The second annual OPERA NEWS AWARDS will be given at a glamorous reception at New York’s Hotel Pierre. Mr. Hampson and Ms. Juntwait will host special guests — Broadway legends Barbara Cook and Zoe Caldwell, and beloved mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne — as well as the five operatic stars receiving the awards. They are Mr. Hampson’s colleagues tenor Ben Heppner, Maestro James Levine, bass René Pape, soprano and teacher Renata Scotto and soprano Deborah Voigt.

Another of Thomas Hampson’s distinguished colleagues, Plácido Domingo, who received an OPERA NEWS AWARD last year said, “The movies have their Oscars, and Broadway has the Tonys. Until now, we in the opera world have never had a chance to be recognized for our achievements. Now we have the Opera News Awards.”

Thomas Hampson will sing the title role of Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra at the Met for the first time this season, beginning on Monday, February 19, 2007. The Saturday afternoon performance on March 3, 2007, will be broadcast internationally, and Ms. Juntwait will host the performance on the air.