Elvirissima 2025

Elvira Lüthi-Wegmann, singer, singing teacher and patron of the arts from Schaffhausen, was committed to training and encouraging her singing students. Throughout her life, she was closely associated with the Swiss Society for Music Pedagogy SSPM. That's why she left a substantial bequest to the SSPM, on condition that it be used to set up a foundation whose aim is to support the most gifted Swiss students of SSPM members. To select them, the Foundation Board will again organize the "Elvirissima" singing competition in 2025.

On June 9, 2025, a maximum of 20 finalists will have the opportunity to appear before the jury in a singing audition for the following prizes:

1st prize: CHF 9'600.00
2nd prize: CHF 4'800.00
3rd prize: CHF 2'000.00
4th prize: CHF 1'000.00

The Foundation Board selects the finalists after a careful examination of the applications submitted. These must each contain two video recordings of the candidates. A special feature is that the second piece must be sung a cappella. This is a relic of the pandemic era, when the online-only 2020 competition asked for, among other things, a "home office video". At the time, the board of trustees noted that the unaccompanied pieces made it even easier to hear who the particular musician was.
Swiss voice students whose voice teacher is a member of the Société Suisse de Pédagogie Musicale SSPM and Swiss graduate singers who are themselves full members of the SSPM can register.
Foreigners may take part if they have been resident in Switzerland for at least two years and have been studying singing for at least the fourth semester with an SSPM member, or if they themselves have been a full member of the SSPM for at least one year. The age limit is 30.

The jury is always made up of the Board of Trustees and two external experts. For 2025, we can count on the participation of Ms. Ursula Benzing, Director of the Lucerne Opera House, and Mr. Thomas Barthel, Deputy Director of the Zurich Opera House's International Opera Studio.

We look forward to discovering yet more beautiful voices and interesting young artistic personalities, and invite you to come to Lucerne on June 9, 2025 to watch the live audition from 10:30 a.m., and to join the young singers when the winners are announced from 4:30 p.m. onwards.

Competition rules, a link to the entry form and information for the public can be found at www.elvirissima.ch.

The Board of the Elvira-Lüthi-Wegmann Foundation: Prof. Dr. Bernhard Hunziker, Dr. Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer and Foundation Board President Marianne Wälchli