H+H Reveals Scholarship Winners

The Handel and Haydn Society's Karen S. and George D. Levy Education Program is proud to announce the winners of this year's scholarship awards. Each spring, H+H presents three prizes to local high school and college students. This year's winners are Irene Benites of Westborough, MA; Elizabeth George of Boston, MA; and Lisa Barone of Methuen, MA. This announcement comes as H+H celebrates its Bicentennial as the oldest continuous performing arts organization in the United States.

Irene Benites and Elizabeth George receive Candace MacMillen Achtmeyer Award

The Candace MacMillen Achtmeyer Award of $1,500 is presented to graduating high school students who intend to continue their musical studies in college. The award was established in 2001 in loving memory of Candace Achtmeyer, a member of the Handel and Haydn Society Board from 1993-2001 and a member of the Education Committee, where she voiced passionate opinions about H+H's responsibility to the community and children.

Irene Benites is currently in her senior year at Westborough High School. She sings soprano in H+H's Young Women's Chorus and has been enrolled in the Vocal Arts Program (VAP) High School Soloists Program since the beginning of her junior year in high school. Of her H+H experience, Irene says, "I have been granted so many more opportunities to sing and to learn about music than I ever expected, and I credit what I have learned in my short time to Handel and Haydn. I have gained the inspiration to continue music in college from my peers, mentors, and conductors in this program." In the fall, Irene plans on enrolling at New York University in a dual major program in which she will study vocal performance and music education. Her career goals include becoming a professional singer and music educator.

Elizabeth George attends the Boston Latin School, where she is currently a senior. She has been enrolled in VAP since age 10. Between her experiences at Boston Latin School and H+H, Elizabeth has immersed herself in music and singing. "I absolutely love singing and love Baroque and Classical music, and that is in large part due to my involvement with H+H. I have grown immensely, both as a performer and as a person, due to VAP. I really would never have fully realized my potential and drive for singing if it were not for H+H; for that, I'm incredibly grateful." Elizabeth will study at the Honors College at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, double majoring in vocal performance and physics.

Lisa Barone receives Barbara E. Maze Award for Musical Excellence

The Barbara E. Maze Award for Musical Excellence extends H+H's support to an outstanding High School Soloist alumnus/a who has pursued further musical studies and professional performance with an award of $2,000. The award is named in honor of Handel and Haydn Society Governor Barbara E. Maze, who served on the board from 1993-2009 and was instrumental in creating the VAP. For 40 years, she was an assistant dean of student affairs at Boston University where she influenced many students in their pursuit of professional music careers.

Lisa attends the Manhattan School of Music, where she is enrolled in the Master of Music degree program in classical vocal performance. Lisa has already gained recognition in her performances at the Manhattan School of Music's Opera Theatre, where she was cast in featured roles in Ernest Bloch's Macbeth and Mozart's Die Zauberflöte. Lisa also sings in the school's Contemporary Opera Ensemble. This past spring she performed a recital of operatic repertoire by Benjamin Britten, Susan Botti, Jonathan Dove, and Domenick Argento. In addition to her work at the Manhattan School of Music, she is a Choral Scholar at the Oratorio Society of New York City where she was the soprano soloist in Haydn's Creation at Carnegie Hall.

Lisa says, "The Vocal Arts Program was the foundation of my musical training, and I consider my time in VAP to be one of the most important musical opportunities I have received. The master classes, piano lessons, performance opportunities and, of course, private voice instruction provided a solid musical foundation that would otherwise not have been available to me. It was the reason I was prepared to study at conservatory level when I graduated from high school. VAP provided instruction and exposure to music that enhanced my commitment to my art. Intensive study of classical song made me realize that singing this music is what I was meant to do."

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