Soprano Kelsey Porter, a Junior Vocal Performance Major, from Memphis, Tennessee will sing in the concert featuring representatives from 105 Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Kelsey has performed as a member of the Fisk University Choir, Fisk Jubilee Singers ® , and she sang the role of Mlle Warblewell in the 2008 Fisk Opera Workshop production of Mozart’s “Impresario.” She is a recipient of the Music Performing Arts Scholarship and the Edward and Mercedes Wheeler Scholarship.
Before coming to Fisk, Kelsey placed second in the NAACP’s Academic Cultural Technological Scientific Olympics (ACTSO) national competition. She was a member in the All West Tennessee Choir and the All State Honor Choir and participated in solo and ensemble competitions, receiving superior ratings for performances on the french horn. Kelsey performed the role of “Lorell” in the Salama production of “Dreamgirls.” She is the daughter of Charles and Rebeckah E. Porter of Memphis, Tennessee.
The concert will take place at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. on September 7, culminating the Summit. Conductors and Music Administrators will meet for workshops on Saturday, September 6 in a national forum and discussion of teaching strategies, best practices, solutions, resources, and creative partnerships. Dr. Philip Autry, Chair of the Fisk Music Department, will lead a discussion on recruitment and retention in music programs, and Dr. Anthony Williams, Fisk University Organist, former director of the Fisk University Jubilee Singers, and Director of Music and Arts and Organist at First Presbyterian Church of Hendersonville, Tennessee, will discuss creative techniques for teaching choral music.
I saw this young lady sing at the UNCF Fundraising Gala and what a treat it was. She was phenomenal. Her voice, her presentation and magnetic smile fill the room with excitment and awe. I knew that she would go on and achieve great thing and I expect to see her in the upper tier of the performing arts. Truly an asset to the Fisk family.