The National Association of Teachers of Singing is moving full steam ahead with plans to hold its 2021 Summer Workshop and National Student Auditions (NSA) as fully online events. The adjustment from in-person to virtual is necessary due to event planning concerns with the ongoing pandemic.

The 2021 Virtual Summer Workshop will take place Thursday-Saturday, July 8-10, and this year’s theme is “Lighting the Spark: Inspiring Diverse Repertoire.”

The workshop will offer a survey of diverse vocal repertoire designed to expand our musical horizons and inspire passion for performance. The sessions feature works from under-represented areas and topics include:

Amplifying BIPOC Voices in American Song
presenters David Sabella and Natalie Douglas

Arias from Select 21st-Century Hybrid Works
presenter Sequina DuBose

From Cloisters to the Salon: Revealing the Strong-Willed Women in 24 Italian Songs & Arias by Women Composers
presenters Nicole Leone and Randi Marrazzo

Overview of Brazilian Art Song: Diction, Repertoire, and Performance
presenter Gisele Pires Mota

Introduction to Japanese Art Songs
presenters Mutsumi Moteki and Kumiko Shimizu

Embedded in the Soil and Sung from the SOUL: The American Negro Spiritual
presenter Kenneth Overton

Sounds of the Soul: Art Songs of Black Women Composers
presenter Marcía Porter

An Introduction to Afrikaans Art Song and Afrikaans Diction Workshop
presenter LeOui Janse van Rendsburg

Exploring the Great African-American Songbook
presenter David Sabella

Repertoire & Civic Engagement
presenter John Wesley Wright

From now until May 1, the NATS member rate for the workshop is $199. After May 1, the registration fee will be $249. Non-members are welcome to register for the workshop. Read more about registration information.

As with past NATS workshops, the 2021 Virtual Summer Workshop will offer the Mentored Teaching Experience again as an option to registered participants.

For $75, the Mentored Teaching Experience secures a mentee one-on-one time with a master teacher — matching is based on interests and specialties of both parties. The scheduling of the one-on-one session is flexible to the needs of both the mentee and mentor teacher, and it can occur outside of the workshop dates.

The NATS Mentored Teaching Experience is a great opportunity for independent studio teachers as well as college/conservatory voice or collaborative piano teachers who want personalized feedback on their pedagogy.

2021 Mentor Teachers:

• Nicholas Perna, associate professor of voice pedagogy, Mississippi College
• Justin Moniz, associate director of vocal pedagogy and music assistant professor of vocal performance, New York University 
• Loraine Sims, professor of voice, vocal studies division chair, and vocal area coordinator at Louisiana State University
• Sahoko Timpone, assistant professor of voice, Florida State University

Note: only attendees registered for the 2021 Summer Workshop are eligible to participate in this program.

Learn more about the Mentored Teaching Experience.

The 2021 National Student Auditions will be fully online this year with the semi-final and final rounds being held virtually again as they were in 2020.

With all of the National Student Auditions regional competitions complete, the next step is for invited winners to complete the application, submit videos and payment on or by Friday, April 9. (Invited winners should have received an email February 16.)

NATS will notify the semifinalists on May 16, 2021. Results will be posted online around this time.

NATS will hold the virtual semifinal rounds in early June, and the virtual final rounds will occur in the days leading up to the 2021 Virtual Summer Workshop (July 8-10). Monetary prizes of more than $36,000 will be awarded in the following categories:

High School, Music Theater, Lower College Categories*
$1,200 - 1st place in each category
$600 - 2nd place in each category
$450 - 3rd place in each category

Upper College and Graduate Categories*
$1,600 - 1st place in each category
$900 - 2nd place in each category
$500 - 3rd place in each category

*Should there be a tie, an award will be pooled and divided evenly between the singers. Both winners will be named Place winners. Not all prizes must be awarded in all categories, depending on enrollment and/or adjudication.

Learn more about the National Student Auditions on our competitions page.