More than $700,000 in scholarships and prizes awarded at 19th annual Alltech Vocal Scholarship Competition

More than $12 million has been awarded since the program began in 2006

[LEXINGTON, Ky.] – The University of Kentucky Singletary Center for the Arts was alive with music and hope Sunday as 14 talented vocalists competed in the finals of the 19th annual Alltech Vocal Scholarship Competition. The event awarded more than $700,000 in scholarships and prizes and the opportunity to attend the University of Kentucky as part of the UK Opera Theatre program.

Judges selected multiple winners in undergraduate and graduate categories. In addition to cash prizes, winners received scholarships to attend UK, including some full-tuition awards.

The winners of the 2024 Alltech Vocal Scholarship Competition are:

Undergraduate student winners

• Pearse and Deirdre Lyons First-Place Undergraduate Award and Scholarship — Ella Clark, Lexington, Ky. This prize includes a full-tuition scholarship to pursue a bachelor’s degree in music at UK.
• Bryant’s Rent-All and KLPMG Second-Place Undergraduate Award and Scholarship — Evan Stuart, Fort Thomas, Ky. This prize includes a full-tuition scholarship to pursue a bachelor’s degree in music at UK.
• Alltech Feed Division Third-Place Undergraduate Award and Scholarship — Amiah Coriano, Louisville, Ky.
• Alltech Crop Science Undergraduate Encouragement Award — Hayden Longbottom, Cincinnati.
• Barbara Rouse Kentucky Prize — William Darragh, Lexington, Ky.

Graduate student winners

• Pearse and Deirdre Lyons First-Place Graduate Award and Graduate Assistantship — Dylon Crain, Louisville, Ky. This prize includes a full graduate assistantship to pursue a master’s degree in music or a doctoral degree in musical arts at UK and a yearly graduate stipend with UK Opera Theatre.

• Alltech and Stand Energy Second-Place Graduate Award — Tie: Mariah Graves, Humble, Texas; and Yoo Jin Lee, Seoul, Korea.
• Pearse Lyons ACE Foundation Third-Place Graduate Award — Nidia Guevara-Nolasco, Angleton, Texas.
• Encore Excellence Graduate Award — Brandon Whitish, Fennimore, Wisconsin.
• Gail Robinson Performance Graduate Award — Kyle McCurley, Toccoa, Georgia.
• Reginald Smith Jr. Encouragement Award — Mariah Graves, Humble, Texas.
• Opera LEX Victoria Meyers Graduate Award — Judd Blake, Hopewell, Virginia.
• American Institute of Musical Studies (AIMS) tuition stipend — Brandon Whitish, Fennimore, Wisconsin; Mariah Graves, Yoo Jin Lee and Judd Blake. AIMS, located in Graz, Austria, is the leading summer music program in Europe, a one-of-a-kind experience designed to prepare students for careers as professional musicians.

Finalists were scored based on their voice, technical skill, interpretation and accuracy by five judges:

• David Craig Starkey, general director of the Indianapolis Opera, Indiana’s oldest professional opera company. He is also CEO of the Basile Opera Center. He has a diverse career spanning all aspects of opera, operetta and musical theatre.
• Darryl Taylor, founder of the African American Art Song Alliance. He was recently inducted to the American Academy of Teachers of Singing and served as a master teacher for the NATS Intern Program in 2022.
• Dr. Thomas King, a tenor who has sung more than 50 roles in opera, operetta and musicals over the course of his career. King has taught private voice at Austin Peay State University, DePauw University and Indiana University Jacobs School. He also taught at the American Institute of Musical studies in Graz, Austria, for 25 years and served as its artistic director for seven years before retiring in 2010.
• Barbara Lynne Jamison, general director of the Kentucky Opera. In her role, she has introduced a groundbreaking, community-led approach to producing mainstage opera that has resulted in increased diversity both onstage and in the audience.
• Andrew Crooks, head of the music staff at Cincinnati Opera. He also serves as a visiting assistant professor and opera coach at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and as a visiting coach for the Aotearoa New Zealand Opera Studio (TANZOS).

The Alltech Vocal Scholarship Competition, one of the largest competitions of its kind in the world, has enabled nearly 200 undergraduate and graduate students to pursue an education in the arts and advance their vocal expertise with some of the leading scholars and artists in the opera world. The competition has awarded more than $12 million in UK scholarships and prizes since it began in 2006. 

“Our family has long believed in the power of the arts to foster creativity, ignite imagination and promote healing,” said Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech. “This one-of-a-kind competition, and the talented singers who participate in it, are excellent reminders that there are always reasons to sing and to dream.”

In addition to performing at UK, the Alltech Vocal Scholars infuse art into our community throughout the year with performances such as “A Grand Night for Singing” and the annual Alltech Celebration of Song, a free holiday concert at Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park.

Learn more about the Alltech Vocal Scholarship Competition and watch the livestream of this year’s competition at alltech.com/vocal.

Ella Clark of Lexington, Ky., won the Pearse and Deirdre Lyons First-Place Undergraduate Award and Scholarship on Sunday, March 3 at 19th annual Alltech Vocal Scholarship Competition. Shown with her are Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech, and Mrs. Deirdre Lyons, co-founder of Alltech.