ABOUT THE OPERA CLUB The Opera Club of the Villages was established in 1997 to present live performances to Villagers and establish a music scholarship program to honor the founder of the Villages, Harold Schwartz. Since it’s inception over $550,000 in scholarship money has been awarded to local students in Marion ,Lake and Sumter counties who aspire to pursue a career in Music. More information is available at: www.operaclubofthevillages.com
WE ARE THE OPERA CLUB We are proud to announce that this is the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Harold Schwartz Music Scholarship Program. Over the years, our winner have met with great success. Many have returned to Central Florida to become Band Directors at The Villages® Charter High School, Leesburg High School, Tavares High School, Mt. Dora High School. Some are vocal instructors, members of Opera Companies, celebrated pianists, instrumentalist - we are so blessed and happy that we encouraged these aspiring musicians with financial support helping them to realize their dreams. The Opera Club of The Villages was established to present live musical performances, operas, and concerts to Villagers. Meetings are held the fourth Thursday of each month at Laurel Manor Recreation Center from September through May. In 1997, the Opera Club established the Harold S. Schwartz Music Scholarship Program to honor the founder of The Villages. The goal was to encourage and support students who plan to pursue a career in music by awarding scholarships to applicants in Marion, Lake and Sumter Counties. Since its inception, over $587,479 in scholarship money has been awarded to 89 students. Our yearly awards range from $28,000 to $56,000 awarded in 2021. Our major source of income is our "Three Tenors Plus One" concert presented at The Sharon® Performing Arts Center. During the school year, our Scholarship Committee sends applications to all schools in the tri-county area. Students applying must be graduating seniors with a minimum grade point average of 3.0. They must be planning to major or minor in music education or performance in college. The student must complete the application and submit it with two letters of recommendation. Scholarship auditions are adjudicated by professional judges. Last year, due to COVID restrictions, the auditions were online. The students were sent instructions on how to make cell phone videos of their auditions. The 352-751-7799
5
