Earlier this week, I sat down with Olivia Weismann to talk about her life and what it’s like being a music ed major. Between clinicals, choir concerts, and classes, it makes for a very busy college experience. After just getting to know her this past year, Olivia’s one of the sweetest, most hard-working girls I know.
Year: Junior
Hometown: Lake Zurich, IL
Major: Vocal Music Education
Campus involvement: Augustana Choir, National Association for Music Education (NAfME), American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), Phi Rho Sorority
What’s it like being a music ed major?
It’s super busy. When you’re not in class you’re either in choir or band or you’re in piano lessons or voice lessons or you’re practicing. There’s a lot that goes into the major besides the homework and the studying. Especially if you have any type of scholarship for music. If you have an honors music scholarship you have to take lessons of some sort. So there’s a lot of practicing. Along with my classes I have to do clinical hours in classrooms. I have to get 30 hours this term of being in schools working with students. And you don’t get any extra credit hours for those hours since it’s part of the 3 credit class that I’m in–it’s a lot of work. I’m in music classes with performance majors, music ed majors, music therapy majors, anyone who has a music emphasis, I’m in class with them. Then I also take education classes with people who are going into history education, english education, general education courses. Then I have strictly music education courses with the small group of us that are juniors. There are six of us who are music ed major juniors.
What’s your favorite part/least favorite part about being a music ed major?
My favorite part is that I’m getting to do what I like doing and make a career out of it, which is helping kids, being with kids, but also incorporating music and singing and all of my passions with music. My least favorite part is never feeling like I have enough time to do everything that I want to do or need to do.
What made you interested in music ed?
I had a really good music program growing up throughout elementary school, middle school, and high school. All three of my music teachers graduated from Augustana. That was really cool and I really looked up to them. I looked into Augustana and I was interested in their program because of how great our program was. More specifically, my high school choir program was just amazing and I really started thinking about going into music when I was in high school because of it.
Olivia and her high school choir director, Mr. J (Nick Juknelis), at the Illinois Music Educators Association conference this past January.
What do you like about music performance?
So it’s completely different between singing in choir and singing in recitals by yourself. I’m more comfortable singing in choir. I really enjoy singing with other people and working with other people knowing we’re all putting in a lot of work to get this great sound. It’s kind of like when you play a sport and when you’re all working towards one goal. Working with Dr. Hurty and the Augustana Choir has been so amazing. I really like how in choir we can all put in our own individual time and effort on our own but then come together. We need each individual person to work hard to get that sound that we’re looking for.
What I like about solo performances is trying to get out of my shell more. I think every time I perform I’m a little bit further out of my comfort zone. Knowing that your individual hard work gets noticed and it’s not a group effort, that’s what I do like about singing by myself. Your hard work gets recognized. It’s a cool feeling, putting your heart out on the line, trying to sing your best. It’s very vulnerable being on the stage by yourself.
What’s been your greatest memory at Augie so far?
I was really, really, really excited when I got my bid for Phi Rho, I know that sounds extra, but, I was so, so excited. I had met a bunch of cool people in the music program at Augustana, but the first day of fall term, first day of school you’re thrown into music theory, you’re in your FYI class, and another class, and you really start to become super close and surrounded with all the music people. I love them, don’t get me wrong, but I was just trying to see if I would ever make other friends or if I’ll ever get out of Bergendoff. So I was so excited at the prospect of having a sisterhood and meeting all these awesome girls and finding more friends and branching out a bit.
What’s do you look most forward to after graduating?
I’m hoping I can land a teaching job right out of college. Luckily, our music ed program and education program in general, has a high placement rate for teachers graduating, so I hope I’ll be teaching right away. I mean, whether or not I am is besides the point, I’ll just be excited that I’ve made it. You go through all of high school worrying about what you’re going to do when you’re older, am I going to make it into college, and you worry so much about the ACT and everything. And then when you’re in college you worry, am I going to graduate on time, will I get the good grades I need to go to grad school or things like that, you’re always worried about the next step. I look forward to the day when I’m graduated and I have a job, and I’m like, woah, I made it. I’m doing what I like and I don’t have to worry so much about the future at that point. I’m sure I’ll always be worried about what’s ahead, but just getting past the stress of the unknown will be really cool.
Who inspires you?
I mentioned my high school choir director, he is a really big inspiration in my life, I don’t know if I’ll ever be as great of a teacher as he was, but I look up to him so much, ever since I saw his choir for the first time, when I was in middle school. Career-wise, what he’s doing, is a big goal of mine. He’s a really, really big reason I’m studying music.
More personally, I really look up to my mom. I don’t really know how to pinpoint it, but I think she’s super independent, she doesn’t rely on other people to help her form her opinions. She’s never been one to shy away from confrontation or from speaking her mind. I’ve never felt like my mom was weak or she couldn’t say what she felt. She’s always been so outspoken, but in a really calm and pulled-together way. I don’t know exactly how to describe it. I just love my mom, she’s amazing.
Gimme some things on your bucketlist.
I would love to go skydiving at one point, probably before I’m married with children. I think it would be really fun, I’m a thrill-seeker. Or cliff diving, when you’re on a bungee cord. I’d like to travel a lot. It depends on what I’m doing, but if I could, I would really like to travel and be able to see every country that I’ve ever wanted to go to, like take a cruise around the world or something. It would be cool going to every state, or at least every outer state of the United States. I haven’t been to the East Coast, and I’ve only been to California last year for the first time. I’d like to go back to California and go see the East Coast.
If you could travel anywhere in the world right now, where would it be?
I’ve always wanted to go to Greece, especially in the summertime. I’ve been to Italy and I would go back in a heartbeat. Oh, and Australia. But right now, if you mean NOW, I would go to Spain and see Anna. She’s in Sevilla and her pictures look amazing and I’m so jealous of her whole experience, and I miss her. If she could come here, that would be fine, too!!