Among previous winners of the Richard Tucker Award are Ren_e Fleming, Deborah Voigt, David Daniels, Stephanie Blythe, and Joyce DiDonato; the 2006 winner was tenor Lawrence Brownlee.
In addition to Jovanovich's prize, the organization also announced the seven recipients of the 2007 Richard Tucker Foundation Grants.
The Sara Tucker Study Grants, awards of $5,000 given to "young singers displaying enormous promise at the beginning of their professional careers," go to tenor Michael Fabiano, 22, soprano Amanda Majeski, 22, soprano Lisette Oropesa, 23, and tenor Alex Shrader, 25.
The Richard Tucker Career Grants, $10,000 awards to "singers who are already pursuing careers [to] recognize their talent and established artistry," go to contralto Meredith Arwady, 28, tenor Stephen Costello, 25, and tenor Jason Collins, 33.
Tucker Foundation grant winners are chosen by a panel of opera professionals following auditions held at the 92nd Streett Y in New York. Candidates are nominated by more than 300 opera professionals and heads of music schools.
The Richard Tucker Music Foundation, created in 1975 and named in honor of the mid-20th-century American tenor, has given more that $1 million in grants to young singers as they begin their careers.
Each November the Foundation presents the Richard Tucker Gala at Avery Fisher Hall. The 2007 Gala, to be held on November 4, will feature Ren_e Fleming, Bryn Terfel, Simon Keenlyside, Dolora Zajick, Marcello Giordani, Susan Graham, Diana Damrau, and Matthew Polenzani, among other artists. Maestro Asher Fisch will conduct the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra.
