Competition Regulations

Singers born in 1993 or later are eligible to apply for the 2025 competition. The online application form will be made available here from 1 February – 1 April 2025.

The competition’s regulations determine that participants represent their respective nations. The competition board endorses Norway’s condemnation of Russia’s illegal and brutal attacks on Ukraine. The competition stands in solidarity with Ukraine and its citizens. Applications from singers with Russian or Belarusian citizenship will therefore not be accepted.

A screening jury evaluates the applications based on the submitted footage. All applicants will be notified by e-mail in May 2025.

Up to 12 candidates in total may be nominated by the competition’s participating opera academies. These candidates will be admitted directly to the preliminary rounds.

To achieve a good geographical spread among the contestants, no more than four candidates of one nationality will be admitted to the preliminary rounds. This does not include any candidates nominated by the competition’s participating opera academies.

To be accepted as an official participant of the Queen Sonja Singing Competition, all invited participants must pay € 200 to the competition’s bank account within the given deadline. Participants who do not make it to the semi-final will receive a refund of € 100 after the preliminary rounds. Semi-finalists will receive their refund after registration in Oslo.

The preliminary rounds will be held online 11-12 June. All participants in the preliminary round must provide their own pianist, a suitable room and the technical equipment needed for their performance. The semi-final will be held at the Norwegian Opera & Ballet Sunday 17 August. The final concert will be held at Oslo Konserthus with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra Friday 22 August. Participants must be available to participate in all stages of the competition.

All semi-finalists must be present in Oslo for registration Thursday 14 August. The registration closes at 16.00 CET.

All semi-finalists who do not have their own pianist must provide clear and easily legible sheet music for their repertoire in the semi-final. The sheet music must be sent by e-mail to the competition within the given deadline.

The order of performance in the semi-final will be determined by draw.

Participants invited to Oslo will be provided with free hotel accommodation in Oslo for as long as they remain in the competition. Participants invited to Oslo will be asked to book and pay their own travel to and from Oslo.

Piano accompanists will be provided by the competition for the semi-final. Candidates are free to bring their own accompanists if they prefer. Practice rooms will be available free of charge at the Competition venues.

All rounds of the competition are open to the public. The Queen Sonja Singing Competition reserves the right to authorize sound and film recordings of the competition. The competition also reserves the right to live-stream all rounds and other events of the competition. QSSC will hold the copyright to any such recordings.

Practical Information

Accommodation

Participants will be provided with free hotel accommodation in Oslo for as long as they remain in the competition.

Travel

Participants must book and pay for their own travel to and from Oslo.

Practice facilities

Practice rooms at are available free of charge to all participants.

Accompanists

The competition will provide experienced accompanists for all participants in the semi-final of the competition. Participants who wish to use their own accompanist may do so.

Copyright

The Queen Sonja Singing Competition reserves the exclusive right to make sound and video recording as well as photographic documentation of the competition, and owns all the rights for this material. Any income arising from such material will be retained by the competition.

Fees

The application fee is €90 and must be paid upon submission of the application.

Successful candidates who are invited to the competition will be required to confirm their acceptance by transferring €200 to the competition’s bank account. The applicant will be accepted officially as a contestant when the competition receives this fee and the requested sheet music. €100 will be returned to candidates after the preliminary rounds or after registration in Oslo (for semi-finalists).