Toronto – February 20, 2025 – On Tuesday, February 18, the rising stars of the Canadian Opera Company Ensemble Studio, Canada’s premier training program for young opera professionals, competed in the seventh biennial Christina and Louis Quilico Awards, with Duncan Stenhouse claiming the First Prize of $5,000. Korin Thomas-Smith won the Second Prize of $3,000, and Emily Rocha won the Third Prize of $2,000. Career development awards of $1,000 each were also presented to Wesley Harrison, Queen Hezumuryango, and Karoline Podolak, as well as pianists Brian Cho and Mattia Senesi. The event took place at Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in the COC’s Free Concert Series in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre, Presented by TD Bank Group.
The competition was adjudicated by a panel composed of Roberto Mauro, Director of Artistic Operations & Planning, Canadian Opera Company, Steven Philcox, Associate Professor at the University of Toronto and Head of the Collaborative Piano Program, and Morgan Reid, Director of the Opera Division, Dean Artists Management. The young artists featured in the February 18th competition sang one aria of their choice and one aria selected by the panel.
About Duncan Stenhouse
Northern Ireland-born Duncan Stenhouse is a Calgarian bass and composer who recently completed his Advanced Operatic Diploma at the Royal Academy of Music under the support of the Sybil Tutton Opera Award and Philip Hattey Prize. Stenhouse is also a proud alumnus of the Memorial School of Music in St. John’s, NL. While living in London, England for his studies, Stenhouse performed in various summer festivals including Longborough Festival Opera, Garsington Opera, Opera Holland Park, and Hurn Court Opera. During this time, he sang in operas by Britten, Dvorák, Mozart, Puccini, Rossini, Strauss, Stravinsky, and Verdi. He was named one of CBC’s “30 hot classical musicians under 30” in 2024 and won the Sarah Harrison Prize at the Hurn Court Opera Singer of the Year Competition. This season with the COC, he performed the role of High Priest of Baal in Nabucco, and will sing the role of First Apprentice in Wozzeck, and Zaretsky in Eugene Onegin.
About the COC Ensemble Studio
The COC Ensemble Studio is an innovative artist development program for emerging Canadian opera professionals. The company’s uniquely collaborative approach blends advanced study and practical experience through a multi-year program that’s individually tailored for each member. Artists receive intensive vocal coaching; language, movement and acting studies; as well as private masterclasses with renowned opera professionals.
Members of the Ensemble Studio are the COC’s resident artists and important community ambassadors for the company. Through performances and collaborations with local schools and organizations, Ensemble members are often the first point of contact with opera for many; their ongoing participation in this area is integral to creating inclusive and welcoming opportunities for more people to engage with the art form.
Since 1980, over 230 young professional Canadian singers and pianists have acquired foundational opera experience through the Ensemble Studio. Former members include Ben Heppner, Krisztina Szabó, Gordon Bintner, Ambur Braid, Miriam Khalil, and Wallis Giunta, and David Pomeroy.
About the Christina and Louis Quilico Awards
Christina Petrowska Quilico, C.M., OOnt, FRSC, established the Christina and Louis Quilico Fund in 2000 to honour her late husband, renowned baritone Louis Quilico, and to recognize outstanding young singers. During his 45 years on the stage, Louis Quilico shared performing credits with Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo, José Carreras, Joan Sutherland, and Renata Tebaldi. He was instrumental in furthering the careers of many young singers through his teaching and master classes. The Ontario Arts Foundation manages the endowment that funds the Christina and Louis Quilico Awards.
Acknowledgements
The COC Ensemble Studio is Underwritten By:
Arrell Family Foundation, The Catherine and Maxwell Meighen Foundation, with major support from Marjorie Linden in memory of Roy Linden, Patrick and Barbara Keenan Foundation, The MacNeill Family Foundation, Brian Wilks, Wendy J. Thompson, The Azrieli Foundation, RBC Foundation, and Stingray with additional support from ARIAS: Canadian Opera Student Development Fund, Marcia Lewis Brown, Neil & Blanche Carragher, Catherine Fauquier, Dr. Eudice Goldberg, Joy Levine, Patricia & Frank Mills, and the Government of Canada.
The Free Concert Series in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre is presented by TD Bank Group.
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For information, please contact:
Davin Leivonen-Fok,
Communications Coordinator, Canadian Opera Company
Tel: (416) 306-2330 | davinlf@coc.ca
Bruce Bennett,
Executive Director, Ontario Arts Foundation
Tel: (416) 969-7413 | bbennett@oafdn.ca
Established in 1991, the Ontario Arts Foundation (OAF) is passionately committed to building long-term support for the arts in Ontario. In 2023-2024, the OAF paid $4.6 million in endowment income and $500,000 in awards and grants.
Based in Toronto, the Canadian Opera Company is the largest producer of opera in Canada and one of the largest in North America. General Director David C. Ferguson joined the company in 2024, forming a leadership team with Music Director Johannes Debus and Deputy General Director Christie Darville. The COC enjoys a loyal audience, including a dedicated base of subscribers, and has an international reputation for artistic excellence and creative innovation. Its diverse repertoire includes new commissions and productions, local and international collaborations with leading opera companies and festivals, and attracts the world’s foremost Canadian and international artists. The company is an incubator for the future of the art form, nurturing Canada’s new wave of opera performers and creators with customized training and support. The COC’s purpose-built opera house, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, is hailed internationally as one of the finest in the world. For more information, visit coc.ca.
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