Durkin soprano Joseph Ward 2001 Rejielle Paulo soprano Robert Gard 2002 Katharine Tier mezzo-soprano Gregory Yurisich 2003 Jessica Pratt soprano Marilyn Richardson 2004 Emma Pearson soprano Glenys Fowles 2005 Anita Watson soprano Glenn Winslade 2006 Duncan Rock baritone Fiona Janes 2007 Emily Blanch soprano Anson Austin 2008 Sitiveni Talei baritone Deborah Riedel 2009 Sam Roberts-Smith baritone Donald Shanks 2010 Rachel Bate"Australian Voices mourn Joan's final song", The Australian, 15 October 2010"What a week for Rachel", University of Sydney, October 2010] soprano Lisa Gasteen 2011 Emma Moore soprano Bernadette Cullen 2012 Anna Dowsley mezzo-soprano Jeffrey Black 2013 Jade Moffat soprano Emma Matthews 2014 Isabella Moore soprano Jeffrey Black 2015 Maximilian Riebl countertenor Linnhe Robertson 2016 Nicholas Tolput"Nicholas Tolputt Wins the IFAC Australian Singing Competition", Limelight, 22 August 2016 countertenor Lyndon Terracini 2017Filipe Manu tenor Catrin Johnsson 2018Zoe Drummond"Soprano Zoe Drummond Wins the Mathy", Limelight, 10 September 2018 soprano Linnhe Robertson 2019Manase Latu"Manase Latu Wins the Mathy", Limelight, 20 September 2019 tenorNoëmi Nadelmann 2020 The regular competition was replaced for the year 2020 by ASC@Home in which singers submitted entries that had been recorded at home. The judges selected winners in four categories: classical and opera, musical theatre, contemporary (rock and pop), and jazz. Winners received a prize of US$1000."ASC@Home", Australian Singing Competition2021 not held"News and Key Dates for the 2022 IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition", 27 August 20212022Jeremy Boulton"Jeremy Boulton Wins the 2022 IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition", Limelight, 4 October 2022 baritone Graham Pushee 2023 Emmanuel Fonoti-Fumaono (New Zealand)"Australian Singing Competition 2023: University of Waikato opera student crowned winner" by Danielle Zollickhofer, 11 September 2023, Waikato Herald tenor Patrick Togher 2024 Eden Shifroni"Australian Soprano Eden Shifroni Wins Prestigious Melba Opera Trust Award, Earning Two Years of Support at the Royal College of Music", 28 January 2025, opera-world.net soprano Natalie Aroyan 2025 Sidra Nissen mezzo-soprano Jeffrey Black
The IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition is managed by Music & Opera Singers Trust Limited (MOST).
References
External links
"Music Australia – The Australian Singing Competition", National Library of Australia
"Opera Awards (Australia)" "Music & Opera Singers Trust (MOST)"