South Dakota music teachers hold state conference in Brookings

BROOKINGS The South Dakota Music Teachers Association recently held its state conference at the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center on the campus of South Dakota State University.

Local winners in the SDMTA Piano and Voice Competition include Elementary Piano Age 10, Liam Diercks, second place, (teacher, Deb Kalsbeck), Senior Piano Duets Age 16-18, Emily Hagedorn and Clara Delbridge, first place, (teacher Mary Ermel), Senior Voice, Joseph Toronto, (teacher, Emily Toronto). Also participating in Elementary Piano Age 10 was Arphineh Anderson.

Adjudicators for the SDMTA piano events were Arlene Krueger from Sioux Falls and Dr. Marcelo Lian from the Omaha Conservatory of Music.

Local winners in the SDMTA Collegiate Piano Competition include Thomas Tiegs, Honorable Mention, (teacher, Mark Stevens.) Also participating was Maxwell Donelan. In SDMTA Collegiate Brass, Eden Hodgins took first place, (teacher, David Reynolds), Austin Teas won second place, (teacher, Bradley Snyder), and Mason LeMaster was awarded Honorable Mention, (teacher, David Reynolds.). In SDMTA Collegiate Woodwinds, Joseph Cassady won second place, (teacher, Michael Walsh) and Levi Gebhard was awarded an Honorable Mention, (teacher, Yiqun Chen.)

The adjudicator for SDMTA Collegiate Piano was Dr. Marcelo Lian, for SDMTA Collegiate Brass, Mark Nelson from the University of North Dakota and for SDMTA Collegiate Woodwinds, Dr. Matthew Patnode, from North Dakota State University.

Local winners in SDMTA Collegiate Voice I category include Steiger Manson, second place, (teacher, Laura Diddle), Madilynn Hallan, Honorable Mention, (teacher, Emily Toronto) and Milaana Wollman, Honorable Mention, (teacher, Emily Toronto). Also participating were Kalli Barnhart, Kally Brinkman, Katie Holt, Kaitlyn Porter, and Gerrit VonEye. Winners in the SDMTA Voice II category were Avery Retzer, first place, (teacher, Emily Toronto), Eric Lohr, second place, (teacher, Laura Diddle.) Also participating were Jamee Kattner, Arianna Rice, Ethan Strawn, and Grace Wilford.

The adjudicator for Collegiate Voice I category was Dr. Juan Carlos Mendoza, from the University of South Dakota and for Collegiate Voice II category, Anne Christopherson from the University of North Dakota.

Advancing to Regional MTNA competition is Alex Shore, winner of the Senior Piano Division, (teacher, Mark Stevens.) Honorable Mention was awarded to Haley Hobbie (teacher Laura Diddle) in the Young Artist Voice competition and Caroline Reynor was named Alternate, in the Young Artist Brass competition, (teacher, David Reynolds.)

The adjudicator for the MTNA Young Artist Piano Competition was Annie Jeng, member of the Khemia Ensemble and faculty member at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, for Young Artist Voice competition, Amy Petrongelli, also a member of the Khemia Ensemble and faculty member at the University of Georgia, and for Young Artist Brass, Mark Nelson.