Who would have thought that opening a few wine bottles would predestine someone to become CEO of the oldest association for music teachers in the country? It doesn’t seem very likely, does it? Not even in Hollywood. But that’s exactly what happened to Brian Shepard.

Twenty years ago, Michael Sumuel, a then-senior voice performance major at Columbus State University in Georgia, had to apply for his first passport: He was going to be competing in the MTNA finals in...

In 2020, violinist Tianyu Liu had the unprecedented experience of competing in the MTNA National Competitions during a global pandemic—and becoming the Young Adult Strings first prize winner. Liu completed...