Elsa Dreisig and Anatoli Sivko win the NEUE STIMMEN 2015

The 24 year-old French soprano Elsa Dreisig and 28 year-old Belarusian Anatoli Sivko have won the Bertelsmann Stiftung's 16th International Singing Competition/typo3/ NEUE STIMMEN 2015. Both singers will receive €15,000 in award money and tremendous career opportunities.

Eleven finalists performed at the final concert held on October 24 in /typo3/Gütersloh. A total of €60,000 was awarded to the top three finalists in both the male and female categories. Each remaining finalist received a development prize. The Duisburg philharmonic under the direction of English conductor Graeme Jenkins accompanied the singers during the final concert.

Impressions of the final round inclusive semifinal and final

The complete semifinal, the complete final and all arias can be found in our YouTube-Playlist.

These are the winners of NEUE STIMMEN 2015:

Women

1. Prize €15,000: Elsa Dreisig, Soprano (France, born 1991)

2. Prize €10,000: Miriam Albano, Mezzo-soprano (Italy, born 1991)

3. Prize €5,000: Bongiwe Nakani, Mezzo-soprano (South Africa, born 1989)

Men

1. Prize €15,000: Anatoli Sivko, Bass (Belarus, born 1987)

2. Prize €10,000: Darren Pati, Tenor (New Zealand, born 1987)

3. Prize €5,000: Lukhanyo Moyake, Tenor (South Africa, born 1986)

Nearly 1,400 singers from 72 countries worldwide auditioned for the competition. The auditions were held on 6 continents and in 26 cities. In the end 42 young opera talents qualified for the one-week final round in Gütersloh. 19 singers made it to the semifinals and 11 to the final.

Liz Mohn, president of the NEUE STIMMEN and vice-chairwoman of the Bertelsmann Stiftung Executive Board, emphasized the importance of experience in cultivating the profound talent of young artists: "We will continue to provide support to these young singers – even after the competition is over, as it is not always easy for such young talents to establish themselves in the world of opera. We therefore provide opportunties through our network of experts and experienced advisors", says Mohn.