Vocalist Lara Vivian Smith has performed across the country as both a jazz artist, Lara Vivian, and as a crossover artist performing her original music as VIVIAN.  While she currently oversees the Jazz & Commercial Voice program at UNLV, vocal directs and coaches Las Vegas singers, she has previously run and directed big bands and groups including the Lara Vivian Big Band, Jazz Vandals, and Vandal Big Band.  Beyond jazz, she has served as musical and vocal director for a variety of music groups spanning across rock, pop, alternative, crossover, R&B and soul.  Her passion for music education, composition, and performance ‘lies beyond the boundaries of genre, but within the context of identity’ as she continues to develop her own musical identity in all settings.