A Crescendo of Wins: USD Voices Shine at South Dakota National Association of Teachers of Singing Competition
“I'm incredibly proud of all of the students' performances at NATS,” said Tracelyn Gesteland, DMA, professor of voice/opera and the Walter A. and Lucy Yoshioka Buhler Endowed Chair. “Their performances reflected not only their vocal talent but also their commitment to growth and artistic expression. It was a wonderful day for the arts in South Dakota.”
Studio of Gesteland.
First Place
- Denisse Balandran – Advanced Classical, B.M. ‘24, from Vermillion, South Dakota
- Trayden Goodman – First-Year Classical Tenor, Baritone and Bass (TBB), freshman vocal performance major from Akron, Iowa
- (Tie) Emma Breugem – Lower Musical Theatre Treble, freshman elementary education major from Hawarden, Iowa
- (Tie) Carter Van Steenwyk – Lower Musical Theatre Treble, freshman music education major from Aberdeen, South Dakota
- Trayden Goodman – Lower Musical Theatre TBB
Second Place
- Clara Norell – Advanced Classical, graduate vocal performance major from Jackson, Tennessee
- (Tie) Maleah Wright – Fourth-Year Classical Treble, senior music education/vocal performance major from Kearney, Nebraska
- Brian Shirley – Fourth-YearClassical TBB, senior musical arts/business major from Rapid City, South Dakota
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Jacob Olson – Third-Year Classical TBB, junior music education major from Sioux Falls, South Dakota
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Michael Arriaza – Second-Year Classical TBB, sophomore music education major from Schuyler, Nebraska
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Carter Van Steenwyk – First-Year Classical Treble
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Max Bruguier – First-Year Classical TBB, freshman music education major from Mitchell, South Dakota
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Maleah Wright – Upper Musical Theatre Treble
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Jacob Olson – Upper Musical Theatre TBB
Third Place
- Yue Yao – Advanced Classical, graduate vocal performance major from Nanping City, Fujian Province, China
- Emma Breugem – First-Year Classical Treble
- Brian Shirley – Upper Musical Theatre TBB
Honorable Mention
- Gavin Beal – Lower Musical Theater TBB, freshman music education major from Storm Lake, Iowa
Studio of Juan Carlos Mendoza, DMA, assistant professor in the USD Department of Music.
First Place
- Alma Sejmenovic – Fourth-Year Classical Treble, senior music industry and technology major from Sioux Falls, South Dakota
- Brooke Hilding – Upper Musical Theatre Treble, junior musical arts major from Omaha, Nebraska
Second Place
- (Tie) Shaelyn Laferty – Fourth-Year Classical Treble, senior music education/vocal performance major from Sioux Falls, South Dakota
- Andrew Hochstein – Lower Musical Theatre TBB, sophomore music education/vocal performance major from Bloomfield, Nebraska
Third Place
- Julia Nilles – Third-Year Classical Treble, junior music education major from Ruthton, Minnesota
- Shaelyn Laferty – Upper Musical Theatre Treble
- Tyler Want – Lower Musical Theatre TBB, sophomore music education major from Pierre, South Dakota
Pianists for the USD singers included Jennifer Van Peursem, collaborative pianist, NATS Competition, piano accompanist; Carson Covey; Nicole Santos, USD graduate piano performance/collaborative piano major; Deanne Ekstrand, BM '24 in music education, Rebecca Kelley, USD senior piano performance major and Anna Mestnik, USD junior music education major.
Other universities in attendance were Augustana College and South Dakota State University.
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