The first Pop Music for Water concert will offer a unique experience for students and audience members, according to organizer Jonathan Smith, founder and instructor of Millennial Voice Studio.

The event will be from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, July 29, in the Encore Room of the Dreyfus University Center at University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Cost is $10; tickets are available at showtix4u.com.

Pop Music for Water is a pop music voice recital featuring students from Millennial Voice Studio performing with a live band and a choreographed light show matching the music. The concert will also feature a fruit- and herb-infused water bar throughout the event and a karaoke hour after the performance.

All proceeds will go to Charity: Water, an organization that uses 100 percent of its donations to create wells and other projects in areas of the world that are in need of access to clean water.

“The goal is to provide a unique performance for students and audience members while supporting Charity: Water,” Smith said. “Our goal is to raise $1,500 for Charity: Water, which would help get clean water access to 50 people who desperately need it.”

At least nine students, some who have been preparing by practicing the concert music for months, will participate in the concert. The band also is learning the music at the same time, Smith said.

It may be unconventional to use contemporary genres of music in voice instruction, Smith said, but he believes stretching to all areas and teaching which technical concepts overlap areas of music is important.

“I believe that students should be exposed to and taught how to sing all different kinds of music. This concert provides students guidance while learning how to sing pop music.

This being the first concert of this kind, Smith said, there have been challenges. Some students have been working with him for more than a year while others have been involved just a month.

Along with students learning the music, volunteers for ticket-taking and the fruit- and herb-infused water bar have to be coordinated, he said.

“As this event is the first time it has ever been done, it’s been an uphill battle to get it put together. However, the cause to create an exciting performance for students and audiences while supporting Charity: Water is a good one.”

Charity: Water is a nonprofit organization bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. Nearly one in every 10 people worldwide lives without clean water, according to the organization. Providing access to clean water can reduce disease, increase time spent in school, increase availability to grow food and earn income. For more information on Charity: Water, visit charitywater.org.

Anyone with questions about Pop Music for Water can email [email protected] or call 715-297-1873.