GKSOM’s Pracht wins collegiate-level Brass Division of MTNA state competition

calendar icon19 Nov 2020    user iconBy Brian G Reetz

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Glenn Korff School of Music’s Kayla Pracht, who is a Junior Bachelor of Music major, won the Brass Division of the Music Teacher’s National Association (MTNA) state competition last week. 

“It means so much to me that I won the state round,” Pracht said. “This honor really motivated me to keep pushing myself to grow as a musician and a horn player. This motivation has pushed me to practice more to accomplish my goals.”

This competition was open to all collegiate-level brass students in the state of Nebraska.  Pracht will now advance to the West Central Regional round, which features the winners from seven surrounding states.

"Kayla has shown tremendous musical growth this past year!” said Alan Mattingly, Professor of Horn at the GKSOM. “Her command of the instrument and overall musicianship continues to skyrocket, and her dedication and work ethic only accelerates that growth.  Kayla is such an important part of the Husker Horn Studio, and she continues an impressive lineage of winners at this competition.”

Because of the pandemic, this year’s competition took a different format than usual.  Instead of a live performance, competitors uploaded video recordings of their pieces. 

“I played Nocturno by Franz Strauss, the first movement of Mozart’s third horn concerto, and the first movement of Morceau de Concert by Camille Saint-Saëns,” Pracht said. Here is a link to Pracht playing Nocturno: https://youtu.be/VHyjX5ZaYv8

Pracht, who is from Waverly, has seen herself grow a lot as a performer.

“When I first started at UNL, I was a very shy and inward player,” she said. “Dr. Mattingly has really helped me to open up as a player and be more confident in my abilities. 

“UNL, and in particular the GKSOM has always been what I consider home. I participated in horn choir during high school because my private lessons teacher, Arch Hill, was a member. Through this, I became acquainted with Dr. Alan Mattingly and knew that I wanted to come here and be a student of his. I just want to say a big thank you to my support system. Without the love and support of my friends, family, and past and present teachers, I wouldn’t be where I am today.”