Mississippi College Hosts Regional Singing Competition

Southern Miss NATS Group

About 500 singers from universities in three Southern states visited Mississippi College to show off their musical talents in regional competition that wraps up Saturday.

Students from schools like Ouachita Baptist University, Arkansas Tech, Louisiana State University, the University of Southern Mississippi, William Carey University and Mississippi College are taking part as judges rate their performances.

The event at Swor Auditorium on the Clinton campus is the regional competition of the National Association of Teachers of Singing. Founded in 1944, NATS is the largest professional association of teachers of singing in the world with more than 7,000 members in the United States, Canada and 25 other countries.

“We’re really privileged this year to host the Southern regional NATS competition on our campus,” says MC senior music education major Christian Scott of Jackson. “I’ve really enjoyed participating because it’s always great to meet singers from universities in surrounding states and experience other people’s music.”

And Scott noted it’s “very beneficial to get objective critiques from judges who aren’t your voice teachers. It really makes the vocal instruction you get for the remainder of the year more constructive. This is a great experience!”

Based in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, Ouachita Baptist sent 30 students on the road to sing.

They loved every minute they were here. “You get feedback from the judges,” said Ouachita sophomore Caitlin Secrest of Arkadelphia. “This is really an educational experience.”

“Being here brings the whole school together,” says Ouachita freshman Bethany Gere of White Hall, Ark. minutes before her classmates took their spots on the Swor stage. “It is so much fun.”

About 90 teachers watched the performances the past few days.

“The teachers give you opinions about what you need to work on,” says Blue Mountain College senior Kyle Davis, 22, of Nashville, who belted out the tune “Nobody Needs to Know.”  He was among three Blue Mountain students enjoying the musical excursion to Clinton and the fellowship time over meals in campus dining halls.

Students from other schools participating included Belhaven University, Louisiana College, Mississippi State University and the University of Mississippi.

NATS offers a variety of lifelong learning experiences to its members from workshops to master classes and conferences. Students of its members have access to one of the group’s most widely recognized activities – auditions on campuses like Mississippi College.

On Friday, 31 MC students made it through the second round of competition and they will know in a few hours if they return for the finals on Saturday.

NATS members at Mississippi College include Music Department Chairman James Meaders, and music professors Nell Adams, Kristen Johnson and Viola Dacus. Mississippi College previously hosted the regional singing competition about six years ago. Mississippi College is the home of a number of gifted musical groups – from the MC Singers to the singing ensemble Mixed Company.