Benton-Schmidt Vocal Scholarships
Benton-Schmidt Vocal Scholarships
The annual Benton-Schmidt audition days provide scholarship awards up to $40,000 to promising incoming graduate students. Awards are given based on excellence in vocal performance and versatility as revealed through the performance audition. Scholarship prizes are for the academic year beginning the following Fall semester.
Funds for these scholarships were made possible through the bequest of Joseph H. Benton, internationally-acclaimed tenor, long-time teacher and devoted supporter of vocal art, in honor of his much-revered voice teacher at the University of Oklahoma, William George Frederick Schmidt.
View the page linked below for repertoire requirements, dates and deadlines, and the online application form.
Singers must first apply to the University of Oklahoma School of Music as a graduate student pursuing an MM or DMA in Voice. All applicants must have a minimum 3.0 GPA in their undergraduate program (and Master's program, if DMA applicant) to compete and receive scholarship. The completed application must be completed by the deadline listed below. Students who are awarded the scholarship will receive the award when they enter the graduate program the following Fall semester.
The repertoire requirements depend on the degree your are planning on pursuing.
MM in Opera / MM in Voice Performance
Applicants applying for the Masters in Opera and in Voice Performance are required to present 6 selections covering all major languages (French, German, Italian and English). The selections must include 2 opera or oratorio arias, 2 art songs, and 2 arias or songs of your choice.
DMA Applicants
Applicants for the DMA program are required to present a 20-minute, mini recital covering all major languages (French, German, Italian, and English) in addition to a pre-screening video **. Only 2 arias, operatic or oratorio, are permitted as part of the program and the four major times periods (Baroque, Classical, Romantic and 20th/21st Century) must be represented. The voice faculty will also conduct a 15-minute interview with the applicant the day prior to the audition or on the day of the audition. In the case where this cannot be done, a mutually convenient time will be arranged.
** - Pre-screening videos should include a minimum of 4 selections. All of the 4 major languages (French, German, Italian and English) should be represented.
December 1, 2023 - DMA Voice Application Deadline (pre-screening video due)
December 15, 2023 - MM Voice Application Deadline
January 15, 2024 - Deadline for Benton-Schmidt Scholarship Applications
January 27, 2024 - Benton-Schmidt Audition Day #1
February 17, 2024 - Benton-Schmidt Audition Day #2
DMA applicants in Voice or Voice Performance and Pedagogy who pass the prescreening are required to conduct an interview with voice faculty. Information on this process will be communicated by February 1, 2023.
All singers auditioning for graduate programs are invited to come to campus the day before either of the audition days. The day prior to the auditions the voice faculty will hold a meet in greet in the afternoon with members of the vocal division, the Fine Arts Dean and the director of the School of Music. Students are encouraged to use the earlier part of the day to meet with voice faculty individually or for a trial lesson.
For incoming students pursuing a graduate degree in voice, the audition alone is sufficient. For singers interested in enrolling in the Opera Emphasis Master's degree program, an interview with the opera faculty will be scheduled on the day of their audition.
Before applying for an audition, you must submit your graduate application to the OU School of Music. Click the button below for graduate admissions information. Within a day or two of submitting your graduate application, the School of Music will acknowledge receipt of the application by email.
For more information, contact Dr. Leslie John Flanagan.
