Texas State student to sing opera at international music festival in Italy

By Philip Hadley
University News Service
April 18, 2008

Texas State University-San Marcos music sophomore Elizabeth Loving has been accepted to perform as an opera singer for the Schlern International Music Festival in Voels am Schlern, Italy on June 24-July 15.

Students who are accepted to the festival must attend with all of their music prepared. They receive coaching from the festival's distinguished music faculty, comprised of many of the world's renowned performers and teachers. Participants perform in two concerts a day for three weeks in various locations within the South Tyrol region.

“It is an amazing opportunity,” Loving, a Dallas native, said. “You get a lot of performance experience and you get to work with musicians from all over the world.”

Loving, a soprano, will perform art songs and arias at the festival. James Neely, professor in the School of Music at Texas State and Loving’s voice coach, said she is an exceptional performance artist.

“She is an outstanding student with a great flair for performance,” Neely said. “Many students are not able to put aside their own fears and work on stage. Elizabeth seems to be fearless and she is outstanding.”

The Schlern International Music Festival is a premier classical music festival. It is set apart from other summer programs by its unique combination of studying with some of the finest musicians. The intense concert schedule prepares students for the life of a professional musician.