National Association of Teachers of Singing

The National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) is a professional organization for singing teachers, and is the largest association of its kind in the world.^[1] There are more than 6,500 members^[2] mostly from the United States. Additional members are from Canada and over twenty-five other countries around the world, including Australia, Austria, Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom.

Driven by its mission statement and Code of Ethics, NATS offers a variety of lifelong learning experiences to its members, such as workshops, intern programs, master classes, and conferences, all beginning at the local chapter level and progressing to state, regional, and national events.

NATS also supports the growth and enrichment of its members through the publication of the Journal of Singing, a scholarly journal with articles on all aspects of singing and the teaching of singing, written by distinguished scholars in their fields. Originally titled the NATS Bulletin, it has been published since the formation of the organization in 1944.^[3]

History

NATS was founded in 1944 in Cincinnati, Ohio.^[4] As an outgrowth of the development of the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) in the early years of the twentieth century, a group of singing teachers incorporated the Association in the state of New York on November 27, 1906.^[5] The first annual meeting of the new organization was held on January 7, 1908, at Steinway Hall in New York City.^[6] In 1917 it changed its name to the New York Singing Teachers Association (NYSTA).^[7] In 1922 the Los Angeles Guild of Teachers of Singing was chartered, and two years later it published a Code of Ethics that was later embraced by the national organization.^[8] The Chicago Council of Teachers of Singing was organized in 1930.

These local organizations began the process of becoming a national organization in the early 1940s. During the 1944 MTNA Convention, members of the various groups met on Thursday, March 23, 1944, at the Netherland Plaza Hotel in Cincinnati to create the National Association of Teachers of Singing.^[9]

Mission statement

"To encourage the highest standards of the vocal art and of ethical principles in the teaching of singing; and to promote vocal education and research at all levels, both for the enrichment of the general public and for the professional advancement of the talented."

Competition

Students of NATS members have access to one of the organization's most widely recognized activities: Student Auditions. They also have the opportunity, along with members, to compete at a national level through the National Association of Teachers of Singing Artist Awards (NATSAA). The national Artist Award program begain in 1955 as the Singer of the Year Scholarship Auditions.^[10]

The NATSAA competition is designed to assist singers prepared to launch a professional career, and to that end substantial monetary and performance prizes are offered. The competition takes place every other year, in conjunction with NATS Conferences. Preliminary competitions are held regionally, and semifinals/finals take place at the NATS Conference. Throughout its history the purpose of this [NATSAA] competition has been to select, through a series of elimination rounds on the district, regional, and national levels, singers whose artistry indicates that they are ready for a professional career and to encourage them toward that goal with a cash prize and the opportunity for performance engagements.

Footnotes

1. ^ NATS web site
2. ^ NATS web site
3. ^ Shepard, p. 324
4. ^ Shepard, p. 324.
5. ^ Ringel, p. 1
6. ^ Ringel, p. 2
7. ^ Ringel, p. 2
8. ^ Ringel, p. 3
9. ^ Ringel, p. 11
10. ^ Shepard, p. 324

References

• Ringel, Harvey (1990). History of the National Association of Teachers of Singing. Jacksonville, Florida: NATS, Inc.. ISBN 0932761011. 
• Shepard, John (1986), "National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS)", in Hitchcock, H. Wiley and Stanley Sadie, The New Grove Dictionary of American Music, III, London: Macmillan Press, pp. 324, ISBN 0-943818-36-2 

External links

• [1] NATS official web site