Corinne Ness

Style: Pop; Opera; Jazz; Rock; Classical; Musical Theatre

Title: Dean, Arts and Humanities; Director of Graduate Music Theatre Program

Bio:

Hailed for her classical “voice with silver wings” and her “powerful belt” Dr. Corinne Ness has made a career crossing vocal genres. Equally at home in classical and contemporary repertoire, Dr. Ness has performed in venues across the country and in China. Her students have sung at the Lyric Opera and on Broadway, and can be seen on stages in the United States, Canada, and China. Her students have earned advanced degrees from top conservatories and graduate programs, and have busy careers in teaching, directing, conducting, and arts administration.

Dr. Ness is dean of the arts and humanities and director of the graduate program in music theatre vocal pedagogy at Carthage College, where she mentors the research and performance skills of future generations of voice specialists. Dr. Ness frequently serves as music director for Carthage productions, including the world premiere of A Seat At The Table, which earned a national Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival Citizen Artist Award. She also music directed Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, earning a KCACTF Region III Outstanding Ensemble honor.

Dr. Ness has presented workshops on music theatre techniques across China, including multiple visits to Shanghai, Beijing, Xi’An, and Nanjing. She developed a special visiting artist program for music theatre professionals to train in the United States, and has orchestrated a unique partnership between Carthage College and the Beijing Dance Academy (BDA), where she holds a Distinguished Scholar appointment. She has music directed conservatory productions of musicals ranging from Carousel to Bullets Over Broadway as well as music theatre showcases for conservatories across China. Dr. Ness currently is working with the Chinese Music Theatre Association as a lead author on a 10-volume graded series for teaching music theatre.

Dr. Ness is a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) and serves on the International Advisory Committee and is a NATS Mentor. She is also a member of the Music Theatre Educator’s Alliance International (MTEA) and serves on the MTEA Voice Advisory Board. She has presented original research on music theatre vocal techniques, integrated learning technique, assessment, and voice pedagogy in the choral rehearsal. Dr. Ness has been a conference speaker for the International Congress of Voice Teachers, the International Symposium on the Phenomenon of the Voice in Newfoundland, the Estill World Voice Symposium at Harvard University, the National Opera Association, and the National Association of Teachers of Singing. She has been frequently featured regionally as an expert of music theatre and classical voice training, working with teachers at the Wisconsin Choral Director’s Association, the Wisconsin Music Educators Association Conference, and the Iowa Music Educators Conference. Dr. Ness’ article on cross-training was published by the Opera Journal in March 2014. She is also a contributing author to The Voice Teacher’s Cookbook (2018), focusing on developing assessment practices in voice teaching, and Action-Based Pedagogies for Popular Music (2021) focusing on teaching contemporary voice. Her article on teaching music theatre in global contexts is featured in the Music Theatre Educators Alliance Journal (2021). She is a collaborator on a series of music theatre teaching songbooks published by the Xinguang Publishing Company, and is currently completing a textbook on music theatre in collaboration with the Beijing Dance Academy.

Dr. Ness is also a respected choral conductor, having spent the early part of her career as a choral music educator. She maintains an interest in arts education and arts advocacy. Dr. Ness has presented workshops at the Arts Education Summit in Chicago, as well as for Urban Needs in Teacher Education (UNITE). She is a past member of the Arts Advocacy panel for Ingenuity Incorporated, the lead arts advocacy and research organization for Chicago arts. Dr. Ness served as the chair of the Kenosha Commission on the Arts from 2019 – 2021.

Dr. Ness earned a B.M. in choral music education from Northern Illinois University and a M.M. with honors in vocal performance and pedagogy from Roosevelt University’s Chicago Conservatory of the Performing Arts (CCPA). Dr. Ness earned her Ph.D. in cultural and educational policy from Loyola University Chicago. Her dissertation on the pedagogy of singing as it relates to culture and representation earned the 2011 Dissertation of the Year Award.

Voice Type: Mezzo-soprano

Music Styles Taught: Pop; Opera; Jazz; Rock; Classical; Musical Theatre

Availability: I am currently accepting private students; I am available as a clinician or presenter; I offer lessons in a group environment; I accept students through a college or university program

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