AIMS Vocal Program 2027: Opera Studio and Lieder Studio

The AIMS Vocal Program prepares singers for a professional career in opera or on the concert stage. Across six weeks in Graz, Austria (5 July – 15 August 2027), participants join either the Opera Studio or the Lieder Studio and study with European and American coaches, conductors, stage directors and pianists.

Opera Studio: for singers finishing degrees through to those already working professionally, with a focus on standard operatic repertoire and particular emphasis on Mozart and Strauss. The curriculum includes individual voice lessons and aria coaching (each twice weekly), conversational German Monday to Friday, diction coaching in German, Italian, French, English and Russian, master classes, an audition training seminar, acting classes and individual coaching, and musical/dramatic preparation. Operetta is an optional elective, and Opera Studio singers are eligible for the AIMS Meistersinger Vocal Competition.

Lieder Studio: focuses on preparing and performing the German Lied, including German language and diction and the poetry and composers of the repertoire. It includes twice-weekly voice lessons and Lieder coaching, daily conversational German, multilingual diction coaching, master classes, the audition training seminar and musical/dramatic preparation, and culminates in two Liederabend performances in Graz. Lieder Studio singers are eligible for the Harold Heiberg Liedersänger Preis.

AIMS presents more than 30 concerts and events each summer in venues across Graz and the region. Opera Studio singers may perform in recitals, master classes and concerts with the AIMS Festival Orchestra, including the Meistersinger Competition gala; singers in both studios may join operetta concerts, and advanced participants may be invited to audition for artist agents. Participants may receive certification or grades and can seek academic credit from their own institutions.

Who it is for: singers aged 18 and over from any country — undergraduates (all majors), postgraduates, emerging professionals and music educators. Auditions for all AIMS programmes are held across the United States early in the calendar year, and recorded (video) auditions are accepted. Register for a live audition or submit a video audition via the AIMS audition page; no money beyond the $50 audition fee is due until after acceptance.

Costs: Tuition $7,500 USD (due 15 May). Audition fee $50 at audition registration; after acceptance, a non-refundable $250 application fee and a $300 tuition deposit (credited against tuition), plus a $75 administrative fee. Tuition includes housing in suites of two or three single private bedrooms with shared bathroom, breakfast daily and lunch Monday to Friday. Not included: round-trip airfare; the $85 health insurance fee required of all participants ($100 for participants whose citizenship requires an Austrian entry visa); a $100 visa processing fee where a visa is required; evening meals, snacks and drinks; local transport and travel within Austria; German textbook and music photocopies; laundry and other incidentals (AIMS estimates $1,000–$1,500 on average). The Meistersinger Competition fee is also additional. Financial aid is available for qualified applicants; scholarship awards are offered at the time of acceptance. Contact the AIMS office at aimsadminkc@gmail.com or speak to the AIMS representative at your audition. AIMS also publishes a fundraising guide.

Dates: singers arrive in Graz on Monday 5 July 2027 (AIMS advises departing the United States on Sunday 4 July); the programme ends on 15 August 2027.