You can view the full article here. Thanks for the beautiful article on the competition, Savannah Now!
Article (by Savannah Morning News):
Manhattan-based soprano Mikki Sodergren took the 2014 American Tradition Competition by storm, winning the Courtney Knight Gaines Gold Medal, the Johnny Mercer Award for best performance of a Mercer song, and the first-ever Ben Tucker Award, given for the best jazz performance.
“We had quite the week,” says Vale Rideout, artistic consultant for the ATC. “The performances were some of the best ever.”
The second place Patricia and Hayward Gignilliat Silver Medal went to baritone Jorell Williams, who has been gaining international success on both opera and concert stages.
The third place Colonial Group Bronze Medal was given to soprano Maria Failla, who has toured Europe with “West Side Story.”
Fourth place went to Elizabeth Baldwin, a soprano who has performed at Lincoln Center and Tanglewood.
Fifth place went to Daniel Shirley, a tenor from Chicago who recently made his Carnegie Hall debut.
The Quarterfinal People’s Choice Award for a non-advancing contestant went to William Lewis, a baritone who was an ATC semifinalist in 2000 and an ATC accompanist/arranger in 2001-03.
The Semifinal People’s Choice Award for a non-advancing contestant was won by Nicole Greenidge, a soprano who performs with the Grammy-nominated vocal group Conspirare.
Sodergren, a native of Minnesota, sang jazz, opera, musical theater and pop music during the competition. She has been active in the VOICExperience program, performing several times in Savannah during the VOICE Festival and VOICExperience’s National Opera Week performances.
This was not Sodergren’s first time competing in the ATC. In 2013, she was awarded the silver medal.
In Manhattan, Sodergren is a member of a quartet called The Cherries on Top with 2013 ATC gold medal winner Kimberly Hawkey.
“It was a spectacular ending to a thrilling week in Savannah,” Sodergren says on her website. “I feel so grateful for these honors and I am completely humbled.”
