National Council Auditions

Past Winners

The Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions held its first audition in 1954 in the Twin Cities and over the past 55 years has helped discover generations of opera talent.

To see the National Winners throughout history, please see National Council Winners. 

Approximately 100 former participants in the National Council Auditions appear on the Met roster every season and nearly half of those are National Winners.

In the five-and-a-half decades since the first auditions in 1954, some of the biggest names in opera have participated in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.  A list of notable alumni from each decade appears below.  Some are all-time greats, while others are just beginning their path to opera stardom.

	Stephanie Blythe, 1994
	Renée Fleming, 1988
	Susan Graham, 1988
	Ben Heppner, 1988
	Patricia Racette, 1988
	Deborah Voigt, 1985
	Thomas Hampson, 1981
	Samuel Ramey, 1972
	Frederica von Stade, 1969
	1950s Martina Arroyo Grace Bumbry Teresa Stratas   1960s Robert Hale Jessye Norman Gail Robinson Frederica von Stade Benita Valente Shirley Verrett   1970s June Anderson Kathleen Battle Eric Halfvarson Ashley Putnam Samuel Ramey Cheryl Studer Carol Vaness Delores Ziegler   1980s Christine Brewer Renée Fleming Susan Graham Denyce Graves Thomas Hampson Ben Heppner Hei Kyung Hong Sylvia McNair Patricia Racette Ruth Ann Swenson Deborah Voigt   1990s Isabel Bayrakdarian Stephanie Blythe Eric Cutler Michelle DeYoung Elizabeth Futral Jill Grove Paul Groves Nathan Gunn Olga Makarina Sondra Radvanovsky Brian Asawa Eric Owens   2000s Meredith Arwady Jennifer Black Lawrence Brownlee Nicole Cabell Kate Lindsey Michael Maniaci Simon O’Neill Susanna Phillips Sarah Coburn Angela Meade Marjorie Owens Charles Edwin Taylor