First year Butler University student Abigail Eutsler of Linden received the Efroymson Prize for Diversity in Vocal Performance. In addition to a cash award, the prize includes a major vocal performance opportunity during the Fall semester.
Eutsler intends to donate a portion of the prize money to the School of Music for it to acquire more diverse repertoire for its music library. She also plans to assemble a group of diverse classical musicians from the Indianapolis area to talk with Butler voice students about diversity, equity, and inclusion in the opera world.
Eutsler also received the Woman’s Department Club of Indianapolis Music Merit Award scholarship, which honors the memory of the club’s founder, Luella McWhirter, for students in the Jordan College of the Arts.
From her essay for the awards, Eutsler researched and wrote about composer Florence Price (1887-1953). Her essay included the assertion, “We can talk about racism in classical music, the lack of diversity in the canon, and the problem composers all day long, but words are nothing without actions to back them up.”
Eutsler plans to participate in the Butler Summer Research Institute in 2024 to conduct research for her Honors Thesis about how the patriarchy and sexism affect the female voice.
A voice student of Dr. Oliver Worthington, she is a frequent performer with Butler Opera Theatre. She has been a part of various concerts and recitals including Giuseppe Verdi’s “Requiem,” and Milton Granger’s “Talk Opera”
Eutsler is a member of Sigma Alpha Iota international women’s music fraternity, the National Association for Music Education, and the Indiana Music Educators Association. A 2021 graduate of North Montgomery High School, she is pursuing a five-year bachelor of music degree majoring in vocal performance and music education.
