2026 Scholarship Award Winners
Congrats to our scholarship winners!
Meet the outstanding 2026 American Opera Society of Chicago Scholarship award recipients below!
Emily Richter, lyric soprano
The American Opera Society of Chicago Best Vocal Artist Award
Emily Richter is an Ensemble Member of Lyric Opera’s Ryan Opera Center, studying with Julia Faulkner. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from Lawrence University and a Master of Music in Vocal Performance and Opera Performance from the Schulich School of Music, McGill University. She has been a member of Académie Voix in Aix en Provence and an Apprentice Artist with the Santa Fe Opera.
Camille Robles, mezzo-soprano
The American Opera Society of Chicago Award
Camille Robles is an Ensemble Member of Lyric Opera’s Ryan Opera Center. She earned her Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music and her Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance from the Shepherd School of Music, Rice University. She has been a Jan Miller Studio Artist with the Pensacola Opera and a member of the Young Artists’ Vocal Academy of Houston Grand Opera.
Madalynn Baez, lyric soprano
The American Opera Society of Chicago Eileen Deneen Award
Madalynn Baez has completed her Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance at North Park University, where she studies with David Govertsen. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics and a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering Science from Wartburg College. She has performed major opera roles at North Park University and Wartburg College, and solo engagements in Chicago and with the Knox Galesburg Symphony and Opera Quad Cities.
Sean Jang, violin
The American Opera Society of Chicago Arthur J. And Glenna B. Collins Award
Sean Jang studies with Gerardo Ribeiro at Northwestern’s Bienen School of Music. A graduate of St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire, he has also studied at the International School of Geneva and the French School in Singapore. He is a finalist in YoungArts and a three-time winner in the Swiss National Youth Music Competition. He has also won the International Concours Flame in Paris, and the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra’s Concerto Competition.
The American Opera Society of Chicago Eleanor Pearce Sherwin Award
Hannah Kim, violin
Hannah Kim is a Gannon Fellow at DePaul University, studying with Janet Sung. She earned a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance and a Master of Music in Violin Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music. She has played in the Peoria Symphony and the Orchestra of the Southern Finger Lakes, the Bowdoin International Music Festival Orchestra, the Chamber Jazz Orchestra (Eastman School of Music), and the New York State Ballet Orchestra.
The American Opera Society of Chicago Award, given by Carl and Rhonda Buss
Isaac Elliot Kovitz, bass-baritone
Elliot Kovitz is pursuing his Bachelor of Music degree at DePaul University, under the direction of Jeffrey Ray. He has performed a number of roles in DePaul Opera Theater. Recent roles include Colline (La Bohème) and Pluto (Solari), a world premiere, with the Vienna Summer Music Festival. He has also performed with Music on Site, the Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company, and Opera Neo.