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College is the proverbial time for many to find their voices, an adage particularly appropriate for voice performance students at The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music.
These talented students have earned encouragement from Suzanne Weiss Morgen ’74, whose philanthropy created the biennial Vocal Vision Awards. Competitors sing opera, art songs, and classical musical theater at a public concert. Judges from the music industry, such as representatives from the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Los Angeles Opera, choose the top three to receive cash prizes.
Support Sets Up Student Success
Such awards and other scholarships give students the freedom to dream big. They certainly did for fellow voice performance alumna India Carney ’15, who gained fame on NBC’s The Voice and has performed at Centennial Campaign events to support her alma mater. She says, “Scholarships relieved the burden of trying to find funding sources for my education, allowing me more time to focus on achieving the dreams I had envisioned.”
From Memory to Vision
Morgen also appreciates the value of student support. During her junior year at UCLA, she won the Frank Sinatra Award, which came with its own cash prize. Now a singer, composer, and teacher, she decided to give current students the chance to win in the same way.
Taking advantage of the UCLA Chancellor’s Centennial Scholars Match for undergraduates, Morgen added a new gift of $75,000 to endow biennial Vocal Vision Awards scholarships. Her generosity will help talented singers develop their voices, setting the stage for successful musical careers to come.
Published September 2017
“Scholarships relieved the burden of trying to find funding sources for my education, allowing me more time to focus on achieving the dreams I had envisioned,” says singer India Carney.
Vocal Vision Awards scholarships will help UCLA music students find their voices.
