Whether we鈥檙e aware of it or not, music is an ever-present and even necessary part of our lives. Yes, necessary. Simply hearing the opening notes or beat of a song on the radio can prompt memories of the past or inspire us for the future. As Redeemer鈥檚 music students know, it can also be a much-needed reminder of God鈥檚 presence during the darkest of times. For three music students, in particular, this became a sudden reality when their senior recitals, the culmination of years of hard work and a triumphant end to their degrees, were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.聽
鈥淭he recital was everything I was pointing towards for the full four years,鈥 says fourth-year music student Calvin Hutten. 鈥淓specially in the past two years, it was constantly in the back of my mind. I wrote a lot of music, got together an incredible band of musicians who I look up to, and spent hours writing charts, making demos and tweaking the setlist. I also designed programs, hung up posters and did some really cool rehearsals. Then, it was completely cancelled one week out on very short notice. That was pretty crazy,聽 one of those 鈥榳ho-would-have-thought?鈥 moments.聽
Calvin Hutten’s Senior Recital Poster
Hutten鈥檚 focus is the electric guitar, which he鈥檚 played since a friend first introduced him to it five years ago. However, music was a part of his life long before then.
鈥淚鈥檝e grown up with music all my life, and I鈥檝e taken piano lessons since I was seven years old,鈥 he says. 鈥淚 grew up in a musical family, so pursuing it as my post-secondary education wasn鈥檛 really a debate as much as the logical next step.鈥澛
Shortly after starting university, he expanded his interests to jazz, funk and fusion. Along with the integrated Christian perspective, what attracted him to Redeemer was the calibre of the music faculty and the small class sizes.聽
鈥淒espite its size, Redeemer鈥檚 music department has really great professors and instructors for private lessons. Smaller class sizes are also really important for learning more difficult subjects such as music theory. Being able to spend one-on-one time with the professor is really helpful, and you don鈥檛 feel like you鈥檙e holding everyone up if you need to ask a simple question in class.鈥澛
Student Rachel Don, a fourth-year violinist, also had no question that she would study music. When it came time to look at universities, the foundational Christian worldview was her deciding factor in choosing Redeemer.聽
鈥淐hristian education is really valuable to me, and I knew that I would have mentors and teachers who would model how to integrate my faith with my music.”
Like Hutten, Don also put countless hours of thought and practice into her senior recital. For her, part of dealing with its cancellation is acknowledging that, like with any other loss, she鈥檚 allowed to grieve.聽
鈥淚鈥檝e definitely had to acknowledge the grief that’s come along with this crisis. The senior recital was something that I鈥檇 looked forward to since I got accepted into Redeemer, and I feel as if I practised for it throughout most of my time there. I also envisioned it as a way that I could give back to and thank my professors for all they鈥檝e done.鈥澛
Rachel Don’s Senior Recital Poster
Bennet Soenen, another senior music student who plays classical and electric guitar, appreciates that his classes always managed to align his faith and education with scriptural interpretation through song. In the wake of COVID-19, he finds himself struggling with the fact that left unperformed, his recital music can鈥檛 be truly appreciated.聽
鈥淔or someone like a psychology major, they鈥檒l have all their research and write-ups even if they don鈥檛 get to present their thesis in person. For a music major, the whole point of doing this is to perform it. There鈥檚 no other culmination.鈥澛
Along with the senior recitals, Redeemer鈥檚 annual spring concert, which would’ve included performances from the concert choir, instrumental ensemble, jazz ensemble and the alumni jazz band, was also cancelled. Although not all choir and band members are pursuing music academically, it still plays a significant role in many students鈥 educational experience. Even those who simply listen to music performed by others.聽
鈥淎s musicians, there鈥檚 a whole lot of practice for a little bit of performance,鈥 says second-year biochemistry student and choir member Aaron Lantz. 鈥淲hen you鈥檙e unable to perform, you lose聽 sharing that experience with other people.鈥澛
鈥淭here鈥檚 something about getting to really perfect the music, make it excellent and then share it,鈥 echoes Carina Wolfert, a first-year choir member and math student. 鈥淚鈥檓 grateful we had our choir tour earlier this year over reading week, but we still weren鈥檛 able to fully complete things. It happened so fast that we didn鈥檛 know our final rehearsal was actually going to be the last one.鈥
Although these pangs of futility and frustration are understandable, this is definitely not where the journey has to end. As is evident in the rehearsal video below, Hutten takes comfort in the fact that spending the last two years preparing for his recital gave him the opportunity to grow tremendously as a musician while building incredible relationships.聽
鈥淲hen you have a really big project to work towards, you鈥檙e going to try and learn everything you can beforehand,鈥 he says. 鈥淚 learned a lot about being a bandleader and a better guitar player. I gained a lot of advice from other experienced musicians, wrote music that I鈥檓 proud of and still have the charts and demos ready to go if there鈥檚 a future gig up the road. I鈥檝e also been thinking about how music-making is only half about the music. The other half is about the people you meet along the way. For me, this is the biggest win of all because I got to form new friendships, deepen old ones and play with musicians who I really look up to. Even though the recital never happened, there was still a lot that I got out of it.鈥澛
“I got to form new friendships, deepen old ones and play with musicians who I really look up to. Even though the recital never happened, there was still a lot that I got out of it.鈥澛
Don is also holding on to her compositions, Throughout her preparations, she rehearsed a combination of pieces that allowed her to expand her skills and draw on the talents of other Redeemer musicians.聽
鈥淚 had a couple of pieces that I was going to play with a pianist and the string ensemble. One of them is a Jewish piece called Kol Nidrei by Bruch, which I was really excited to perform because it鈥檚 really deep and moving. I鈥檇 also been working hard with another musician on a duet between violin and viola. That was definitely a little bit beyond our skill level, but we were both pretty determined and excited to learn because we just thought it was the coolest piece.鈥澛
Above all, what helps these students stay hopeful and tethered to their faith is remembering that one of music鈥檚 ultimate joys is the solace it brings in times of struggle. For Hutten and Don, this became especially apparent when revisiting some of their previously rehearsed pieces.聽
鈥淎t the beginning of Kol Nidrei, the violin is almost making sobbing sounds,鈥 says Don. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a beautiful piece, but really sad. The circumstances definitely made it easier for me to enter into that, and it actually felt like one of the best times I played it. When you鈥檙e going through something like this, there鈥檚 almost more depth you can bring to a piece that wasn鈥檛 there before.鈥澛
“When you鈥檙e going through something like this, there鈥檚 almost more depth you can bring to a piece that wasn鈥檛 there before.鈥澛
鈥淥ne of the arrangements I prepared for my recital was a simple hymn titled Take it to the Lord in Prayer,鈥 says Hutten. 鈥淎s I was preparing, I didn鈥檛 really think too much about it. Then, when everything got cancelled all of a sudden, I was struck by how important the words are at this time in history. The rest of my setlist was mostly made up of complex jazz fusion tunes with tons of chords and strange rhythms. Sometimes though, a very simple song hits so much harder, especially in difficult circumstances. For me, music is absolutely essential, and a blessing from God, for getting through these strange times.鈥澛