“HILDEGARD BEHRENS broke through every wall in my human experience with the sound of her voice. It was the purest heart and soul from within the most challenging depths. Her artistry was about finding the light and in doing so, gave us all the gift of hope. Long live the HILDEGARD BEHRENS FOUNDATION in honoring the future of young artists with her embrace.” —Ken Noda, Musical Assistant to James Levine / Lindemann Young Artist Development Program

The Metropolitan Opera Lindemann Young Artist Development Program and YOA Orchestra of the Americas (YOA) receive 2010 awards for exceptional young artists whose talents are matched by their commitment to humanitarian ideals.

The Hildegard Behrens Foundation, created in honor of the great German dramatic soprano, was launched on August 18, 2024 by Founder and Chairman, Dr. Gaston Ormazábal, a long-time friend of the legendary opera singer who unexpectedly passed away in Tokyo one year ago. The founding members of the Advisory Board are Philip Behrens (Munich/Washington), Gloria Cajipe (San Diego), Alexandra Kauka (Munich/New York), Ken Noda (New York), Prince Fabrizio Ruspoli di Poggio Suasa (Paris/Marrakesh) and Mary Gene Sondericker (New York). The Foundation will make financial contributions to American institutions in commemoration of Ms. Behrens’ artistic legacy: perfect architecture of the musical phrase, complete classical training in the historical context of Western civilization, and deep humanity.

Hildegard Behrens was widely regarded as one of the greatest German dramatic sopranos of the 20th century and among the foremost Wagnerian sopranos of all time. She was most celebrated for her riveting portrayals of the most demanding soprano roles in the operatic repertoire. Her art was characterized by a keen musical intelligence and a profound understanding of the intellectual underpinning of her roles. But it was her overwhelming humanity that most endeared her to opera-lovers world-wide as eloquently demonstrated by the unprecedented outpouring of grief at her untimely passing.

In the last years of her life, Hildegard Behrens dedicated herself to handing down these values personally to the next generation. In fact, death found her as she was about to begin Master Classes at the Kusatsu Festival in Japan. Throughout her career, Ms. Behrens was also a great friend of the Americas. She made spectacular débuts at Teatro Colón Buenos Aires, Teatro Municipal Rio de Janeiro and Santiago de Chile, and the Metropolitan Opera in New York, her artistic home for almost twenty-five years.

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The Metropolitan Opera Lindemann Young Artist Development Program and the Youth Orchestra of the Americas (YOA) are the recipients of the 2010 awards which will support advanced professional training and performance opportunities for the following young, extremely talented artists: soprano Layla Claire of the Met's Lindemann Program; violinists Deborah Wanderley Dos Santos and Darwin Omar Aquino Tejeda, violinist/violist Nicolás Giordano Pisano, double bass player Rodrigo Becerra Ibanez, and clarinetist Guillermo Alberto Marín Rodríguez - all of whom have been associated with the Youth Orchestra of the Americas, a pan-American world-class symphony orchestra of 100 young musicians from more than 20 countries of the Western Hemisphere which offers its members rigorous training with a music faculty from the world's most respected institutions and professional orchestras.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE AWARDEES. READ THE PRESS RELEASE.