­The Minnesota High School Music Listening Contest is sponsoring a $500 Scholarship Essay Competition to help further the post-secondary education of an MLC participant.

The competition is open to any high school senior (12th grade) who is currently participating in this year's MLC program (2011-12 contest). To enter, write a 500-750 word essay (typed, double spaced) answering the following question:

“How has your participation in the Minnesota High School Music Listening Contest affected your experience with music?”

Download application form (pdf or Word document). Send the completed form and your essay by Dec. 16, 2011, to:

MN High School Music Listening Contest
c/o Deb Nelson
1816 – 136th Ave NE
Ham Lake, MN 55304-7007
Or email: deb_nelson@musiclisteningcontest.com 

Winner will be notified before the State competition in February.

Last year's winning essay

by Luke Hampton of Montevideo High School

 

A Life of Listening

            J.K. Rowling’s fictional wizard, Albus Dumbledore expresses his feelings on the importance of music in this line, “Ah, music. A magic beyond all we do here!” His views reflect my own: music is the most powerful form of human expression. I have felt this power throughout my three years of involvement in Music Listening Contest. Music Listening Contest has allowed me to experience and understand music at a deeper level. It has exposed me to and made me appreciate many kinds of music that I never dreamed I would enjoy. Most importantly, Music Listening Contest has helped me develop a life­long love for classical music.

I think it is interesting that although music is not a language, we can understand what a composer is saying by the sound of his music. I believe that this happens not when we are just listening to the music, but when we are experiencing the music. Music Listening Contest, in my opinion, opens doors to these experiences in music. Also, I feel that the information in the listening guide has helped me understand music at a deeper level. Dates, nationalities, biographies, and histories of the songs and composers all have helped me to better understand the motives behind and within the music. Each time I listen, these details help me to dive a little deeper, to apply my knowledge, and to experience more fully the power of the music.

Before my involvement in Music Listening Contest, I never thought that I would one day be turning on my iPod and listening to music like Indian Carnatic music or Gregorian Chant. After a few years with Music Listening Contest, I find this happens very frequently and I think it really shows how much I have come to appreciate the diverse selection of music that is featured in our listening guides. Because of this, I have a taste for unique and uncommon music that I want to share with everyone I meet. Through this program, I have not only been exposed to eclectic music but also the “classics” of Western music. These pieces have had a dramatic effect not only the world but also me because it moves me.

I often wonder what my life would have been like if I hadn’t been in Music Listening Contest. I think traveling would be a lot more boring and confusing because my family frequently listens to is Classical MPR in the car. Now after studying, I feel like I can identify with it. On a larger scale, I think the biggest thing that I would lack would be a life-long love of classical music. If I had not developed this love, I would not be as inclined to major in music education. Because of this program I understand a great deal about classical music and this comprehension has made me want to listen classical music for the entirety of my life. This gives me reason to say that Music Listening Contest is one of the most important experiences of my high school career and for that I am glad I didn’t live a life without it.