2025 Lifetime Achievement Awardee
LEANNE FREEMAN-MILLER
Leanne Freeman-Miller, soprano, is a Distinguished Ellis and Nelle Levitt Professor of Voice at Drake University, an honor awarded to recognize superior faculty. She has also been a recipient of the Madelyn Levitt Teacher of the Year award, Drake’s highest honor awarded to faculty for teaching.
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2024 Lifetime Achievement Award: Earl Coleman2023 Lifetime Achievement Award: Ollie Watts Davis
2022 Lifetime Achievement Award: Kurt Hansen
2019 Lifetime Achievement Award: Katherine Eberle Fink
2018 Lifetime Achievement Award: Carole Gaspar
2017 Lifetime Achievement Award: Maria Lagios
In addition to maintaining a large studio of voice majors at Drake, she is also Creative Director of Drake Opera Theater. Ms. Freeman-Miller has appeared on concert stages nationally and internationally in recital, oratorio and opera. She has served on the voice faculties of the International Lyric Academy and Opera Viva! in Italy and was also invited to teach at numerous universities in China, helping to initiate a partnership between Drake and Minzu University in Beijing.
A renowned teacher, her students are frequent finalists in competitions, are attending the top graduate schools in the country, and are singing professionally in venues all over the world, including The Metropolitan Opera and Paris Opera. She has been a proud member of NATS for over 30 years, has served as the Iowa District Governor, Iowa Chapter President for two terms, and has served as a site coordinator for numerous NATS auditions.
