The Eastman School of Music is proud to announce the winners of the 2006 Friends of Eastman Opera Voice Competition, which took place in Kilbourn Hall on Saturday, November 18.

The first prize went to Jonathan Michie, baritone, a first year master’s student in the studio of Carol Webber. His Eastman Opera Theater credits include Robert (Company), Pandolfe (Cendrillon), Orlando (Claudia Legare), Storyteller (East & West), Elder McLean (Susannah) and Anthony Hope (Sweeney Todd). Jonathan spent this past summer as a Young Artist with the Chautauqua Opera Company and the previous summer performing with the Ohio Light Opera Company. His awards include the Kurt Weill Foundation’s Lotte Lenya Competition, Liederkranz Foundation’s Lieder Competition, Fritz & Lavinia Jensen Foundation, Jesse Kneisel Lieder Competition, and the FEO Voice Competition. He has been featured in concert at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall and the Waldorf Astoria, New York City.

As winner of the competition, Michie was the winner of the Lynne Clarke Vocal Prize. The Lynne Clarke Vocal Prize was established in 1998 by John Clarke in memory of his late wife, an amateur singer and voice student of Estelle Liebman, vocal coach of Beverly Sills. John and Lynne had close ties with Eastman voice faculty and became founding members of the Friends of Eastman Opera; each served as chair of the association. John chose to honor his wife’s memory by recognizing each year an Eastman student’s excellence in vocal performance.

Second and third prizes went to baritone Jeffrey Goble and mezzo-soprano Korin Kormick, respectively.

More on this year’s competition…