Kamryn Morrison is a musician from South Prairie High School. Submitted Photo

Minot and its surrounding area is full of talent. The arts in Minot have been flourishing over the years and new artists are gaining new opportunities. One such artist, Kamryn Morrison, has gained a once in a lifetime opportunity to perform alongside some of the best high school performers worldwide at Carnegie Hall in February.

Music has been a part of Kamryn Morrison’s life for as long as she can remember. She has performed with the Western Plains Children Choirs for over seven years, has performed at many festivals and concerts, and was even a contestant on the recent PBS talent search “Celebration of Music” with her school’s show choir, Royal Rhapsody.

She has gained a lot of experience and opportunities that she says are all thanks to the community. Many of those who inspired her to follow her musical dreams were local performers.

“Music is a really big part of Minot, so I’ve gotten to do a lot of things,” she explained. “So many people have inspired me to keep going with the art. I definitely wouldn’t be doing all the things I am today if they hadn’t been teaching me over the years.”

Morrison performs a wide range of music, but loves performing choral music. She also really enjoys musical theater and performed with MSU’s summer theater over the past year. She has even added original music to her repertoire of musical talents.

Now Morrison will be taking on an all new adventure and opportunity as she heads to New York for this big chance.

“I’m so excited about it. I can’t believe it’s really happening. It’s all so surreal,” she said.

Morrison was one of more than 18,000 performers worldwide who auditioned to be a part of the 2019 High School Honors Performance Series at Carnegie Hall. Only 150 are selected.

“I was invited to audition after I was accepted into North Dakota Music Educators Association All States Mixed Choir and so I sent in a tape. I had to record myself singing a few pieces and scales. A few months later, I found out that I got in,” Morrison said.

She is excited to get to perform alongside performers from other countries as well as broaden her musical horizons, bringing back the knowledge she gets to Minot.

“It’s always wonderful to work under another conductor that I haven’t worked under before and all conductors have different ideas and techniques they like to try out. I’m really excited to expose myself to some new ones and just performing in the hall is going to be an amazing experience,” she said.

Over the holidays, Morrison began to raise funds for her upcoming trip through “Singing Christmas Card.” With a $10 donation, she went around to senior care facilities and workplaces to serenade people’s friends and family with Christmas tunes in a Dickens era costume.

She plans to continue performing locally for businesses at events, meetings, or other to continue raising funds. To reserve her for a musical performance, call 721-7487.

Those chosen for the High School Honors Performance Series will be headed to New York City from Feb. 7 to Feb. 11 where they will learn from world-renowned conductors, work with other finalists and experience the city.

Morrison will be performing as a soprano 1 in the Honors Women’s Choir.

(Prairie Profile is a weekly feature profiling interesting people in our region. We welcome suggestions from our readers. Call Editor Mike Sasser at 857-1959 or Regional Editor Eloise Ogden at 857-1944. Either can be reached at 1-800-735-3229. You also can send email suggestions to msasser@minotdailynews.com.)