BETHANY COLLEGE STUDENTS PARTICIPATE IN MUSIC COMPETITION

LINDSBORG, KAN., December 2, 2020 – Each November, students from Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, and Wyoming gather to participate in the National Association of Teachers of Singing West Central Regional Conference.  Typically, the conference rotates between the participating states, but this year, the conference was held virtually.  Part of the conference is the student auditions.  Students can enter in two different categories:  Music Theatre and Classical.  Students prepare between three to five songs and arias based on their age and classification.  Students first participate in a preliminary round where they receive feedback and scores from three different judges.  If they receive at least two scores of 90, they advance to the semifinal round where they compete against singers in the region.  The top five scores from the semifinal round advance to the final round where they are ranked first through fifth place.  Students who place in the top five go on to the national auditions where they compete against students from across the United States.

This year, Bethany College had several students enter the student auditions.  Abby Rishel-Barnett, Maya Herrera, Elise Nelson, Matthew Eades, Elyse Boden, Amaya Dungan, Christian LaCount, and Kyler Dalke, all participated in the student auditions.  Elise Nelson and Amaya Dungan both advanced to the semifinals in the Classical category with Elise competing against juniors and Amaya against freshmen.  Amaya also advanced to the semifinals in Music Theatre category.  Elise and Amaya both made it to the final Classical round, which is judged by professional singers and performers from the Metropolitan Opera and Broadway.  Amaya’s entry for the final round was “O mio babbino caro” from Gianni Schicchi by Giacomo Puccini.  Elise’s final round entry was “Deh vieni non tardar” from Le nozze di figaro by W.A. Mozart.  They will both go on to compete in the national auditions during the summer of 2021. 

Bethany College, established by Swedish Lutheran immigrants in 1881, is a college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The mission of Bethany College is to educate, develop, and challenge individuals to reach for truth and excellence as they lead lives of faith, learning, and service. Bethany connects its past, present, and future with distinctive initiatives like the Good Life Scholarship, presenting all local high school graduates with a four-year, full-tuition scholarship to the college. Bethany College is on the Web at www.bethanylb.edu and is located in Lindsborg, Kansas, the fine arts and crafts capital of the state.