Alert the Media!

Some exciting upcoming events:

Tuesday, January 2nd
On-air, in-studio interview with Dave Lee on WCCO radio in the 7:00am hour.


Saturday, January 6th - 3-6pm
Gown Showing/Send-off Party
I don't leave until January 19th, but this is your chance to preview everything I'll be doing and wearing at Miss America... and it's my chance to practice changing really quickly.
Dorothy Benham will be the emcee of the event, and there will be t-shirts and buttons available for purchase.
Location:
Holiday Inn Select International Airport Hotel
3 Appletree Square
Bloomington, MN 55425
and, for your convenience, a GoogleMap!


Tuesday, January 9th - 10am
KARE11's Showcase Minnesota
A live interview & performance... tune in!


I will also be performing the national anthem at the Gopher Women's Basketball game on 1/7 and the Gopher Men's Basketball game on 1/17.

Merry Christmas!

My entire family was home for Christmas! This situation hasn't occured since 2002, so it was very exciting. My younger brother, Justin, lives in Atlanta, and the other three - Erik, Marissa, and her husband Martin - live in Los Angeles. They all flew in and we went up to Duluth, where my grandpa lives. We always spend some time at the beach, skipping rocks into the great lake.

No, it's not your typical "beach." Left to Right: Erik, Justin, Me, Dad, Marissa, Martin. Mom was taking the picture.

Here's wishing you all warmth and peace in this holiday season!

ROCKY!

When I received a confirmation email that I had been one of the first twenty contestants to RSVP to the Aladdin's invitation to the Las Vegas premiere of Rocky Balboa, I jumped up and down. Literally.

And I am that excited to go back to Las Vegas in a couple weeks. It was an amazing (I've been using that adjective a lot recently), albeit short (26 hours?) experience. And since a picture paints a thousand words, I'll keep the commentary brief.

Stallone. He's not as short as some people had predicted.
And his movie was truly enjoyable.

One of FOUR (4!!!) limo rides. With Christie Hageman (Miss MT) and
Lynette Boggs (member of MAO Board of Directors)

The group (minus Miss LA - her plane had been delayed) - my apologize for the demonic eyes on everybody... even red-eye tools couldn't fix it!

My Miss America roommate, Heidi Voight, representing the great state of Connecticut. We'll have a blast together :)

Yep, that's Carrot Top. In conversation, he was genuine, intelligent, and kind... but he makes faces in photos. Everybody has their thing, I guess.

Gene Kilroy, former business manager for Muhammad Ali. Seriously. The ring on my index finger is one of his championship rings. Seriously.

Last but not least... the one and only David Hasselhoff!
He's moving to Vegas for this. Amazing.

The end... but really, it's just the beginning :)

Come on, ring those bells...

...light the Christmas tree... (anybody else know that song?)

Today was Celebrity Bell-Ringing Day for the Salvation Army at the Mall of America. I shared a kettle for a little while with TC Bear, the mascot for the Minnesota Twins, and I think all the kids were on sensory overload... sparkly shiny crown AND a big gigantic fuzzy bear???


And also, I'm officially 24... today was my birthday!

Music is Instrumental in Sartell

Where? Sartell. Home of the Sabres... and some pretty fantastic people. Stacey Fristad of the Sartell Music Association arranged for my visit, and the 3 days passed in a flurry!

Monday, December 11:
I visited both elementary schools (Pine Meadow and Oak Ridge), with two assemblies at each. Both are utilizing the Character Counts! curriculum, so I was able to weave Respect, Responsibility, and Caring into my presentations. I was truly impressed by the feeling of community within these schools, and the respect and admiration the students obviously felt towards their peers, teachers, and principals.

an interactive activity - conducting Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Mrs. Peach's first-graders

Monday evening, the Chamber of Commerce hosted a reception at the Meeting Grounds coffeehouse, where I performed and signed autographs.


Tuesday, December 12th:
Sartell Middle School! My favorite part of this day was spending two class periods with Special Education students. Their teacher, Dorie Hall, uses music and music-making often in her own teaching, and she was excited to have me speak with her students. We had a very open conversation, not only about music but also about overcoming challenges, discovering your strengths, and persevering towards goals.
I also presented to the entire 5th-grade class and worked with various Band and General Music classes and spoke with the Dance Team about poise and performance preparation.



Tuesday night was the Winter Winds concert at Sartell High School. I performed two selections: the Prelude from J.S. Bach's 5th Suite and Fritz Kreisler's Praeludium & Allegro. At the reception afterwards, I signed autographs and answered questions. According to the Sartell Music Association, turnout was the highest it had ever been, with a large number of elementary and middle school students attending who had met me earlier.

with the Sartell Music Association - the people who make it all happen!

Wednesday, December 13th
Today I visited with all the music students at Sartell High School. One of my favorite moments was with Donna Voce, the all-women's choir. They are preparing a piece for their concert that includes two violin parts - so I sight-read and transposed onto my viola. It worked, mostly. It was also nice to have a bit of girl time. I was in an all-female choir my sophomore year of high school, and I look back on that year with fondness.




Many many many thanks to Stacey Fristad for making this residency possible - and for being such a great host mom! To everyone that I met and all the students with whom I worked... always remember two things:
1. Practice makes permanent
2. Tell stories with your music!

Two Weeks in a Nutshell

These past two weeks have been rather full; unfortunately, I have very few pictures from these events! I'll give you a brief synopsis of what I've been doing...

11/26 - Miss MN USA Pageant
Congratulations to Alla Ilushka (Miss MN USA) and Vanessa Vonbehren (Miss Teen MN USA)! This was my first time attending a USA pageant, and I enjoyed my role as an unbiased observer. The show opener was a live performance of the Evolution of Dance - one of YouTube's top videos of the year!
11/29 - Stillwater Schools
I visited with students at four schools in the Stillwater Area Public School District - Stillwater Senior High, Stillwater Junior High, and Oak Park and Lily Lake Elementary schools. Marla Okner, one of my sister's former violin teachers, was my host for the day.
11/30 - Twin Cities Media Network Fashion Show
For their winter fundraising event, the Twin Cities Media Network hosted a fashion show, and I was a celebrity model. I also performed my Miss MN Talent selection ("Praeludium & Allegro" by Fritz Kreisler) and met several Twin Cities media personalities, including Alison Young from MPR.
12/2 - Mankato Area Youth Symphony
At the MNSOTA workshop in October, I ran into Amy Roisum-Foley, a former band director at my junior high school in Lakeville. She now works at Minnesota State University-Mankato and as the director of the Mankato Area Youth Symphony. This afternoon was MAYSO's winter concert, and I performed (first and second movements of the Telemann Viola Concerto), spoke, signed autographs, took pictures, and played Christmas carols with the group.
12/3 - Isabella Collections Winter Open House
You remember Isabella's. The fantastic dress? This evening marked their first annual Winter Open House. I performed, answered questions, and enjoyed the great company and hors d'oeuvres. Many thanks to Robyn & Jeannie for all their support over the past few months!
12/4 - Interview with Star Tribune
I had a two-hour conversation this afternoon with Kay Miller of the Star Tribune. She writes for the Source section and will be publishing an article at some point right before Miss America! She had traveled with the Minnesota Orchestra on a European tour, and her stories of that adventure were amazing.
12/5 - Coon Rapids High School
I met with both orchestras at Coon Rapids High School this morning.They're preparing for their winter concert, and I was able to give them a little advice on preparation and avoiding performance anxiety!
12/7 - Schubert Club Holiday Luncheon/MPR Testimonial
The Schubert Club has been fantastically supportive of me not only as Miss Minnesota, but throughout all of my musical adventures over the years. I performed today at their Holiday Luncheon - "Carol" and "Christmas Dance" from Vaughan Williams' Suite for Viola and Orchestra. (Er... piano, in this case. I wish I could carry a portable orchestra around in my pocket.)
Then I recorded a testimonial at MPR... essentially a "Hi, I'm Nicole Swanson, Miss Minnesota... and I'm a member of Minnesota Public Radio." It was a little more personal than that... but you'll just have to listen (find your station here) and hear for yourself!
12/9 - MYS String Orchestra Holiday Concert
One of the best things about being Miss Minnesota for me is the opportunity to partner with organizations that have been an integral part of my life. Minnesota Youth Symphonies is definitely one of them. This afternoon, the String orchestra performed a holiday concert at Dayton's Bluffs Recreation Center, and I joined them as soloist, speaker, and viola section substitute.