Prospective master’s students are well aware of how many colleges, universities, and conservatories throughout the country have a master of music in vocal performance program. Though not the most common degree of them all, the master of sacred music offers something a little different. And the University of Notre Dame not only offers a master of sacred music degree, it offers a fully funded one.
Stephen Lancaster, the program’s coordinator and associate professor of the practice in voice, says it is an “excellent alternative to traditional MM programs for singers who are interested in these areas of repertoire and professional work.” Those areas of repertoire include sacred music, of course, which encompasses oratorio and choral repertoire, but also explore art song, early music, and opera—areas a vocal performance student might expect to study.
Notre Dame’s MSM program (sacredmusic.nd.edu/) as a whole was founded in 2005. The vocal performance track, however, was added only about four years ago to complement the choral conducting and organ concentrations. “We wanted to have a robust choral conducting program, and for that we really needed fantastic singers,” Lancaster says. “We have funding to provide internships for great choral singers, and at the same time we have the curriculum to provide an excellent solo vocal education, so why not have a program that’s dedicated to solo singers who want to become proficient in choral singing . . . and church music?”
With that in mind, the program was established, beginning with just one enrolled student. Since then, it has guided several students through matriculation and graduation and will continue to do so for an average of four students a year with the goal of eight students enrolled at a time.
Fully Funded: What Does that Mean for the Student?
“Fully funded” means all admitted students receive full-tuition scholarships and are placed in an internship that pays a yearly salary or stipend averaging $12,500.
These internships require about 12 hours of work per week—and for an MSM vocal performance student, this usually involves singing in the two graduate choirs, the Notre Dame Recital Choir and the Notre Dame Repertory Choir, and assisting with the Notre Dame Children’s Choir. Both the recital and repertory choirs are conducted by graduate choral conducting students under the guidance of Carmen-Helena Téllez, professor of conducting and director of the choral conducting program.
Beginning this school year, the university is able to offer a full health benefits subsidy to graduate students who meet certain requirements. Those requirements can be found at the Master of Sacred Music website, on the Funding and Internships page (sacredmusic.nd.edu/master-of-sacred-music/funding/).
Coursework
The MSM program requires 48 hours of coursework: 12 hours of history, theory and analysis; 12 hours of liturgy and ritual studies; and 24 hours of practical music, repertory, and performance. These 48 hours are completed over a two-year period.
Soprano Samantha Dotterweich earned her undergraduate degree in vocal performance at Notre Dame and went on to enter the MSM program.
“I wanted to develop skills necessary for solo singing in both concert and church settings,” she says. “I also wanted to increase my knowledge and practical skills for the purpose of having a leadership goal in music of the Catholic Church.”
According to its website, the program wants its students to “receive a well-rounded formation through studies in art song, oratorio, early music, contemporary music, lyric diction, choral conducting, keyboard, sacred music history, and liturgy.”
To fulfill the practice music and performance credit requirements, students take voice lessons, vocal literature, diction, secondary lessons, conducting, and vocal methods.
The courses in theology and conducting, as well as learning about the organ, Dotterweich says, prepared her for church work. “I developed new skills in organ and conducting, especially with the opportunity to be an assistant director in the Notre Dame Children’s Choir.
“I believe strongly in the music potential of all people, no matter what age,” she continues, “and this draws me to children’s choral singing and working to create quality music in churches, reflected in both the choir and the congregation’s singing.”
Mezzo-soprano Jamie Caporizo, who graduated in May, says she came into the program with a significant amount of anxiety about her voice. After earning her bachelor’s degrees in music education and choral conducting several years ago, she began teaching.
“Being a classroom teacher for five years before entering the MSM, I did some damage to my voice and never thought I would have a healthy instrument again,” she says. “After spending time reworking my technique and learning more about it, I saw my potential increase, and performing became a viable option once again.”
In addition to voice lessons that got her back on track vocally, Caporizo was dealing with performance anxiety and found courses to help her cope. “I was so glad to have taken a performance techniques class while at Notre Dame, where I learned multiple ways to train my body and mind to focus, relax, and enjoy public performance,” she says.
Performance Opportunities
In addition to performing as part of the internship program, which involves singing in the graduate choirs, students sing in masterclasses, give a yearly recital, and may choose to pursue other opportunities with area churches as choir members and cantors. The first year of study, voice students give a half recital. They give a full recital their second year. MSM students may also choose to participate in the university’s opera program.
According to the program’s website, vocal and choral masterclass technicians and performers have included the King’s Singers, Seraphic Fire, Pomerium, Kevin Murphy, Heidi Grant Murphy, Mark Crayton, and Stefan Parkman.
This year, Lancaster says, students will sing in and observe masterclasses led by Judith Haddon, soprano and head of voice at Roosevelt University’s Chicago College of Performing Arts; Russian specialist Anton Belov; and tenor James Taylor, associate professor of voice and coordinator of the vocal track in early music, oratorio, and chamber ensemble at the Yale School of Music.
Post-Graduation
Caporizo values the internships, liturgical study, and travel opportunities she had during her time as a student. “I went to Europe twice in two years: serving as a music minister for one summer with the Office of Development and as a performer and conference attendee in Rome this past May,” she says.
As of June 22, she is assistant director of music and liturgy for the Sisters of the Holy Cross in Notre Dame. She also plans to continue singing in concerts and recitals.
“It will be wonderful to head in to Chicago and other parts of the region to audition for different companies, competitions, et cetera,” she says. “I hope to maintain a regular performance schedule in addition to my ministry with the Sisters. Thanks to the program at Notre Dame, I believe I’ve learned how to develop these personal and professional goals.”
Dotterweich says that during her time in the MSM program, she learned plenty about choral singing, but with no shortage of focus on her voice as a soloist. “The coursework and recitals gave me the opportunity to study and perform sacred music throughout history, from Hildegard von Bingen through Libby Larsen.”
Dotterweich is now actively pursuing her solo career. “I would like to perform professionally on the oratorio and concert scene, but I also have interests in early and new music,” she says.
