Second year students in the Thornton School of Music’s popular music program will showcase their talents at 8 p.m. tonight at Carson Soundstage on campus.
Celia Porter, a sophomore majoring in music performance with an emphasis in voice, and a student in the popular music class this semester, said the work that goes into the performance is much more than memorizing a song.
“We have to learn every song, detail for detail, articulation for articulation, note for note, rhythm for rhythm,” said Porter. “Everything needs to be exactly as it was played on the record.”
She said the preparation involves everyone in the show working together to ensure a pitch perfect show.
“It’s not all about the music all the time,” Porter said. “It’s about feelings, it’s about people, it’s about working together.”
Sophomore Rachel Barton, another student in the popular music class, said her music performance major with an emphasis in songwriting gave her insight on how to best prepare.
According to Barton, students in the class are assigned three different songs each week to learn throughout the semester. Two weeks before the showcase, students are given a few of the songs they have already practiced in class to perform for the showcase. This year audience members can expect songs ranging from 70′s classics to recent pop, she said.
The vocal performers, outside of their individual preparation for the showcase, are also expected to get together with their classmates, assemble a band and coordinate practice time outside of class.
“There are four vocalists, and two of them also play keys, and then a bass player, a guitar player and two drummers,” Barton said of her band. “So eight people in my exact band, but we have some songs that need more vocalists or need an extra guitar player or some extra percussion.”
Professor Chris Sampson, founder of the popular music major, emphasized how the course properly prepares students for their future career. According to Sampson, the major is built upon three pillars: emulation, assimilation and innovation.
“The life and development of any popular music goes through that cycle in which we first learn by trying to copy — to emulate great examples,” he said. “Then the next step is assimilation, in which we practice these techniques that we learn over and over again until they become second nature. This practice is for us to have a breakthrough, to lead to the innovation stage.”
He said at that stage the creation of new music “reflects our individuality” by using techniques and traditions as a foundation.
Students at the Thursday night showcase will be a representation of the emulation phase, said Sampson.
Sean Holt, professor of the popular music course, applauded his students for their hard work and tenacity ahead of the performance.
“It’s pretty amazing the shifts that take place between their first semester of freshman year and their second semester of sophomore year,” he said. “They take lots and lots and lots of time to memorize the songs from the scrap list, so I would say it’s substantial the growth that occurs.”
Holt said he loves hearing from families that come to the showcase about the growth they’ve noticed in the students performing from semester to semester.
In the end, it seems the hard work is worth it, said Barton.
“The showcase is just one of the best parts — everybody has butterflies, and it’s really a bonding experience,” she said. “You feel really proud that you got to this point, because it’s a hard thing to put together in the amount of time you’re doing it with the detail that you’re doing it. It kind of keeps reminding you why you’re here, and that you’re so in love with what you’re doing with music, with performing.”