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Voice Major Looks Ahead
by Elizabeth Head
Strickler with her accompanist Andrew Shelton after her degree recital
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If you pass by the Moore Fine Arts building at the right time on a Monday afternoon, you may be fortunate enough to hear Kathryn Strickler's voice float through an open window. This is the time that she meets with Music Professor Joel Reed for her weekly voice lesson.
Strickler, a junior music major, will be graduating in December. Finishing a semester early is a rare accomplishment for students in the music department, and it is a testament of her enthusiasm and passion for her field.
She "grew up around music." Her father was a minister of music in her childhood church, and her mother was the organist. Strickler arrived early at church every Sunday and listened in on her father's choir rehearsals. She sang in the children's choir and sometimes even the adult choir. "My dad would just throw me in there," she said.
Singing continued to play a significant role in Strickler's life as she got older. She participated in middle school and high school chorus programs. Her most valuable choral experience, however, continued to come from her church. Her family joined a different church when she was in the seventh grade, and she sang in the adult choir there as well.
Musical opportunities continued to be made available to Strickler through her involvement with her church. Before her junior year of high school, her father offered to find her a voice teacher so she could take vocal lessons. Shortly after that, the daughter of her church choir director, who was a performer, offered to give her lessons. Strickler continues to take lessons from this instructor when she is home.
She cannot remember why she decided to major in music in college. She says she didn't take it that seriously at the time. "When I remember things in the past, most of them are music experiences," she explains. Maybe that was the reason.
As to how she chose a college: "I was just going where the wind blew me," she said. She knew of Mars Hill's strong music department because of her father. He and Reed graduated from Mars Hill together in 1968, and both went on to attend graduate school together at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Her father's faith in Reed as a choral conductor, and her own faith in her father's judgment, brought Strickler to Mars Hill College. "My choral experience has definitely been worth it."
She has been very active in the choral program since her arrival and is currently the president of the College Choir, vice president of Mars Hill's branch of the American Choral Director's Association, and has been a member of the Chamber Singers for two years.
Despite all of her musical achievements, Strickler is most thankful for what she has learned from Reed. "From the time I got here, I relied on other people to tell me what was 'good'. I didn't have enough experience evaluating ensembles. Now I have a distinct opinion. I can evaluate a choral sound, and I know what I want to hear. Being here gave me a good choral basis."
She believes that the choral experience a student can receive at Mars Hill is just as good or greater than any other larger school in the country, because of Reed's vast musical experience. "He knows how to get what he wants. He can take anybody and make them sound good."
According to Strickler, one of the most valuable aspects of the music program at Mars Hill is the hands-on experience. Students wanting to become choral directors, take a conducting class during their junior year. They are given the opportunity to conduct one of three Mars Hill choirs, working on a piece of music until it is ready to perform and then conducting it in a concert.
"This is not an experience many undergrads get. Because of Mars Hill's size, we are able to." She says this is very beneficial for those hoping to attend graduate school. Choral graduate programs require a conducting audition, and prior experience is invaluable.
As Strickler prepares for life after graduation, she is looking into graduate schools across the country. Some of her top choices include Louisiana State University, Florida State University, North Texas University, and Westminster Choir College - her number one choice.
Although her current focus is to enter a masters program in music, she hopes to eventually earn her doctorate as well. She plans to one day be a music professor at a college or university. Thankful for her Mars Hill choral experience, Strickler says, "I need to use the strengths of where I am now to get me to the next place."
Reader Comment:
Deborah Shelton, financial aid counselor, 5/16/2006, 1:16 p.m.
If you have never heard Kathryn sing, you are missing a special treat. Her vocal skills are excellent and her range is amazing.
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