I am a lyric soprano teaching classical singing in Durham, North Carolina.
Current students, please use Resources for voice study and the private Studio Log-In.
My high school student was touring Jacobs School of Music, her new school!
But four of my Duke students advanced to Regionals:
Claire Hardek, sophomore, 1st
Damilola Adewale, senior, Hall Johnson spirituals, 2nd
Lauren Strauch, sophomore, 1st, then 3rd in Sing-Off
Melisanthi Guthold, junior
Congratulations, all!
NATIONAL AUDITIONS
In the virtual round, Claire Hardek placed into the top 14 in the USA. Congratulations, Claire!
Grace Waugh, high school senior, advanced to Regionals
All four Duke women advanced to Regionals; graduate student Madeleine Collier won 1st place!
CLASSICAL
Nancy Rocamora, Adult category, placed 4th in NC and advanced to Regionals, where she placed 1st!
Grace Waugh advanced to Regionals from NC.
Alden May received an excellent score in NC.
(Seven Duke studio students qualified for Regionals, three moved on to National prelims; one made National semifinals.)
NC MUSIC THEATER
Webb Cummings and Grace Waugh advanced to Regionals.
Alden May and Paige Thornton made excellent scores.
Enthusiasm for competing entirely online is waining–this is the lean year. A few brave souls kept working anyway!
Grace Waugh received a superior score at NC Classical and advanced to Regionals.
Grace Waugh, Paige Thornton, and Webb Cummings all received excellent scores in Music Theater.
Congratulations to former student Isabelle Kosempa, Sophomore College Women (student of Jeanne Fischer): 1st in Nationals
Anyone who continued in voice lessons and competitions this year deserves extra praise, since all activities were entirely on Zoom with recorded accompaniments!! The following students conquered the difficulties and did very well at NATS Student Auditions!
REGIONAL
Eleni Nicholas (UNCG) and Isabelle Kosempa (UNC) (1st year college) have advanced to National Student Auditions. They are listed with me because they had less than 8 months of instruction under their college teachers and/or continue to study with me in the summer.
NC CLASSICAL
Carl May 2nd place (1st year college/private studio classical) Superior, advance to Regionals
Grace Waugh (Lower high school) Superior, advance to Regionals
Paige Thornton and Julia Tanzer received Excellent scores
NC MUSIC THEATER/CCM
Eliza Meyer (CCM) 3rd place, Superior
Carl May (MT) Superior, advanced to Regionals
Rebecca Esther (Youth MT) received Superior
Grace Waugh and Paige Thorton received Excellent scores
Isabelle Kosempa, mezzo-soprano, senior at Durham School of the Arts, and
John Dreyer, baritone, rising junior at Duke,
have advanced to the final rounds of National Association of Teachers of Singing National Student Auditions, now being one of the top 14 singers in each category in the nationwide contest.
Congratulations, Isabelle and John, on this stellar achievement! Best wishes for semifinals and finals!!
Their previously recorded video auditions have advanced to the June 21 semifinals; the final round will be held June 28.
Isabelle Kosempa received the Outstanding High School Female award at NC NATS, as well as First Place in her category in NC and Mid-Atlantic Regionals. Isabelle attended and soloed at NC Governor’s School and Brevard Summer Institute, and won the NC Bach Festival Young Artists Aria Competition top vocal award. She will be attending UNC Chapel Hill in the fall, with the Emerging Talent in Voice Scholarship.
John Dreyer is a talented composer and singer majoring in composition at Duke University.
Congratulations to students who auditioned with singers from MD, DC, VA, NC and SC (NATS Mid-Atlantic Region, in our newly online auditions) to advance to the National Student Auditions!
Isabelle Kosempa, 1st place, advance to Nationals, Upper High School, Classical (DSA)
John Dreyer, 4th place, advance to Nationals, 2nd year College Classical, (Duke)
Carl May, 4th place, advance to Nationals, Upper High School, Music Theater (DA)
Isabelle Kosempa, Upper High School Treble: 1ST PLACE, Regionals, Honors Recital,
**Outstanding High School Woman Award
John Dreyer, Duke, College Sophomore TBB: 1ST PLACE, Regionals, Honors Recital
Grace Waugh, Youth: 2ND PLACE
Eleni Nicholas, Upper High School Treble: 1ST PLACE, Regionals, Honors Recital
Noah Mofield, Upper High School TBB: Regionals
Cordia Ritz, Upper High School Treble: 3RD PLACE, Regionals
Julia Tanzer, Upper High School Treble
Eliza Meyer, Upper High School Treble
Lacie Scofield, Adult Treble (comments only)
High School and College singers can qualify for Regionals and are invited to audition with singers from MD, DC, VA, NC, and SC in mid-March in Columbia, South Carolina, with possible advancement to National Auditions.
Congratulations to the following students who auditionED for the NC Chapter of the National Association of Teachers of Singing Music Theater and Contemporary Commercial Music Student Auditions:
Emily Dean (Duke), College Treble CCM (jazz): 1ST PLACE
Eliza Meyer, High School Treble CCM (country): 2ND PLACE
Emily Dean, Third Year College Treble Music Theater: 3RD PLACE, Regionals
Lily Posner-Hess, High School Treble Music Theater: Regionals
Carl May, High School TBB: Regionals
Grace Waugh, Youth
Sofia Fernandez, High School Treble Music Theater and CCM (jazz)