Jury

Carmen Santoro

Italy/ Artistic Director - Bel Canto Opera Festival in Japan, Music Director - Wexford Festival Opera

Carmen SANTORO is one of the most important vocal coach of her generation. 
She is the General Artistic Director of the Belcanto Opera Festival in Japan in Tokyo. 
Since 2009 she has been Musical Assistant of M ° Fabio Luisi at the Opernhaus in Zurich, at the Teatro del Maggio Fiorentino in Florence, at Theater an der Wien, and at the Festival della Valle d'Itria in Martina Franca, where she is also Musical Supervisor of operatic productions. She is Coordinator of Musical Studies and Assistant of Musical Director M ° Fabio Luisi at the Accademia del Belcanto "Rodolfo Celletti" in Martina Franca. 
She is Assistant Conductor of M° Daniele Rustioni at the Opéra National de Lyon, at the Salzburger Festspiele, at Aix-en Provence Festival, at the Rara Opera Label in London, at the Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari, at the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro… She was Assistant Conductor of M. Alberto Zedda at Rossini Opera Festival, at Festival della Valle d’Itria di Martina Franca, at the Vlaamse Opera in Antwerpen... 
She has received invitations to work as Vocal Coach and Musical Assistant at the Theater La Monnaie - De Munt in Bruxelles, the Theater an der Wien, the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow, the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia in Valencia, the National Opera of Lyon, the Grand Théâtre de Genève, at the Theater St Gallen, Switzerland, at the Lithuanian National Opera, at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, at the Teatro Comunale in Bologna, Teatro San Carlo in Naples, Teatro Regio in Parma, Fondazione Toscanini in Parma, Salzburg Festspiele, Festival d’Aixen Provence, Rossini Opera Festival di Pesaro, for over fifteen years, Festival della Valle d’Itria in Martina Franca, for over twenty five years, Wexford Festival Opera, where she is Head of Music, for over twenty years, Donizetti Festival in Bergamo... 
She teaches at the Royal College of Music in London, at the Young Artist Program at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York, at the Young Artist Program at the Bolshoi Theatre, at the International Opera Studio at the Opernhaus in Zürich, Proyecto Crescendo, Teatro Real Madrid, at the Center di Perfeccionament at the Palau de les Arts in Valencia, at University of Toronto, Faculty of Music, Young Artist Program of Japan Opera Foundation in Tokyo, at the Accademia del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in Firenze, Lunenburg Academy, Nova Scotia Canada, Scuola dell'Opera at the Teatro Comunale in Bologna, Accademia del Belcanto "Rodolfo Celletti" in Martina Franca (Ta), Mascarade Opera Studio in Florence, Saluzzo Opera Academy… Since 1999, she has been a Guest Professor at Showa University in Tokyo, which has given her the title of “Professor Emeritus”.
During her long career, she has had the opportunity to collaborate with many artists, among them: Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo, Monserrat Caballè, Marilyn Horne, Daniela Dessí, Mariella Devia, Diana Damrau, Lisette Oropesa, Juan Diego Florez, Marlis Petersen, John Osborn, Pretty Yende, Joyce Di Donato, Daniela Barcellona, Michele Pertusi, Luca Salsi, Francesco Meli, Lawrence Brownlee, Javier Camarena, Ludovic Tézier… 
She has signed recording contracts with labels such Nuova Era, Dynamic, Bongiovanni, Opera Rara London ... 
M° Alberto Zedda, M° Antonio Tonini (director of the musical department of the Teatro alla Scala and vocal coach of Maria Callas) and Rodolfo Celletti (musicologist, music critic, singing teacher and writer) were her teachers and mentors. 
During this season, she will be Assistant Conductor of M. Paolo Carignani for Verdi’s La Traviata and of M. Michele Spotti for Rossini’s Italiana in Algeri at the Grand Théâtre de Genève in Switzerland, of M. Carlo Goldstein at the Opéra de la Monnaie in Brussels, Belgium, of M. Sesto Quatrini for Rossini’s Tancredi at the Festival della Valle d’Itria di Martina Franca, of M. Jérémie Rhorer for Verdi’s Stiffelio at Theater an der Wien.