Two Students Win Indiana District MET National Council Auditions

An Indiana University Jacobs School of Music student and Ball State School of Music student were named winners in the Indiana District competition of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions that this year took place Oct. 30 at IU's Musical Arts Center.

Soprano Hye Jung Lee and tenor Michael Brandenburg will advance to the Central Regional Auditions Nov. 7 in Evanston, Ill.
 Print-Quality Photo

The two winners are soprano Hye Jung Lee, a Jacobs student pursuing an artist's diploma in voice and studying with Costanza Cuccaro, and Michael Brandenburg, tenor, a Ball State master's student of Joseph Levitt. They will advance to the Central Regional Auditions Nov. 7 at the Music Institute of Chicago in Evanston, Ill. The winners of that round will compete in the National Semi-Finals March 6 at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. The Grand Finals Concert will take place at the Met March 13.

Encouragement awards went to Anthony Webb, tenor, a master's student of Robert Harrison, and Joshua Conyers, baritone, a master's student of Timothy Noble.

Total prize money awarded in the Indiana District was $3,000.

Judges for this year's competition were Gayletha Nichols, executive director of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions; Dorothy Randall, a coach, accompanist, and chorus master from San Antonio; and Joshua Winograde, artistic administrator of Los Angeles Opera and the director of the Domingo-Thornton Young Artist Program.