May 22 - June 1, 2009
Endla Theatre, Russian Theatre

For the fourth time during the festival, an opera production was staged in Pärnu theatre Endla with an international cast. The opera-production being Jules Massenet's Thais.
It was an original production, where the laureates of previous Klaudia Taev Competition sung the leading parts. The title role was sung by Veronika Dzhioeva from Russia and male main role by Ilya Silchukov from Belorussia.

See more >>

May 29 - 31, 2009
Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre

The master-class was organized mostly for the Estonian singers, but there were also some places reserved for foreign participants. As festival brings to Estonia many young singers and internationally acknowledged persons of the opera world, it gives also an opportunity for Estonian singers to learn from other singers of their generation and also visit the master-class held by one of the members of the Jury of the Competition. In 2009 by famous Polish soprano Teresa Zylis-Gara.

See more >>

June 1st - 5th, 2009
2nd round - Endla Theatre
3rd round - elementary school on Kuninga str.
Final round - Pärnu Concert Hall (see more below)

The history of the festival goes back to 1996 when the Klaudia Taev Competition for Young Opera Singers first took place.
In 2009 it took place already the sixth time. Klaudia Taev Competition, the only international competition for singers in Estonia, is the central event of the festival. The laureates of the competition will be in the cast of the festival's opera-project; winners will get the main roles.

The second and third round were open to all listeners.

See more >>

June 3rd
elementary school on Kuninga str.

Traditional Klaudia Taev memorial concert where the former students and the students of the students of Klaudia Taev performed.
Klaudia Taev (1906-1985) was a legendary singing teacher in Pärnu. Though a great singing career was predicted for Taev, it remained short due to a stroke of fate - after an illness she lost her voice and dedicated her life to teaching others.

June 4th 2009
Pärnu City Hall

Sophisticated Lithuanian bass Vladimiras Prudnikovas performed at an intimate solo-concert accompanied by pianist Nijolė Ralytė.

Vladimiras Prudnikovas is one of the most famous Lithuanian basses, a laureate of the International M. Callas Competition in Athens (1981) and a professor of the Lithuanian Academy of Music.

The repertoire of Vladimiras Prudnikovas is particularly rich. During the three decades of his career he has performed more than 30 opera parts including Mephistopheles (Faust by Ch. Gounod), Hermann (Tannhäuser by R. Wagner), Daland (The Flying Dutchman by R. Wagner), Boris Godunov and Pimen (Boris Godunov by M. Musorgski), Konchak (Knight Igor by A. Borodin), Timur (Turandot by G. Puccini), Sparafucile (Rigoletto by G. Verdi) etc. His repertoire of chamber music, mass and oratories is also remarkable.

See more >>

June 5th, 2009
Pärnu Concert Hall

The ending concert of PromFest, which is also the final round for the 6th Klaudia Taev Competition, took place on June 5th in Pärnu Concert Hall.

The results of the Competition:
1st prize - not awarded
2nd prize - Anatoli Siuko (Belarus)
3rd prize (divided) - Asmik Grigoryan (Lithuania),
Pauliina Linnosaari (Finland),
Maria Veretenina (Estonia)

There are many contestants from all around the world participating in the competition, from whom only 30 will be selected to take part from the competition in Pärnu and only 6 of them make it to the final round. The final round will be a gala concert where every singer performs two arias from different operas. The soloists were accompanied by the 21st Century Orchestra, conducted by Erki Pehk.