Come Sept. 22, Kirkland’s auditorium will be filled with the voices of at least one hundred high school students coming together to make music. Millikin’s Vocal Festival, lovingly called Vocal Fest, will feature the best young vocalists from the area, coming together to work with our own vocal faculty to rehearse for a final concert on the 23rd.
Students are given the chance to have their own “mini voice lesson” with a member of Millikin’s esteemed vocal faculty, an experience which is extremely beneficial to any young artist. There is a great deal of difference between singing in a high school choir and having your own lesson with a university-level vocal professor. All participants who wish to have some sort of future in vocal performance will benefit greatly from these lessons, despite their brevity.
Additionally, those students who are hoping to make it to the All-State festival this year will get the chance to sing one of the selections in a large setting. The students will also get the chance to see their directors come together to perform for them, something they aren’t likely to see otherwise, as their directors are often in front of the choir instead of in it. Should any Millikin students have the time available, there will be an opening concert featuring some of Millikin’s own ensembles on the first night of the festival in addition to the final concert on the second night. The Grand Finale Concert presents an opportunity not only to see an event that only happens once a year, but also to scout out faces which may be joining us here on campus next fall.