University of Nebraska-Lincoln Glenn Korff School of Music’s Kathleen Johnson has been named the winner of the Presser Scholarship given by The Presser Foundation.
The most prestigious award given to an undergraduate student in the Glenn Korff School of Music is the Presser Scholarship. Each year, the Presser Foundation makes a grant to UNL to be given to an outstanding music major at or after the end of their junior year. This student, selected by a vote of the Glenn Korff School of Music faculty, is to be designated as our “Presser Scholar.” This national honor, which includes a cash award, is intended to recognize outstanding and meritorious achievement in music.
“Kate Johnson is marvelous artist, a devoted student of every facet of music, and a fully engaged citizen of our School,” said John W. Richmond, Professor and Director of the Glenn Korff School of Music. “Her musicianship and artistry now are garnering important national attention and surely predict the kind of exciting career that awaits her. The Glenn Korff School of Music is very proud of Kate and believes her future is as bright and expansive as she chooses to make it. We could not be more excited for her."
Johnson is a member of the UNL Honors Program and Pi Kappa Lambda, the national music honors society. She is also a Resident Assistant through University Housing. Johnson was born and raised in Omaha and is a student of Professor Kate Butler.
During her first two years at UNL she was involved in the UNL opera program as a soprano section leader in Amahl and the Night Visitors, singing in the Opera Scenes program, and performing in two UNL Friends of Opera Galas. As an incoming freshman, she was awarded a UNL Friends of Opera Scholarship among other scholarships. Her freshman year she won first place at the State NATS Auditions (National Association of Teachers of Singing) and second place at the NATS West Central Regional Auditions, then continuing on to be a semifinalist at the NATS National Student Auditions. In her sophomore year, Johnson was a NATS National Student Auditions finalist, eventually placing third in the country in Category VIII (Lower College/Private Women). She did this a week after returning from a seven-week long UNL study abroad language program in Berlin, Germany.
In her junior year, Johnson won 1st Place at the NATS West Central Regional Auditions and was a UNL Undergraduate Concerto Competition finalist. In addition to Johnson singing in the UNL Friends of Opera Gala, she sang the role of Zerlina in the UNL Opera production of Don Giovanni this past fall. She is singing Susanna in the James C. and Rhonda Seacrest “Tour Nebraska Opera Fund” production of The Marriage of Figaro, which will tour Friend, Ord, Norfolk, and Red Cloud, Nebraska this May.
This summer, Johnson will participate in SongFest at The Colburn School, a month-long program specializing in training and performance of art song. During the program, she will collaborate with acclaimed pianist Martin Katz in recital, coach and perform as the soprano soloist in two Bach cantatas under the direction of John Harbison and Sanford Sylvan, and perform in collaboration with composer John Musto his song, Sea Chest. Shortly after the SongFest program, Johnson will immerse herself in the poetry and performance of the German Lied at the Schubert Institute for five weeks in Austria, training with masters of the classical Lied repertoire, such as Elly Ameling.
The Presser Foundation was established in 1939 under the Deeds of Trust and Will of the late Theodore Presser. It is one of the few private foundations in the United States dedicated solely to music education and music philanthropy. The Presser Foundation supports music performance and education through undergraduate and graduate scholar awards, operating and program support for music organizations, capital grants for music building projects, and assistance to retired music teachers. Much of the grant making focus of the Foundation is on organizations and institutions in the 100-mile radius surrounding Center City Philadelphia. For more information: http://www.presserfoundation.org