ISU Voice Ensemble Brings the Magic of Music to Local Children

Idaho State University’s Voice Ensemble is bringing the joy of opera and music education to local elementary school students.

This fall, two casts of ISU singers performed at Edahow, Ellis, Inkom, and Green Acres Elementary Schools, offering engaging and interactive assemblies that left lasting impressions on students and teachers.

At Edahow Elementary, Principal Nick Muckerman expressed his gratitude for the program, calling it an “informative and educational event” that benefited all students. He shared how one student even declared, “This is the best day of my life!”—a testament to the transformative power of music.

Inkom Elementary kindergarten teacher, Katie Marshall, shared that her students thoroughly enjoyed the assembly, finding it both informative and interactive, and that they were still talking about it the next day.

Amity Miller, a SPED teacher and parent at Inkom Elementary, expressed her enjoyment of the interactive opera performance, noting how the children engaged with the performance by laughing, participating, and learning about opera in a fun, unintentional way. “I think it is so wonderful to expose young students to these types of possibilities for creative expression,” she said. “My 4th grade son really loves to sing, and I get so excited when he gets to experience the arts in such an up-close and personal way.”

For ISU students, the experience is equally rewarding. Singers included Alison Johnson, Gabriel Beckman, Evie Schenkel, Jodie Schwicht, Karson Goodworth, Madysen Stewart, Mavity Shaw, and Bella Wilkey.

Mavity Shaw, a junior vocal performance major, is in her second year of sharing this program with elementary students. She described performing for the children as one of the highlights of her fall semester.

“There is a very magical moment in each performance where the students realize the show is catered to them, and they fall in love with it,” she says. “The sound of their laughter in a gymnasium is better than any of the music my colleagues and I could ever make. Sharing our show with them has been so fulfilling. I hope to have inspired some of those students to fall in love with music the way I have.”

Faculty member, Dr. Diana Livingston Friedley says that they have had a very successful outing with our Voice Ensemble this year with ISU voice majors gaining real-life experiences through the opera outreach program.

“Singing standard operatic excerpts, acting, and improvisation skills are part of their training for this show,” she says. “The icing on the cake is sharing the program with elementary school children who might not otherwise be able to hear this music, in an interactive and fun production!”