A national competition for young singers and their pianists

The Somerset Song Prize (SSP) is a biennial national song competition for young people aged 18 to 26. The competition begins with a series of regional rounds across the country. The semi-final and final are both held in Taunton, usually across a packed weekend in May.

The winning singer will receive a cash prize of £1000 and, decided separately, the winning pianist will receive a cash prize of £1000. There will be other cash prizes too. Further information Somerset Song Prize website.

The SSP is a competition for art song and it places special importance on the collaborative relationship between the singer and their pianist. Arias from oratorios and operas are not permitted. The definition of art song is reasonably wide, although competitors must include in their programme a song which is not in their native language.

In 2019 the competition received financial support from Somerset Opera, the Ronald Tickner Educational Trust, the Amici Choir and private donations. The SSP is immensely grateful to these organisations and individuals for their support.

The Somerset Song Prize was inaugurated in 2013 under the aegis of the Taunton Festival of the Arts. The competition has quickly developed an excellent reputation in part due to some great adjudicators – including Iain Burnside, Elizabeth Watts, Jonathan Lemalu, Neal Davies, Joan Rogers, Lorna Anderson, Roger Vingnoles and Malcolm Martineau. The soprano Elizabeth Watts and the pianist Roger Vignoles are the competition’s Patrons.

For more information on the Somerset Song Prize, please visit the Somerset Song Prize website here.