In continuing coverage, Minnesota Sings is preparing for the 2026 season. Minnesota Sings is a
statewide competition for amateur vocalists and recently revealed on their website a video recapping the 2025 season. KDWA connected with Chuck Spavin, lead volunteer of Minnesota Sings.
Spavin explains the Minnesota Sings judging process.
“They’re digitally recorded, and then those digital files are sent to two judges who listen to all of the auditions, and then they decide who gets into the finals. Now those judges have not had any contact with the auditioners. They just listen to the voice, and they decide who gets into the finals. Now, once you’re in the finals, in this case, it was in Austin. It was at the Paramount Theater in Austin last year; October 11 and 12, I think, were the dates in Austin. There were live judges. And how it works is that the judges listen to everybody, all 58 contestants, and they do it over two days. So, Saturday is usually for the 13 to 20-year-olds, and then Sunday is for 21 and older. But in the first round, they sing. The judges comment on their performance and give them ideas of what they liked and what they didn’t like. So yes, they do get comments from live judges on that first round of performances.”
On October 11 and 12, 2025, the Minnesota Sings finale happened in Austin, Minnesota, at the Paramount Theater. Typically, Minnesota Sings only selects judges from outside of Minnesota to prevent bias in the judging process. In 2025, Minnesota Sings chose two judges from Minnesota who have an ear for vocal talent. Spavin shares more about this as well as the additional judges for the 2025 season.
“For the first time ever, we actually used a couple judges from Minnesota. Now, prior to all prior years, this was the 12th annual one, so for the 11 years prior to that, one of the rules was that we would not use any judges that lived in Minnesota. And the reason for that was to try to keep it, you know, as fair as possible, not have any biases. And the more we thought about that, we said, You know, there’s so many good judges in Minnesota, really talented, talented people, that doesn’t make sense that we don’t have some Minnesota judges. So, on Saturday, the two judges, Lin and Kathy Warren, were the judges on Saturday (October 11, 2025). And Lin, of course, had a fabulous career at Hastings High School with choir and with show choirs. I mean, just, you know, just a remarkable person, and Kathy. Kathy was also at Hastings. She taught at Hastings too. So, kind of, kind of, kind of neat, because it was a husband and wife team, but the other two judges, who were also a husband and wife team, came from Wisconsin. Gary Moss, the other judge, and his wife, Carla Hughes. So they judged on Sunday. And both Gary and Carla are professors of music at Viterbo College in La Crosse, Wisconsin. They’re just great, great judges. I mean, these people are, I mean, you listen to their comments they make, and they’re just, they’re spot on. I mean, they just know so much. I was really impressed by both Lin Warren and Kathy Warren, and then by Carla Hughes and Gary Moss. Impressive judges. So I’m glad we kind of decided that to have some judges other than, you know, once again, we had never had judges from Minnesota, and like, the more I thought about that, I thought, Well, that’s kind of a kind of crazy, because we have such good people in Minnesota too.
The auditions and finale location are still to be determined, but if you would like to learn more about Minnesota Sings, visit the website www.MinnesotaSings.com.
To listen to the full broadcast, click the soundbite.