Greetings!

Happy Summer, y'all! Yes, coming home from the NFMC Convention in Austin, Texas, I sometimes catch myself talking like a true Texan! It was great to see friends and colleagues from across the nation and get the latest and greatest information from our National leaders.

More than anything, I got some great ideas from other State Presidents. Did you know that most states hold an annual convention (or conference)? The attendees come from across the state to attend their annual state gathering. They connect, they share ideas, they inform, they learn, they eat, and they listen to, and participate in, great music.

It dawned on me that we also do that, albeit it in an abbreviated format, but we call it a "meeting." SO, from now on, we are going to call our fall general state meeting the WSFMC Annual Conference!

I think most WSFMC members believe this conference is just for club presidents and state chairpersons. That is NOT TRUE! This conference is for every member of the WSFMC!

We are aware that some members do have to travel up to 2.5 hours to get to this conference, but we hope you'll find the value in attending. We are aware that some members teach on Saturday mornings. We hope that you will find the value in attending and rearrange your teaching schedule for this one-time-a-year conference. There will never be the perfect time to hold a conference, but we hope that you will gather as many of your club members to come together at this conference. We are working hard to make it a valuable experience for you, for your studio, and for your students.

Articles for Melody Lines Please send articles for Melody Lines to me at wsfmcpresident@gmail.com. Please send no later than a week before publication. Publication months are October, December, February, April, June, August.

I would LOVE to hear from all of our WSFMC Members who have news and information to share.

PLEASE click on the LINKS for valuable information. Thanks!

Sally L. Palmer

WSFMC President

e-mail: wsfmcpresident@gmail.com

Washington State Federation of Music Clubs

Annual State Conference

Saturday, September 27, 2025

10:00 am - 12:00 pm (followed by lunch) Newport Covenant Church, Bellevue, WA 12800 SE Coal Creek Pkwy, Bellevue, WA 98006

Why attend? This is NOT just another meeting! This is for ALL WSFMC members!!

• Meet WSFMC leadership, committee chairs, and club presidents
• VOTE! WSFMC leadership elections
• Get information about upcoming events
• Get NEW information from NFMC / NFMC convention
• Participate in a much needed presentation on Competitions & Awards (see below)
• Hear performances from our Junior Composer winners
• Enjoy lunch and fellowship

You might be asking yourself:

"Will attending this conference help me, help my studio, help my students?"

YES! It will! Fellowshipping alone is helpful in all three of these areas, and this conference provides so much more and fellowshipping.

Also, ask yourself:

"Do I have a vested interest in my Senior Club? Do I have a vested interest in the WSFMC?"

If you answer YES to either one of these questions, your attendance at this conference will be beneficial to your investment of time and sacrifice.

Competitions & Awards Presentation

There are so many awards offered by the NFMC that basically go unnoticed and untapped. During this presentation (Saturday, September 27, 2025) we'll show you how to find the awards, how to access the applications, how to pay fees, how to complete applications, how to apply for individual membership if not a member of a club, etc. There will be plenty of time for questions and answers.

There are several awards for piano solos, but there are so many more! Here are some examples:

• Junior Vocal Award
• Junior Piano Concerto Award
• Junior Special Needs / Disabilities Awards
• Junior Instrumental Awards - string, brass, woodwind, guitar, piano, organ, etc.
• Awards for Juniors, Student/Collegiate, and Senior categories

Bring your laptops if you'd like to have hands-on experience during the presentation.

Please plan on attending the Annual WSFMC Conference to hear and be a part of this presentation! If you are traveling, make a weekend of it! Our fall season is beautiful!

CONGRATULATIONS!! A huge shout out to Susanna Valleau, winner of the NFMC Ouida Keck Award for the Professional Development for the Independent Piano Teacher. This is a very prestigious award and we are extremely proud of Susanna and her representation of Washington State. Susanna belongs to the Issaquah Federated Music Club.

Susanna Valleau is a Seattle-based organist, pianist, and music teacher, living her dream of building a career entirely through music. She serves as music director of St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church in Shoreline, Washington, where she proudly plays the newly installed Ortloff organ. As a solo performer on the organ, she has appeared at regional and national conventions of the American Guild of Organists, as well as in concerts throughout the United States. Susanna is on faculty with the Seattle Girls’ Choir, maintains an active piano and organ studio, and collaborates regularly as an accompanist and in chamber music settings on piano, harpsichord, and organ. She is currently pursuing a Graduate Certificate in Injury-Preventative Keyboard Technique with Dr. Barbara Lister-Sink at Salem College.

More Congratulations!!

Anderson Foong began learning piano at the age of 4 under the guidance of Mrs. Betty Mak (Greater Newcastle Federated Music Club). He participated in his first Piano Festival in 2011 and has continued to do so for 14 years, achieving Superior ratings each year in Concerto, Solo, and Theory until earning his Grand Cup this past year. Outside of his time practicing piano, Anderson has been active in the Science Olympiad, an interdisciplinary STEM competition, where he has placed in the top 3 at the state level for the past four years. A nature enthusiast, he also enjoys wildlife and macro photography, especially of his pet tarantula, Itsy Bitsy. In June 2025, he graduated from Interlake High School in Bellevue, Washington, earning his International Baccalaureate and high school diploma. Anderson will be studying biology at Purdue University in West Lafayette.

Nathan Cheng, a recent graduate of Newport High School and piano student of Betty Mak (Greater Newcastle Federated Music Club) in Bellevue, Washington, has participated in The National Federation of Music Clubs Piano Festivals since the age of eight, has participated in Piano Solo, Concerto and Theory events since 2013, earning consecutive Superior ratings throughout his time of playing. Through Ms. Betty’s piano studio, Nathan has continued to play and perform in recitals as well. Nathan’s other interests include playing tennis, coaching, and hiking. Nathan plans to attend the University of Southern California this fall.

"The purpose of giving a report is to document events, provide information, inform, analyze, and assist in decision-making."

We only have one General Meeting a year and there just isn't enough time for everyone to give an oral report, so, if you want information and assist in decision-making and staying current, please take the time to read the following reports:

2025 NFMC Convention Report compiled by Sally Palmer & Lorraine Nelson

Thank you Ellen Leapaldt!!

Ellen has agreed to serve as the Washington State Federation of Music Clubs' Arts Division Chair! Ellen currently serves on our WSFMC Executive Board and serves as the NFMC Arts Division Chair, which is a pretty big deal. We are so grateful for Ellen's willingness to add one more responsibility to her already full plate, but we are incredibly lucky to have the NFMC chair in our state to serve as our WSFMC chair!

Ellen asks that we have a separate person in charge of National Music Week and the National Music Week Essay Contest. This person would just need to be the mouthpiece for these events - advertising, reminding, assisting, and filling out a state report, if needed. Sally (PR/Communications) is happy to help with efforts to "get the word out." Please let me know if you'd be willing to serve in this capacity.



Click Here to get a better idea of what the National Music Week Essay Contest is all about!

Next Melody Lines Newsletter coming October 1st.

Please submit any announcements or articles by September 15th.

We would LOVE your contributions!!

Sally Palmer, Editor

NFMC JUNIOR MUSIC COMPETITIONS submitted by John Van Lierop, Jr., WSFMC Awards/Competitions Chair

In this August Melody Lines issue I will share with you the five NFMC National Junior Competitions that include the piano. The entry fee is very low- only $10 per contest except $20 for the Michael Edward’s one. It’s not too early to start planning and preparing your students for these National Competitions.

The applications and requirements can be found on the NFMC Home page. On the menu click Competitions & Awards, then click Junior Division and finally all the Junior Division Competitions appear. Everything is now done online, including the application and payments, as well as uploading any videos.

There will be a special presentation of the NFMC Competitions and Awards at our September 27 WSFMC Fall Conference. Please plan on attending this meeting with other members of your club.

I will briefly describe the five piano competitions that are available for 2026. I have included the new award money that has increased over last year. These increases might not be reflected yet on the present online entry forms. Make sure all applications have “August 2025” written in the lower right-hand corner of the application (and the rules and procedures paperwork. All updated forms should be online by the first of September 2025.)

CLICK HERE for the full article and the FIVE Junior Piano Awards

I have a request- Could you teachers please inform me when you enter one of your students in any of these competitions? We want to recognize your students in one of our future Melody Lines, whether they are a National winner or not. Just being in the competition takes a lot of work! 

Your new 2025-2027 NFMC Festivals Team!

The following Junior Division recommendations were approved in June by the Board of Directors at the 2025 NFMC Convention held in Austin, TX:

1. Federation Cup pre-orders must be approved by the NFMC Federation Cup Chair and NFMC Executive Director.

2. The JR 3-13 Specially Capable Musician application must be approved by the local (area) and State Festivals Chairs. A one-time filing is now applicable for permanent conditions. The student’s teacher must retain the initial approval form and resubmit it each year to the Area Chair.

3. The Popular Piano Solo Event choice piece may/may not be from the required list.

4. Eliminate the class correlations/requirements for sight-singing/playing.

5. The solo correlations for the Violin Concerto event are now not mandatory; they are guidelines only.

Colleges, Universities, Conservatories, oh my!

Would you like your former college or university music department/school of music, or conservatory, be notified of the many NFMC Student/Collegiate Scholarships and Awards? It's easy to do! Just give the name of your college/university/conservatory to Sally Palmer at spalmer19@hotmail.com or wsfmcpresident@gmail.com and she will make the contact! If you have any current contact information from the school of music you attended, please share that also! New materials are being prepared by the NFMC to notify ours nation's colleges and universities and music conservatories of the Awards and Scholarships available to their music students. Thank you!

FYI - Did you know that the Eastern Washington University Music Department and the Seattle Pacific University Music Department are both FEDERATED music clubs?? Did you attend either one of these universities?

WE LOVE OUR JUNIOR ASSOCIATE CLUBS!!

Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra - https://www.byso.org/

Cascade Youth Symphony Orchestras - https://www.cyso.us/

Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra - https://syso.org/

Student Orchestras of Greater Olympia - https://studentorchestras.org/

Tacoma Youth Symphony Association - https://tysamusic.org/

Check out these websites for upcoming events and how you can show your support.

If you know of a group of junior age students who could benefit from being members of the Washington State Federation of Music Clubs, please contact Sally Palmer, Membership Chair.

News from Deborah Freeman, NFMC President

Click Here for News

IN TUNE! NFMC Newsletter

Our National President, Deborah Freeman, sends out IN TUNE with NFMC each month which includes some awesome NFMC Division information that you may not have ever heard about if you don't stay "In Tune!"

Click here for June 2025 IN TUNE

Click here for July 2025 IN TUNE this has some important information from the recent NFMC Convention held in June.

LIABILITY INSURANCE COVERAGE 2025 - 2026

Submitted by Dr. Yelena Balabanova, WSFMC Liability Insurance Chair



NFMC and its members are purchasing Liability Insurance only. This provides coverage to a third party for bodily injury or property damage the entity causes. You must be a member in good standing to obtain insurance!

National designated deadline to submit requests:

August 15 for events September 1 – December 31

December 1 for events January 1 – August 31



• Cost per event is $20. Add $5 extra per event if registered after the designated deadline
• Cost per event having consecutive days is $25.
• An event on a single day but at multiple sites costs $20 per site.
• No requests will be processed without an accurate address and date of event.
• If an event requires a rider of an additional insured, give the exact language required.
• Any changes requested after a certificate is issued will result in a $5 change fee.
• If you need to change an event date, and wait to inform NFMC until the original date has passed you will owe another full event fee. There is NO credit in that situation.
• A certificate verifying insurance coverage is issued only to an event that requests it. Certificates will be sent to the state liability chair and will be mailed to requested members.
• Coverage is not guaranteed until payment is received and processed by NFMC Headquarters. "No payment = No Insurance" 

WSFMC members:

Inform Insurance Chair by email in advance when you will make the payment online,

so Yelena can process the submission the same day you make the payment.

Make payment on www.nfmc-music.org/payment/

Select "Liability Insurance" under Plans

and Fill in your "Event Name, Date and Location" under Notes

Email payment receipt and forms below to YelenaBalabanova@gmail.com

2025-2026 Liability Insurance Request NFMC Liability Insurance Letter

NFMC Liability Insurance Request Form

Child Protection Policy Form