School of Music

Pursue Your Passion

Archives: People

  • Nicholas Mark
    October 6, 2021 by

    Senior percussionist Nicholas Mark is from Fishers, Indiana and is majoring in music education.   “I have been studying percussion for 11 years. What inspired me to begin was seeing all of my friends join band because I was actually leaning towards learning cello. This year I will not be performing in the Showcase, but […]

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  • Jaelyn Hence
    September 16, 2021 by

    Jaelyn Hence is a senior from Elkhart, Indiana.  “I’ve been in several choirs for as long as I can remember, but I didn’t start studying voice until I came to Ball State. I was inspired to study voice because I had several great choir directors in high school. I then realized that I wanted to […]

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  • Benjamin Taubert
    September 16, 2021 by

    Benjamin Taubert is a percussionist majoring in music education and is the recipient of this year’s Barbara D. and Erwin C. Mueller Percussion Scholarship.   “I’ve been playing my instrument since around the age of ten years old. My father was a band director which means I always got to watch all the band contests. For […]

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  • Patricia Burton
    September 2, 2021 by

    Patricia Burton is a master’s student from Phoenix, Arizona studying cello performance and music education. Patricia will also be serving as the Graduate Assistant for Sursa Hall this coming year.   “I have studied the cello since the 4th grade, so for about 15 years now. I honestly wanted to play the cello in the 4th grade because […]

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  • Emma Anderson
    September 2, 2021 by

    Emma Anderson is a senior from Austin, Minnesota. Emma is a violinist majoring in music performance and is the recipient of this year’s Hilary Hahn Scholarship.  “I have been playing violin for 10 years. The event that really sparked an interest in the violin specifically was when I went to a concert with my mom […]

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  • Jay Pettit
    September 2, 2021 by

    Jay Pettit is a senior from Fort Wayne, IN. Jay is majoring in music education (instrumental/general) and is the recipient of this year’s George Wolfe Saxophone Scholarship.   “I have been playing saxophone since 2011. I had relatives that were in band when they were younger and it was something I always wanted to do. I had never […]

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  • Grace Arndt
    September 2, 2021 by

    Grace Arndt is a senior from Centerville, IN. Grace is majoring in music education (vocal/general) and is the recipient of this year’s Rebecca Reichert Scholarship in Music Education. “I’ve been singing practically since I was born since both of my parents are music educators. My sisters and I would always be singing and harmonizing together […]

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  • Jian Shang
    September 2, 2021 by

    Jian Shang is a doctoral violist. “My name is Jian Shang, and I was born and raised in China. I then moved to the United States to study music and just finished my second year of the Doctor of Arts degree in viola performance here at Ball State. I started playing violin when I was […]

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  • Emily West
    September 2, 2021 by

    Senior Emily West is a harpist from Gaston, IN. Emily was one of this year’s Undergraduate Concerto Competition winners and performed Maurice Ravel’s “Introduction & Allegro” with the Ball State Symphony Orchestra this past Spring. “I started playing the harp my freshman year of high school. My family and I attended a seminar where one […]

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  • Joshua Melocoton
    September 2, 2021 by

    Joshua Melocoton is a senior clarinetist from Chicago, IL. “Ever since I started playing clarinet at the age of 10, I found that playing the instrument helped me express myself as someone who was a shy kid. It created an outlet to express how I felt. One of the biggest reasons I chose Ball State […]

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