CRI听力:Top Soprano Nina Stemme receives her Birgit Nilsson Prize in Stockholm

Soprano Nina Stemme has won this year's Birgit Nilsson Prize, receiving her prize directly from Sweden's King in Stockholm.

Nina Stemme has received her prize from the hands of Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf in the Royal Swedish Opera House in Stockholm. The prize, 9 million Swedish Kronor - or roughly 1-million US dollars - is the highest award ever handed out in the field of classical music.

Nina Stemme says the award is the culmination of years of hard work and dedication.

"Music has always been a big part of my childhood. I went to opera a couple of times and the school and music were very important for me when I grow up.I was always a curious person. I did well at school just because I worked hard. Because I knew if I worked hard, I can go where I wanted. But I never, I was actually a coward, I wanted to go to music at 10 or 11 years old, and I didn't dare, because I was afraid of failure, " says Nina Stemme.

Stemme opted to study business and economics in university. However, the lure of music - which she first became involved with in a choir as a child - eventually drew her back.

The Birgit Nilsson Prize is dedicated to outstanding achievements in opera and concerts.

Swedish-born Stemme has performed in some of the world's top musical venues, including the Metropolitan Opera in New York, La Scala in Milan, Wiener Staatsoper in Germany, the Opera Bastille in Paris, as well as the Royal Opera Houses in London and Stockholm, three times in the presence of the Swedish King.

Despite her international reputation, Stemme says she tries to keep herself grounded.

"Yes, that is when I started with my philosophy I think, to hurry slowly. So I said no. I used to face the time when I see my map and I realized that people will remember me, but they come too soon with too big projects."

Asked about her advice for young singers, Stemme suggests aspiring singers need to follow their passion.

"I just wanted to see where my singing will take me to then, it is not about competition, it is about music, can't be about anything else. "

This year marks the 100th anniversary of Birgit Nilsson's birth. Before she passed away in 2005, Nilsson established her name-sake foundation to help promote opera and classical music, with a one-million US dollar prize to be given out every 3-years.