The sound of Mozart’s Four Church Sonatas resonated through the halls of the Dalton Center at Western Michigan University.
WMU freshman Lindsey Streeter poured her heart and soul into the instrument that she has been playing for eight years. This was the single most important audition of her music career and Streeter was apoplectic.
“It was nerve-wracking,” said Streeter, “I felt like I botched the audition.”
Streeter, a slender brunette with an infectious smile, began playing the clarinet in the sixth grade when her Okemos Middle School forced students to choose an instrument for music class. However, the clarinet wasn’t the first instrument she learned how to play.
Music has always been part of Streeter’s life. She began taking piano lessons when she was just six years old and she developed the pipes to sing within her community as a member of the Michigan State University Children’s Choir.
However, Streeter never envisioned music being something she wanted to do for the rest of her life. After all, the Bureau of Labor statistics reports there are only 64,000 professional musicians in the entire country while there are 387,000 plumbers; and plumbing pays better.
Streeter acknowledged her mom and said she is a very important part of her musical life and a huge support. Streeter often lied about practicing, and nearly quit band altogether, a decision that could have changed her future forever.
“When I wanted to quit, my mom made me stay in band,” Streeter said.
Streeter admitted that while being a part of the high school band was fun, she didn’t become serious about it until senior year. In high school, Streeter stopped ditching her practice charts, ultimately becoming a section leader—think team captain in football. She took advanced music lessons and went to district and state Solo and Ensemble competitions where she excelled.
“Of course, when you become a senior you began the quest for the real job. I thought I might go into radiology, because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do,” she said “I went to a music seminar at Western Michigan University, and I knew the clarinet professor through that, so I decided last minute to apply to WMU as a music education major.”
The School of Music at WMU is a difficult program to get into, only one in four applicants are accepted each year.
Streeter said her audition process included writing a paper, a playing audition, an aural skills test and a theory test. All of which she thought she did fine on, other than the playing audition. However, the professors judging her performance thought differently.
“The clarinet professor came up to me afterwards and told me I was accepted. It was a huge relief,” she said.
Streeter received her official acceptance letter in the mail a few weeks later and prepared her future academic schedule for many music classes, her music fraternity, and the Western Michigan University Bronco Marching Band, all of which take up a lot of time. Each fifteen minute half-time show is the products of hundreds of hours full-time rehearsal.
The rewards are tangible, though. Western Michigan University students have earned over 100 Downbeat Magazine Music awards since 1984, ranking the school in the top three award winning programs in the nation.
Streeter hopes to continue giving the gift of music to students in the classroom when she graduates from Western.
“Music is relief, and music has helped save some people.” she said, “I want to better these kid’s lives.”
Lindsey Streeter believes that she has a lot to learn from the school of music and that she’s excited to see what her future has in store for her. To her, music is worth the time and effort. She says her favorite part is “making the music; creating something and giving people that music. Also, making my mom smile when I play.”