ILLINOIS SCHOOL OF MUSIC
  • Home
  • Blog
  • About
  • Writers
    • Alumni

Welcome

Personal Ponderings on the Illinois Music Experience

Preparing My Recital

5/1/2021

Comments

 
Picture
One of the great milestones of any undergraduate music student’s career is their senior recital, which truly serves as a culmination of the previous four years. I am just over a month from giving my senior recital and finishing off my musical requirements here at the University of Illinois. ​
This semester was full of preparations for both my graduate school auditions and a concert performance of Samuel Barber’s Vanessa, but I have reached the point where all of my energy must be funneled into this recital! Last year, I was the only undergraduate singer to perform a junior recital in-person, weeks before the COVID-19 lockdown began. Because I completed this requirement over a year ago, I set the repertoire for my senior recital with my teacher, Jerold Siena, by the end of my junior year. I have been letting this music soak in for a long time, which helps the memorization process, but it is now time to drill this music so that I feel very comfortable with it and can focus squarely on interpretation. 

    I am going to give this recital at University Place Church, where I have held a church job since sophomore year. I am so connected to this church’s community, and I am so thrilled that they are allowing me to use their wonderful space! I also have the great privilege of collaborating with pianist and vocal coach Dr. Casey Robards on this recital. I have worked with Dr. Robards since my sophomore year, and having her at the piano for my senior recital is absolutely ideal. We have been coaching my repertoire on an online application this semester, and soon, we are going to begin safe, distanced in-person rehearsals! I am so excited for this crucial step which will certainly catapult my program into performance-ready territory. I am working on memorizing all of the music; going in chunks by each language. I have a Spotify playlist of all of my music which I listen to whenever I get the chance, and this helps me exercise memorization. I also bring my music everywhere so that I can visually go over the music. These two methods engrain the music into my brain. I am so excited to move into the interpretative and collaborative stage of recital preparation, and I cannot wait to share the recital for a virtual (and limited in-person) audience! 

Geoffrey Schmelzer
Comments
comments powered by Disqus

    Categories

    All
    Admissions
    Advice
    Allerton Park
    Anxiety
    Arias
    Art-song
    Audition
    Bookstore
    Brass
    Campus Life
    Career Prep
    Cello
    Chambana
    Chamber Music
    Chamber Singers
    Champaign-Urbana
    Choir
    Choral Conducting
    Collaborative Piano
    College
    Community
    Competition
    Composer
    Concert
    Conducting
    Confidence
    Covid-19
    Dining
    Dissertation
    Dorm Life
    Education
    Encore
    Entrepreneurship
    Euphonium
    Exercise
    Family
    First Impressions
    First Year
    Flute
    Food
    Freshman
    Friends
    Gender Identity
    Grad School
    Graduate
    Graduate Assistant
    Graduation
    Grateful
    Growth
    Gym
    Health
    Horn
    Housing
    Imposter Syndrome
    Innovation
    In-person
    Inspiration
    Instrument Repair
    International Student
    Internship
    Junior
    Krannert Center
    LGBT
    Live Performance
    Lyric Theatre
    Marching Illini
    Masterclass
    Memorization
    Mental Health
    Mentor
    Mindfulness
    Music +
    Musical Theater
    Music Building
    Music Education
    Music Festival
    Music Technology
    Music Theater
    New Student
    Opera
    Opportunities
    Orchestra
    Out Of State
    Parenting
    Performance
    Performance Anxiety
    Performance Major
    Performance Preparation
    Pizza FM
    Practice
    Process
    Production
    Prospective Students
    Quiet Spaces
    Recital
    Recording
    Reflection
    Rehearsal
    Rehearsals
    Relationships
    Relaxation
    Reset
    Rest
    Restaurants
    RSO
    Scholar
    Self Care
    Self-Care
    Self-Discovery
    Senior
    Show
    Social Justice
    Soloist
    Stress
    Student Life
    Student Teaching
    Studio Class
    Study
    Summer
    Support
    Technique
    Time Management
    Tips And Tricks
    Tools For Success
    Trombone
    Trumpet
    Tuba
    Undegraduate
    Undergraduate
    Violin
    Virtual Concert
    Voice
    Vote
    Wellness
    Women's Glee Club
    Woodwind
    Work
    Work Space

    Archives

    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • Blog
  • About
  • Writers
    • Alumni