Applications Open! Singer of the Year Competition returns for 2026.
Updated: Oct 7
Hurn Court Opera's national competition for young, classically trained singers aged 20-29 years is now open for applications.
With over £6,000 available in prizes and an eminent panel of judges including Sir Simon Keenlyside CBE, English lyric soprano Kate Royal and Scott Cooper of The Grange Festival, this is an exciting and unmissable opportunity for young singers.
As a registered arts charity, HCO’s mission is to provide the opera stars of tomorrow with a platform today, helping to launch their careers and providing much-needed paid performance opportunities. The competition has become an important and much-anticipated highlight of the HCO calendar and its winners have gone on to perform roles with the like of English National Opera, Glyndebourne Festival and Scottish Opera.
This year’s competition, held in collaboration with The Grange Festival, take place on Saturday 31 October at St Swithun’s School, Winchester in front of a public audience.
We are now inviting singers to apply for the competition - closing date for applications is midnight on Wednesday 30 September.
Full entry criteria and application forms can be found here.
Audience tickets can be purchased online as well as free tickets for U18s and those in full time education.
Here's what two of our previous winners had to say about the impact of the competition on their careers:
'Winning the Nigel Beale First Prize at the HCO Competition in 2021 meant a great deal to my career. Financially this prize money contributed to my living costs while performing as a Young Artist at the National Opera Studio, and it provides credibility as I continue to make a name for myself in the UK. As I'm from Australia, I’ve had to build my UK career from scratch and competitions like Hurn Court Opera's confirm to the industry that we are singers to take notice of.'
'The HCO Singer of the Year was one of the first competitions I had success in, and so it provided me with a great springboard and confidence boost to take the next steps in my career, particularly with the invaluable support and encouragement from the Hurn Court Opera team and supporters.'
Finalist and judges of the 2025 HCO Singer of the Year Competition
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