Meet Kisma Jordan – Lecturer in Music and Award Winning Opera Singer
Kisma Jordan, Lecturer in the UM-Flint Music Department, recently won first prize in the Mildred Miller International Voice Competition. She was awarded a $5,000 prize and an optional $3,000 contract. Read below to learn more about this talented faculty member and view a video of her winning performance. Congratulations, Kisma!
Name: Kisma Jordan Hunter
Title: Lecturer
Department: Music
Classes I teach: Applied Voice
Research or Specific Areas of Interest: Slave music is of great interest to me; my current research centers on slave narratives and their influence on the development of the Negro spiritual. The project is entitled “My Soul Arise.”
Awards or Performances of Note: Within the last two years I earned my first professional fellowship (Kresge Artist Fellow in music), and this summer I had the pleasure of performing with Electronic music legend Derrick May and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Most recently, I won first prize in the Opera Theatre of Pittsburgh’s Mildred Miller International Vocal Competition in Pennsylvania.
Degree(s)/Education: I have degrees in Music from Bowling Green State University, Kentucky State University, and Peabody Conservatory of The Johns Hopkins University.
How I fell in love with my field: Music has always been a part of my world. It chose me well before I could acknowledge its powerful nature. My love for music was immediate from a very young age. Rather than one pivotal experience, there are countless moments throughout my life ranging from the very first talent show I performed in, to all the songs my Mother played in the car on road trips where music impacted my life more and more each day.
What I hope for my time at UM-Flint: It’s always my desire to make a mark that can never be erased wherever I am. At UM-Flint, it’s about helping students to see the world as truthfully as possible. As well as empowering them to be lifetime learners, and to make every experience, academic or other, relevant to their life journey.
What I hope for students in my field: I hope emerging musicians understand the importance of being true to who they are. The best thing a musician can be confident in is knowing the power of authenticity.
Three things you should know about me:
1) I am a published songwriter.
2) I am a cinema fanatic—I absolutely love movies.
3) I have considered becoming a Lawyer or a Chef.
