Competition Rules
Period: October 25 – November 21, 2026
Final: November, 2026
Location of the final: Arad Philharmonic, Romania
Art. 1. General provisions
The International Vocal Interpretation Competition “MIRAGE OF VOICE”, now in its first edition, is an artistic competition designed to promote interpretative excellence in the classical vocal performance and aims to stimulate young vocal interpreters in their professional development and artistic affirmation.
The competition is held in three stages: an online eliminatory stage, a semi-final stage and a final stage with physical presence, in front of the jury. Registration deadline: October 25, 2026
Art. 2. Competition structure
Stage I – Preliminary round (online) – October 25–30, 2026, consists of evaluating the video materials submitted by the participants. The selection is made by the competition jury, the results of stage I will be communicated individually to the participants admitted to the semi-final.
Stage II – Semi-final (with physical presence) takes place on November 20, 2026 at the Arad Philharmonic, in which only 20 participants declared admitted after the preliminary round will participate.
Stage III – Final (with physical presence) will take place on November 21, 2026, at the Arad Philharmonic. 10 participants, selected from the participants of stage II, will participate in the final.
Art. 3. Competition sections
The competition is structured in the following sections:
I – Lied – Oratorio
II – Arias
Participants can register for only one section.
Art. 4. Age categories
Participants will compete in one of the following categories, depending on their age on October 25, 2026:
Category A Professionals: 26+ years old
Category B Virtuoso: 22–25 years old
Category C Young performers: 18–21 years old
Category D Beginners: 15–17 years old
Art. 5. Conditions of participation
The competition is open to participants from the country and abroad.
Registrations are validated in the order of submission of complete documents and payment of the participation fee.
Participants admitted to the semi-finals are required to physically appear at the Arad Philharmonic on November 20, 2026.
Art. 6. Competition repertoire
The competition repertoire will be within the requirements of the age category, in accordance with the specific school and university programs.
I Lied-Oratorio Section
A. A lied from the classical repertoire
B. A lied from romantic repertoire
C. An aria from an oratorio or from a cantata
II Aria Section
A. An early aria
B. An aria from the classical opera repertoire
C. An aria from the romantic opera repertoire
Art. 7 Registration for the competition
To register, participants will register online at the address indicated in the announcement and will send, by October 25, 2026, an e-mail to: [email protected] which will include:
the fully completed registration form;
copy of the identity document;
the video material requested for the eliminatory stage – private YouTube link;
the full scores, scanned in PDF format;
proof of payment of the registration fee.
Art. 8 Participation fee
Registration fee: 80 euros, to be paid to the account indicated in the registration form. The fee is non-refundable, regardless of the result obtained in the competition or the withdrawal at the final.
Art. 9 Judging
The evaluation of the participants is carried out by a specialized jury, formed by personalities of the musical life.
The decisions of the jury are final and final and binding.
The jury reserves the right not to award certain prizes, if the artistic level does not correspond to the standards of the competition.
Art. 10 Judging criteria
TECHNICAL – 40 Points: refers to the degree of difficulty of the repertoire; fidelity of the score; accuracy of intonation; diction;
STYLISTIC – 40 Points: refers to the stylistic fidelity of the scores performed;
ARTISTIC – 20 Points: concerns stage conduct
Art. 11 Competition prizes
For each section, prizes I, II, III and mentions I and II are awarded.
The jury reserves the right not to award all prizes.
Art. 12 Final provisions
The organizers reserve the right to make changes to the regulations, with prior notification to the participants.
By registering for the contest, participants express their agreement with the information contained in these regulations.
Unforeseen situations will be resolved by the organizers, in accordance with the artistic norms in force.
All participants will receive participation certificates.
Additional information at: