Vocal Arts Outreach

MSU cares about students and the future of the vocal arts.

With this program, your students will have an uplifting and enlightening musical experience!

group of students seated in a theatre, one looks at camera and smiles

Our Program

Alum Brian Major performing Since fall 2016, the Michigan State University Vocal Outreach program has traveled to numerous Michigan high schools where talented MSU graduate voice students perform a variety of music. At no cost to schools, students in all locations, demographics and backgrounds – rural, urban and suburban – are presented with a 45 minute cabaret-style performance of opera, musical theater, and spirituals. For many, it may be the first time they have heard this music and seen it performed by artists of different backgrounds.

The cabaret is called “From Bizet to Bernstein,” and each performance ends with the student audience members singing “Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat” with the MSU singers! It is an enjoyable time for all, and ample time is left at the end for questions from the students and an evaluation survey.

The MSU Vocal Outreach program lets students know about the possibilities that await them at MSU or other vocal music departments. Shared with the students are admissions information and, most importantly, the music literature that may be new to them and also inspiring. Typically, students are surprised by the talent they witness, and the Q&A often provides interesting and useful insights for students to take away.

Contact Vocal Outreach Coordinator Sadie Rucker

Our Performers

We bring the best of MSU to schools. Our 2023-2024 singers are:

person in blue jean jacket smiling, leaning against wooden door

Amira Joy

Coleman

Soprano

Amira Joy Coleman is a soprano from the sunny Sunflower state of Kansas. She is currently pursuing her doctorate in vocal performance at Michigan State University and is a student of Richard Fracker. Coleman did her Masters’ studies at MSU under the instruction of Mark Rucker. In her collegiate studies, Amira had the opportunity to play Anne Egerman in A Little Night Music by Stephen Sondheim, Donna Elvira in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Papagena and the 1st Lady in two different productions of Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Hannah in the North American premiere of The Path to Heaven by Adam Gorb, and will play the role of Rosasharn in Ricky Ian Gordon’s The Grapes of Wrath at MSU in the Fall of 2025. Amira Joy is a proud theater kid and grew up doing musicals in her hometown of Liberal, Kansas. In high school, you could find her on the drumline during marching band season, courtside as a drill team dancer during basketball season, or in the rhythm section of jazz band as the pianist and section leader. In her free time, Amira Joy loves going on walks, being the best cat mom in the world, or curling up under a blanket with a good book.

smiling person in black clothing, blue background

Xiao

Mezzo-Soprano

Chinese lyric mezzo-soprano Xiao Xiao is a DMA candidate at MSU, studying with Professor Richard Fracker. She has performed with companies such as Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, the Glimmerglass Festival, and soon, Houston Grand Opera. She is also a District Winner of the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition and a winner in the Toscanini International Competition and the Orpheus Vocal Competition. Upcoming performances include Ma Joad in The Grapes of Wrath with MSU Opera and her debut as Snake/Sheep in the opera The Big Swim commissioned by Houston Grand Opera in partnership with Asia Society Texas. Notable Roles performed include the title roles in La Cenerentola, and L’enfant et les sortilèges, Third lady and Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, Contessa in I Due Figaro, Linfea/Destino in Cavalli’s La Calisto, Hiroko in An American dream, Jim in The Gift of the Magi, Henrietta Wong in Harvey Milk (premiere), Dorabella in Così Fan Tutte, Mercédès in Carmen, among others. She holds a Master Degree at Manhattan School of music, Graduate Diploma at New England Conservatory of Music, and Bachelor degree at China Conservatory of Music.

smiling person standing outside in a neighborhood

Cole

Harvey

Tenor

Cole Harvey, from Milford, Michigan, is a DMA candidate in Vocal Performance at MSU. He is a student of Professor Richard Fracker. He has been featured in multiple roles with MSU Opera Theater, such as Albert Herring in Benjamin Britten’s Albert Herring, Don Ottavio in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, and Prince Ramiro in Gioachino Rossini’s La Cenerentola. Recent engagements include the Seagle Festival in summer 2024 where he played Pirelli in Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeny Todd as well as Junior/Charlie in Jennifer Higdon’s Cold Mountain. Mr. Harvey has been featured alongside MSU Symphony Orchestra in Bach’s Christmas Oratorio as The Evangelist, and he has sung the complete Handel’s Messiah with the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra. He sang Basilio/Curzio for Wolftrap in summer 2025 and will sing the role of Casey in the upcoming Grapes of Wrath for the MSU Opera Theater.

person with dark hair and black leather jacket

Jordan

Washington

Baritone

Jordan Washington is a Columbus, Ohio native and a Masters student in Vocal Performance at MSU, studying with Professor Mark Rucker. He has performed with the Columbus Symphony Youth Orchestra, and he was a featured soloist at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute where he appeared as St. Peter in Too Many Sopranos. Jordan earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) under Dr. Janice Jackson, performing roles such as Dr. Falke in Die Fledermaus, the Drunken Poet in The Fairy Queen, and Marcello in La Bohème. While studying in Milan with Patrizia Zanardi, he sang the role of the Count in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro. Jordan has since lived and worked in Italy, Boston, and Columbus as a performer and educator, and is now continuing his operatic studies at MSU.

Connecting with Teachers

View a list of our partner schools and organizations.

Teachers are a vital connection to our program, and faculty from the MSU College of Music vocal area work closely with them to be sure to achieve our shared goals. The program has often been invited back in subsequent years due to the positive impact it has on students. Since the begining of our program, we have reached over 20 schools across Michigan plus several more performances when including our invitations to return to schools in subsequent years. Our busy students and faculty are only able to bring this program to six schools each academic year (three in fall and three in spring), so inquiries into scheduling a vist should be made as soon as possible. Schools that our program has visited or who have had students attend an MSU Vocal Outreach event at a partner school include:

Avondale High and Middle Schools
Carman-Ainsworth High School (Flint)
Cass Technical High School (Detroit)
Chandler Park Academy Middle School (Harper Woods)
Charlotte High School
City Middle/High School (Grand Rapids)
Detroit School for the Arts
Eastern High School (Lansing)
Everett High School (Lansing)
Grand Blanc High School
Kalamazoo High School
Kearsley High School (Flint)
Kelloggsville High School
Leslie High School
MLK High School (Detroit)
MLK Leadership Academy (Grand Rapids)
MSU Community Music School – Detroit
Ottawa Hills High School (Grand Rapids)
Northwest High School (Jackson)
Renaissance High School (Detroit)
Sexton High School (Lansing)
Western High School (Jackson)
Ypsilanti-Lincoln High School

Opera Grand Rapids invited the MSU Vocal Outreach program to perform for and interact with four schools at once at the Betty Van Andel Opera Center. It worked very well to have four schools gather in one location, and Opera Grand Rapids has invited our program back to do it again.

Group of students in auditorium listening and taking notes A student asks a question into a microphone during a gathering in an auditorium