A global competition founded by renowned tenor Placido Domingo will take place in Korea next year, according to Korean concert organizers, Wednesday.
The "Operalia Competition," founded in 1993 by Domingo to find talented young opera singers across the globe, tours the world every year holding competitions in different cities. The decision to hold the event in Korea next year comes in line with the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the debut of opera music in Korea in January, 1948, with a “La Traviata” performance in Myeongdong, central Seoul.
The competition will be jointly organized with a Seoul-based concert organizer Raas Art Entertainment and the 70th Anniversary of Korean Opera Celebration Association.
The preliminaries will be held in January, and the final rounds will take place in July, during which Domingo himself will be conducting. Domingo will hold a special concert for winners of the competition.
"There are a lot of talented musicians in Korea. I met some very talented Korean singers through the Operalia Competition," said Domingo during a visit to Seoul last year.
Korean opera singers have clinched top prizes at the competition including bass Youn Kwang-chul (1993), soprano Kim Sung-eun (1995), tenor Kim Woo-kyung (2004), baritone Yang Tae-joong (2007) and tenor Kim Keon-woo (2016).
Domingo is expected to officially announce Korea as the next venue at the competition in Kazakhstan, July 29.
"We will visit Astana in Kazakhstan, where the competition is currently taking place, later this month to discuss details," an official from Raas told Yonhap News Agency. "We are just one step away from signing the contract."