Barihunk André Courville wins Giargiari Bel Canto Competition

Anush Avetisyan (far left) and André Courville

We're still mystified when we post about a singer and someone comments, "But can he sing?" Baritones (including a large percentage of barihunks) have been winning major singing competitions at a rate so high that this era has been dubbed the "Golden Age of Baritones." Composers like Ricky Ian Gordon have publicly marveled at the rich supply of amazing baritones and mezzos, while composer Jake Heggie is now writing most of his male leads for lower voices.

The latest barihunk to walk away with top honors is André Courville, who won the Giargiari Bel Canto Competition at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia last night. He sang Sorge infausta una procelia from Handel's Orlando. Other barihunks in the competition were Jared Bybee, who performed O Carlo, ascolta from Verdi's Don Carlo, and Michael Adams, who performed Ô vin, dissipe la tristesse from Thomas' Hamlet.

The Oreste A. and Arturo Giargiari Bel Canto Competition was founded by Raymond F. Giargiari in memory of his father and brother, both opera fans and AVA devotees. Originally, vocal selections from the "bel canto" repertoire were performed exclusively, but over the years the competition has grown to include Italian, French, German, and English language arias from a variety of periods. Past winners include tenors James Valenti and Stephen Costello, and soprano October Opera News cover girl Angela Meade.  AVA Master Vocal Coach Danielle Orlando prepares and accompanies the singers.

The competition concert will be broadcast online today at 4pm EST/1pm PST You can listen and vote for your favorite singer online.

Scott Conner wins Loren L. Zachary Competition

Scott Conner

Baritones and basses continue to dominate vocal competitions, as bass Scott Conner took away the top prize at the Loren L. Zachary Vocal Competition over the weekend. Earlier this year, Conner won the Gerda Lissner Foundation Competition. A District Winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Conner has been a finalist in the Palm Beach Opera Vocal Competition, and was named a Gold Winner in Voice by the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts (NFAA).

He is an Artist in Residence at the Academy of Vocal Arts where he has performed the title role in Don Giovanni, Colline in La bohème, La Roche in Capriccio, Oroveso in Norma, First Man in the world premiere of Scarlet Letter. the Four Villains in Les contes d'Hoffmann, the title role in Verdi's Oberto, and Dulcamara in L'elsir d'amore.

Two other barihunks walked away with top prizes, as Eugene Brancoveanu and Wes Mason also won prizes. Brandon Cedel, who was an early favorite to win the competition, had to withdraw due to illness. Other winners this year included, mezzo Olivia Vote, soprano Chloe Moore, soprano Anush Avetisyan, tenor Viktor Antipenko, tenor Benjamin Bliss and soprano Anna-Lisa Hackett.

Scott Conner sings "Fin ch'han dal vino" from Don Giovanni:

A number of barihunks have walked away with top prizes at the Loren L. Zachary competition in past years, including Zachary Nelson and Brandon Cedel in 2011, Donovan Singletary and Jonathan Beter in 2010, Kelly Markgraf in 2009 and Matt Trevino in 2007.

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