Executive Overview
In a joint announcement that bridges the gap between rigorous voice science and elite vocal pedagogy, the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) and The Voice Foundation have named Dr. Nicholas Perna as the recipient of the prestigious 2025 Van L. Lawrence Fellowship Award.
This highly competitive accolade—which carries a $2,000 research stipend alongside a coveted invitation to present and attend the 54th Annual Symposium: Care of the Professional Voice in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania—recognizes Perna’s pioneering inquiry into vocal mechanics. Scheduled to run from May 28 to June 1, 2025, the symposium serves as the premier global gathering for laryngologists, speech-language pathologists, vocal pedagogues, and singing voice scientists.
Dr. Perna, an associate professor of voice and the newly appointed director of vocal pedagogy at the University of Colorado Boulder, will apply the fellowship’s funding directly toward his ongoing, highly anticipated study on velopharyngeal opening (VPO) variability in collegiate treble singers. By examining how nasality, nasal airflow, and velopharyngeal mechanics shift across ascending vocal pitches—and comparing these behaviors across Western Classical (WC) and Musical Theater (MT) genres—Perna’s research promises to decode some of the most elusive physiological challenges faced by modern singers and voice educators.
This comprehensive report examines the background of the Van L. Lawrence Fellowship, details the mechanics and scope of Dr. Perna’s winning research project, explores his extensive leadership footprint within the vocal arts community, and analyzes the broader implications of his findings for the future of vocal health and pedagogy.
Detailed Chronology: The Journey to the 2025 Fellowship
To understand the weight of the Van L. Lawrence Fellowship, one must examine its historical lineage within the voice science community. Established jointly by NATS and The Voice Foundation, the fellowship honors the memory of Dr. Van. L. Lawrence, a passionate otolaryngologist and early champion of interdisciplinary collaboration between medical professionals and singing teachers. The award is presented annually to an individual who demonstrates excellence in teaching, a commitment to empirical research, and a clear dedication to bettering the understanding of the professional voice.
Dr. Nicholas Perna’s trajectory toward this national recognition has been defined by decades of dedicated scholarship, institutional leadership, and digital communication within the vocal arts.
Early Career and Academic Ascendancy
Perna’s fascination with nasality, nasal airflow, and vocal tract adjustments began early in his academic journey and quickly evolved into the core anchor of his life’s work. Over the years, he has built a reputation as a meticulous pedagogue who refuses to rely solely on anecdotal traditions, choosing instead to ground his teaching in quantifiable, measurable science.
Leadership Roles Within NATS
Beyond the studio, Perna’s influence within the professional community has expanded exponentially. A dedicated member of the NATS Colorado/Wyoming Chapter (West Central Region), Perna currently serves on the national stage as the NATS Vice President for Outreach (2022–2026) on the NATS Board of Directors. His leadership footprint also includes serving as the poster paper coordinator for major NATS national conferences, most notably steering the academic presentation framework at the 2024 gathering in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Digital Outreach and VocalFri
Recognizing the modern necessity of accessible digital education, Perna cohosts the widely popular weekly podcast VocalFri alongside fellow pedagogue Sarah Welch Pigott. As an active member of NATSCast—the official podcast network of the National Association of Teachers of Singing—VocalFri bridges academic voice science and everyday studio practice, translating complex physiological concepts into digestible, actionable advice for teachers and students worldwide.
The University of Colorado Boulder Appointment
The announcement of the 2025 Van L. Lawrence Fellowship arrives during a landmark period in Perna’s professional life: his first year serving as the Director of Vocal Pedagogy at the University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder). This appointment holds a deeply poetic historical connection, as CU Boulder’s legendary program founder, Berton Coffin, famously collaborated with Dr. Van L. Lawrence himself while pioneering early observational frameworks of the singing voice. For Perna to receive this specific fellowship during his inaugural year at CU Boulder feels less like a coincidence and more like a generational torch being officially passed.
Supporting Context & Metrics: The Science of Velopharyngeal Opening (VPO)
To fully appreciate the significance of Dr. Perna’s current research, one must explore the intricate anatomy and acoustic physics of the vocal tract, specifically concerning the velopharynx.
What is the Velopharyngeal Opening (VPO)?
The velopharyngeal port is the valve-like passage connecting the pharynx (throat) and the nasal cavity. Composed of the soft palate (velum) and the pharyngeal walls, this structure controls the degree of nasal resonance (nasality) during speech and singing. While traditional Western Classical singing typically demands a fully elevated, closed velopharynx for almost all vowels to project a rich, oral-centric sound, contemporary commercial music (CCM)—including Musical Theater—utilizes dynamic, highly nuanced adjustments of the velopharyngeal port to achieve stylistic colors, linguistic clarity, and vocal security in high-register belts and mixes.
The Core Research Questions
Perna’s 2025 fellowship project centers on three primary empirical queries regarding collegiate treble singers:
- Pitch-Dependent Variability: Do collegiate treble singers systematically vary their velopharyngeal opening (VPO) as pitch increases?
- Genre-Specific Divergence: How do Western Classical (WC) singers differ from Musical Theater (MT) singers regarding VPO adjustments during ascending pitch sequences?
- Contact Quotient Correlation: Is there a statistically significant correlative behavior between a singer’s VPO adjustments and their vocal fold contact quotient (CQ)—the proportion of a vibratory cycle during which the vocal folds are in physical contact—as pitch rises?
Breaking Down the "Mixed Voice" Hypothesis
For decades, voice teachers have operated on anecdotal evidence suggesting that treble Musical Theater singers actively increase their VPO as pitch ascends, particularly when transitioning into the upper registers commonly referred to as "mixed voice."
If Perna’s research confirms this hypothesis, it will provide a massive empirical breakthrough. It will shift the pedagogy of the high commercial mix away from subjective trial-and-error toward objective, biomechanically sound instruction.
"If that is true, this study could aid singers and voice teachers to better understand how to execute climactic higher pitches in an easier and healthier production, specifically in MT styles," Perna notes. By lowering physical tension and optimizing airflow, such findings could drastically reduce rates of vocal fatigue and injury among collegiate performers navigating demanding musical theater scores.
Collaborative Network and Methodological Rigor
Science is rarely a solo endeavor. To ensure absolute methodological integrity, Perna has enlisted a high-caliber team of medical and academic collaborators. He has secured essential guidance on research design from Dr. Joshua Glasner of the renowned Lions Voice Clinic, ensuring that the clinical and acoustic measurements meet the highest standards of modern voice science. Furthermore, the day-to-day data collection and analysis are being driven by two dedicated graduate research assistants at CU Boulder: Alice Del Simone and Benjamin South.
Official Statements & Industry Perspectives
The announcement of the 2025 fellowship recipient generated widespread enthusiasm across the organizational leadership of both the National Association of Teachers of Singing and The Voice Foundation.
In a joint statement released by both organizations, leadership praised Dr. Perna’s dual commitment to classroom excellence and laboratory inquiry.
"Investigating nasality, nasal airflow, and velopharyngeal opening (VPO) have been central to my research agenda my entire career," Dr. Nicholas Perna shared upon accepting the award. "On a personal note, receiving this honor in my first year at University of Colorado Boulder as the Director of Vocal Pedagogy is particularly meaningful. Van Lawrence was one of the voice scientists with whom our program’s founder, Berton Coffin, collaborated as he came to his own observations of the singing voice."
Colleagues and administrative bodies within NATS have likewise underscored the importance of funding research that directly impacts contemporary commercial music pedagogy. As CCM training becomes increasingly dominant in collegiate music schools across North America, studies that demystify the physiological mechanics of musical theater belting and mixed registration are more vital than ever.
Future Outlook: Implications for Studios and Stages
As Dr. Perna prepares to travel to Philadelphia in late May 2025 to present his ongoing work at the Care of the Professional Voice Symposium, the ripple effects of his research are already being anticipated across the global voice community.
1. Transforming Collegiate Pedagogy Curricula
With Perna now at the helm of the vocal pedagogy program at CU Boulder, the insights gleaned from the VPO study will flow directly into graduate-level curricula. Future generations of voice teachers will enter the profession equipped with concrete data regarding how treble singers manage airflow and palatal movement, replacing vague metaphors with precise anatomical awareness.
2. Enhancing Vocal Health and Longevity
For musical theater performers—who often face grueling eight-show-a-week schedules demanding extreme vocal agility and high-register power—preventative voice science is a game-changer. By mapping out healthier, more efficient pathways to executing climactic high notes, Perna’s work contributes directly to injury prevention and career longevity.
3. Bridging the Gap Between Science and Studio
Through initiatives like VocalFri, his leadership on the NATS Board of Directors, and his academic publications, Perna remains uniquely positioned to translate complex laboratory findings into practical studio takeaways. The $2,000 Van L. Lawrence Fellowship serves not only as financial backing for a vital research project, but as a resounding endorsement of an educator who refuses to let the artificial wall between art and science stand.
Both the National Association of Teachers of Singing and The Voice Foundation extend their warmest congratulations to Dr. Nicholas Perna for his exceptional achievements, eagerly awaiting the final findings of a study that promises to alter our understanding of the human singing voice for years to come.
