AVA Alumnus Angel Gomez and Resident Artist Matthew Sink Named Winners of Opera Index Vocal Competition

November 6, 2026

Academy of Vocal Arts alumnus Angel Gomez (’25) and current second-year tenor Matthew Sink have been named winners of Opera Index’s 2026 Vocal Competition. Both singers received $10,000 awards in recognition of their vocal achievements.

Gomez received the Lois Kirshenbaum Memorial Award, while Sink was presented with the Opera Index Membership Award. The two tenors were among five singers selected to receive $10,000 awards in this year’s competition.

A native of McAllen, Texas, Gomez is a 2025 graduate of AVA, where he performed several leading roles, including the title roles in Gounod’s Faust and Mascagni’s L’amico Fritz, as well as Count Almaviva in Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia and Don Ottavio in Mozart’s Don Giovanni. His other accomplishments include being named a National Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera’s Laffont Competition and winning first place in the Giargiari Bel Canto Competition. Gomez is currently a member of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program.

Originally from Las Vegas, Nevada, Sink joined AVA after earning his Master of Music degree from Northwestern University and his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. During his residency, he has appeared as Don Curzio in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro, Flamand in Strauss’s Capriccio, and Bardolfo in Verdi’s Falstaff. His previous awards include second place at the Opera Birmingham Vocal Competition and a Career Grant from the Loren L. Zachary National Vocal Competition.

AVA congratulates Angel Gomez and Matthew Sink on this outstanding achievement and celebrates their continued success as they advance their careers in opera.