The most recent winners of the Marilyn Horne Song Competition — baritone Benjamin Dickerson and pianist Alden Gatt — showed off their skills and shared their experiences from the competition at The Greene Space at 7 pm on Friday, March 11. WQXR's Nimet Habachy hosted.

Legendary mezzo Marilyn Horne was on hand to talk about her celebrated career and role in the competition. Isabel Leonard, a former competition winner and current Metropolitan Opera star, also gave a special performance. Watch the archived video webstream of the concert right here.

About the Marilyn Horne Song Competition

Founded in 2000 by the Marilyn Horne Foundation, the Marilyn Horne Song Competition, a program of the Music Academy of the West, is one of the most prestigious and valuable singing competitions in the United States. Previous Marilyn Horne Song Competition winners, such as Met Opera star Isabel Leonard, are performing leading and featured roles in major opera houses around the globe. In the United States, winners have performed at the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Santa Fe Opera and Los Angeles Opera, among others.

About the 2015 Marilyn Horne Song Competition Winners

Benjamin Dickerson, 22, born in San Antonio, Texas, is an undergraduate at the Manhattan School of Music, where he studies with Ruth Golden. In 2015, Mr. Dickerson performed the title role of Don Giovanni under the baton of Kenneth Merrill at the Manhattan School of Music, as well as the role of Gustl in Lehár’s Das Land des Lächelns. Last season, Mr. Dickerson covered the role of Dandini at the Green Mountain Opera Festival and performed as a soloist in Francois Joseph Gossec’s rarely performed Grande Messe des Morts with the Burlington Choral Society. Recent roles include Ben from The Telephone, Figaro from Le nozze di Figaro, Gaudenzio from Il signor Bruschino, Ottone from L’incoronazione di Poppea, and Papageno and Sprecher from Die Zauberflöte.

Alden Gatt, 27, born in Naples, Fla., is a New York City–based pianist and conductor. Mr. Gatt is a sought-after coach and accompanist, music director of New York Opera Exchange, vocal coach at New Jersey City University, and he appears on stage frequently as a soloist and collaborator. Mr. Gatt attended the Eastman School of Music, studying with Barry Snyder. Having lived in Beijing for a year during high school, he also minored in Chinese at the University of Rochester. Mr. Gatt began his musical training at age eight and won top awards in local and regional piano competitions, including the Turiel Prize from the Naples Music Club. He won the Southwest Florida Concerto Competition in 2006 and performed Prokofiev’s First Piano Concerto with the Southwest Florida Symphony.

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