UHM voice student Alina Taniguchi recently won first place in the 2026 National Society of Arts and Letters Hawai’i Chapter Winston Classical Voice Scholarship Competition. Alina is a sophomore in the Music Education program, and she is a 2025-26 and 2026-27 Orvis Vocal Scholar, an honor given to outstanding voice students. Alina is a student of Dr. Maya Sypert. “Before …
Amy Taba Wins Winston Classical Voice Scholarship
Amy Taba, an undergraduate music student with a focus in vocal performance, placed second in the 2026 National Society of Arts and Letters, Hawaiʻi Chapter Winston Classical Voice Competition, winning a scholarship. She performed Una donna a quindici anni by Mozart, Willow Song by Douglas Moore and Algún día by Jaime León, and will advance to participate in the National …
First-of-its-Kind Orvis Guest Artist Residency
The Music Department was thrilled to welcome baritone Andrew Garland and pianist José Meléndez for a first-of-its-kind Orvis Guest Artist Residency featuring seven UH Mānoa voice students. Amy Taba, Noah Alcantara, Sydney Branch, Audrey Walters, Nicole Ikeda Cossi, Dennis Dilwith III, and Kaelyn Howard worked intensely with Garland and Meléndez in lessons and coachings for two weeks in an unparalleled …
UH faculty member to present recital of Italian art song
On February 24, 2023, Dr. Maya Sypert (University of Hawai’i at Mānoa) and her longtime performance partner, pianist José Meléndez (Academy of Vocal Arts, Philadelphia) will present a recital of all Italian art song in February. The recital is co-presented by UHM and the Friends of Italy Society of Hawaii, with additional support from the Art Song Preservation Society of …
Voice program welcomes two distinguished artists for residencies
The UHM Music Department is pleased to welcome back José Meléndez and Michael Rafter for residencies in the voice program. As pianist and music director for the Opera Workshop under the direction of John Mount. Mr. Meléndez has worked with the students of the vocal area before and has played with and prepared the Opera Workshop for a concert last …