Breakout Session
The Art of Being a Great Adjudicator
Sunday, July 10 • 4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Presenter: Allen Henderson
Introduced by: Lori McCann
Location: Avenue Ballroom - 4th Floor
Tone is king! Good diction is an absolute! What about that dress?! All of these could be important aspects of adjudication. No matter what scoring system used to adjudicate, the art of being a great adjudicator lies in knowing what to say at a particular time in relation to what you hear and how to say it constructively so that the singers and their teachers can interpret and apply your comments and develop a plan for improvement. Bring your questions about the NATS adjudication system for discussion.
About Allen Henderson
Allen Henderson holds degrees from Carson Newman College (BM), The University of Tennessee (MM) and the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati (DMA), where his minor was in Arts Administration and he was winner of the prestigious Corbett-Treigle Opera Competition. Prior to his appointment as NATS executive director in 2008, he served NATS as district and regional governor and was elected national secretary/treasurer from 2006-2008. He also served as interim executive director from 2007-2008. Henderson was a participant in the 1993 NATS Intern Program and later hosted the program in 1998. He was chair of the coordinating committee for the 2008 NATS 50th National Conference in Nashville, Tenn.
Henderson has held teaching positions at Oklahoma Baptist University, Austin Peay State University and Georgia Southern University. In these positions he has taught voice, foreign language diction, opera, choral techniques, choral literature, song literature and directed choirs. He also served as music department chair at Austin Peay and Georgia Southern.
As baritone soloist, Henderson has appeared in concert, opera, and oratorio across the country. A district winner and regional finalist in the Metropolitan Opera auditions, Henderson was winner of the 1995 National Federation of Music Clubs Artist Awards. He also was a regional finalist in the NATSAA competition.
