2026 National Society of Arts and Letters National Meeting
The NSAL National Meeting will be held May 14-16, 2026 in Little Rock, Arkansas. Our DC chapter will enter the winners of our voice, art and horn competitions in the national competitions for recognition and awards. Below is the “call to meeting” from NSAL President Twyla Martins and this link takes you to the meeting schedule & registration.
Dear NSAL Members,
We are excited to welcome you to Little Rock for the NSAL 2026 Annual Meeting and High Brass Competition. The last time the NSAL Annual Meeting was held in Little Rock was in 1985 along with the modern and ballet dance competition. Prior to that the annual meeting was held in 1956. So for most of you this annual meeting may be the first time that you’ve had the opportunity to visit our lovely city that has a “small town feel with big city amenities.” It’s also a first for NSAL as we hold the first-ever high brass competition for trumpet and French horn. The Arkansas and Kentucky Chapters, co-hosts for this event, have joined together to organize a wonderful event for you. Hotel accommodations have been arranged at the Holiday Inn Presidential Hotel in downtown Little Rock where the General Session, the President’s Reception, the “Meet and Greet” Dinner, and the Presidents’ Luncheon will be held. The competition will take place in the newly constructed Arkansas Symphony Orchestra Stella Boyle Smith Music Center. The Awards Reception will be held in the Palisades Room at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel and the Awards Banquet will be held in the Still Ballroom A in the Robinson Center overlooking the Arkansas River. As part of the Conference Registration Fee, those registered for the annual meeting may tour either the Clinton Presidential Library and Museum or the ESSE Purse Museum and Store. Immediately following the High Brass Clinic, which ends around noon on Saturday, May 16, you may choose to travel to the Clinton Presidential Library and Museum for lunch on your own at the restaurant 42 Bar and Table. This will be followed by a tour of the Museum exhibits and artifacts including a replica Oval Office and the Cabinet Room. There is also a 12-minute orientation film which is a biographical documentary of Bill Clinton’s life and presidency. A shorter tour with less walking involved will take place a little later that afternoon at the ESSE Purse Museum and Store which showcases the 20th Century American woman’s evolution through the handbags she carried. Those choosing this tour will travel back to the Holiday Inn Presidential Hotel for lunch on your own. The ESSE Purse Museum and Store highlights the changing roles of women from the early 1900s through the feminist movement and the rise of women in the workforce. It exhibits a century of women’s handbags from 1900 – 1999. There are other tours that are free that you might choose to do on your own. Nearby you will find the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, the Old State House Museum, and the Historic Arkansas Museum. You might choose to go to the River Market for lunch, visit the Witt Stephens Jr. Central Arkansas Nature Center, or ride the Little Rock Trolley which takes you on a trip across the Arkansas River and back. We hope that you will attend the NSAL 2026 Annual Meeting and High Brass Competition for a wonderful experience of Southern Hospitality in downtown La Petite Roche, the Little Rock.
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