UK Bass William Thomas Wins Veronica Dunne Competition

UK Bass William Thomas Wins Veronica Dunne Competition

Griffith College extends its congratulations to UK Bass William Thomas, on being named the winner of the Veronica Dunne International Singing Competition.

Winning Performance

On the night, Thomas won the €10,000 prize after performing Stravinksy, Gounod and Rossini. The prize, which was presented by Alltech, was in memory of Dr Pearse Lyons.

The competition, which takes place every three years was celebrated in the National Concert Hall on Thursday 31 January.

The Lead Up to the Final

The semi-finals of the competition took place between Monday 25 and Tuesday 26, with 24 singers taking to the stage.

The six performers who made it to the finals were from Ukraine, Poland, USA, Canada and the UK. Each of the singers were accompanied by the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland conducted by Luarent Wagner. 

The Results 

2nd Prize €5,000 presented by ESB:  Joanna Kedzior – soprano, Poland, 24

3rd €4,000 presented by KPMG:  Theodore Platt – baritone, UK, 24

4th €3,000 The Margaret Quigley Memorial Prize: Emmett O’Hanlon – baritone, USA, 28

5th €2,000 presented by Margaret & Liam Gilligan:  Yuriy Hadzetskyy – baritone, Ukraine, 26

6th €1,000 presented by Martin Coonan: Cameron Shahbazi – countertenor, Canada, 26

Audience Prize €1,000 – Emmet O’Hanlon 

Dermot Troy Prize for best Irish Singer - Carolyn Holt , mezzo-soprano, Ireland, 26

Oratorio Prize in memory of William Young, for best performance of an oratorio aria – Yuriy Hadzetskyy

Dame Joan Sutherland Prize for most promising singer – Joanna Kedzior

Wil Keune Prize for the best performance of a Mozart aria – Claire Lees , soprano, UK, 31