Vocal Arts Institute
One-Week Summer Program
The MPulse Vocal Arts Institute is a one-week program that offers a comprehensive introduction to studying vocal music at the collegiate level. Students will engage in group and individual lessons, choral ensemble singing, and sessions on diction, vocal pedagogy, music theory, and conducting. Students will also receive introductions to related topics such as Alexander technique, Dalcroze, fitness for singers, and much more. Finally, students will participate in sessions on how to prepare collegiate prescreening recordings, tips and best practices for college admissions, and career options in the vocal arts.
Students particularly interested in solo repertoire can apply for the MPulse Vocal Arts Institute Solo Voice Track. This track is in addition to the MPulse VAI Core Curriculum and offers students the chance to perform in daily masterclasses on topics such as opera, oratorio, African American art song, and Lieder, and to present varied repertoire in VAI concerts. Solo track students will also receive one-on-one voice lessons with University of Michigan voice faculty. Students interested in the Solo Voice Track should review additional audition requirements in the sections below.
Dates: July 20 – 26, 2025
Tuition (including room & board): $1,395
Tuition (including room & board) with the add-on Solo Track: $1,950
Application Status: OPEN
Non-Refundable Application Fee: $75
Fill out this form through Acceptd Support if an application fee waiver code is needed due to financial need.
Priority Application Deadline: February 1, 2025*
Priority Admissions Notification: March 1, 2025
Application Deadline: Applications will remain open until the program is full. Rolling application submissions will be reviewed on a monthly basis. Please check the application status above to see if we are still accepting applications on a rolling basis.
Faculty
Eugene Rogers
Director of University Choirs and Associate Professor of Choral Conducting, Institute Faculty Director
A two-time Michigan Emmy Award winner, a 2017 Sphinx Medal of Excellence recipient, and a 2015 GRAMMY® Award nominee, Eugene Rogers is recognized as a leading conductor and pedagogue throughout the United States and abroad. Dr. Rogers is the founding director of EXIGENCE. Recently, he was named as the fifth Artistic Director of the two-time GRAMMY® Award-Winning Ensemble, The Washington Chorus (Washington, D.C.). At the University, Rogers leads the graduate choral conducting program, conducts the chamber choir, and administers the program of over eight choral ensembles. His choirs have toured throughout China, South Africa, the United States, and have appeared at national and regional conferences. In 2016, Rogers’ passion for issues of social justice and music was featured in the award-winning documentary Love, Life and Loss which highlights Joel Thompson’s powerful Seven Last Words of the Unarmed, and in 2013, he co-managed the production of the joint CD Ye Shall Have a Song with the Michigan, Yale, and Harvard Glee Clubs, a collaboration celebrating America’s three oldest collegiate choirs.
Stanford Olsen
Professor of Voice, Solo Track Faculty Co-Director
Distinguished American tenor Stanford Olsen joined the faculty of the University of Michigan School of Music, Theater & Dance as professor of voice after 15 years as artist-in-residence and holder of the Shelfer Eminent Scholar in Music chair at Florida State University. One of this generation’s most successful and versatile artists, his career spans more than 1,200 performances on five continents over the course of 30 years. Since his professional operatic debut there in 1986, opposite Dame Joan Sutherland in Bellini’s I Puritani, Stanford Olsen has performed more than 160 times with New York’s Metropolitan Opera. Olsen has been heard throughout the world at venues such as San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Miami Opera, La Scala di Milano, Landestheater Stuttgart, Theatre du Chatelet, Teatro Bellini di Catania, Theatre La Monnaie, Australian Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Nederlandse Oper, Tokyo Opera City, and most other significant opera companies in the USA and Europe. His recording of the fiendishly difficult role of Argirio in Rossini’s Tancredi (Naxos/Alberto Zedda) netted a GRAMMY nomination.
Caitlin Lynch
Assistant Professor of Voice, Solo Track Faculty Co-Director
Declared “luminous” by the New York Times and “eloquent” by the Wall Street Journal, Caitlin Lynch is captivating audiences with her portrayals of iconic leading ladies. The soprano’s 2023-2024 season begins with the highly anticipated world premiere of Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s Intelligence at Houston Grand Opera, in which Caitlin sings the leading role of Callie Van Lew. She subsequently returns to the Metropolitan Opera as both the First Lady in The Magic Flute and covering Renée Fleming in the role of Clarissa Vaughan in The Hours by Kevin Puts. Ms. Lynch concludes the season with The Washington Chorus, as the soprano soloist in Mendelssohn’s Elijah. During the 2022-2023 season, Caitlin Lynch helped celebrate the 25th anniversary of Music of Remembrance with performances of Jake Heggie’s Another Sunrise in Seattle, San Francisco, and Chicago. Caitlin Lynch began her 2021-2022 season with her company debut at Austin Opera, singing Contessa Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro. Later in the season, she returned to Houston Grand Opera as the First Lady in Barrie Kosky’s 1927’s production of Die Zauberflöte, also appearing as a soloist for the company’s tribute concert to the late composer Carlisle Floyd. Other notable operatic appearances include the Countess in Le nozze di Figaro at the Metropolitan Opera, Seattle Opera, Opera Lyra Ottawa, and San Diego Opera; Donna Anna in Don Giovanni with English National Opera; and Violetta and Marie Antoinette in Corigliano’s The Ghost of Versailles with Chautauqua Opera. Caitlin Lynch studied at the University of Michigan and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) before training with the young artist programs of Houston Grand Opera, Seattle Opera, and the Glimmerglass Festival.
Program Sample Schedule
The 2024 program schedules can be found below. While schedules vary year-to-year, this will provide insight into the programming provided for both participation options.
Eligibility & Audition Requirements
Eligibility
The MPulse Vocal Arts Institute is open to students entering grades 9 (nine) through 12 (twelve) in the Fall of 2025.
Audition Videos
- 2 (two) selections in contrasting styles, one of which must be from the Classical repertoire, one of which could be in a language other than English.
Headshot
- Upload one color headshot.
- Headshots should be recent, clear, and against a neutral background.
- Headshots should be front-facing and from the neck up.
- Headshots do not need to be professionally taken and should resemble a Driver’s License/Passport Photo.
MPulse Scholarships
Application Fee Waivers
Those who qualify may reach out to the Acceptd Support team to request a waiver code to waive the $75 application fee. Please view this page on how to apply for a waiver and the documentation you will need to provide. Fill out this fee waiver form to request a code.
Merit Awards
A limited number of scholarships are available for extremely talented students based on Faculty discretion. Consideration for these scholarships is automatic for applications received by the priority application deadline.
Need-Based Awards
A limited number of need-based scholarships are available to families with an Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) of $120,000 or under in the previous calendar year, or with special circumstances due to the pandemic. To be considered you must upload your financial aid materials by the application deadline as part of your application. This includes:
- Monthly Expenses
- Previous Year’s Tax Return
- Statement of Need
Watson Scholarship (For Michigan Residents Only)
In the spirit of the life of a graduate of the University of Michigan Medical School (1942) and Michigan physician, the Watson A. Young Scholarship promotes academic excellence and college aspiration among students with financial need. These need-based scholarships support middle and high school students’ participation in summer opportunities at U-M that seek to develop students’ interests and abilities in academic disciplines and expose students to the experiences and possibilities provided by higher education.
- Information about the Watson Scholarship can be found at: ceo.umich.edu/youthhub
- The Watson Scholarship Application opens in February.
Questions?
The MPulse Office is closed for the holidays from Dec 20 – January 2. If you have any issues with your application, please visit the Acceptd Help Desk or contact [email protected].
MPulse Summer Performing Arts Institutes
Office of Engagement & Outreach-Youth & Adult Programs
University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance
Stearns Building │ 2005 Baits Drive │ Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Phone: (734) 936-2660
Email: [email protected]