By Abigail Cox
Second Year Journalism and Communications student and intern with Holland College Marketing and Communications

Music Performance students in Holland College’s School of Performing Arts are busy practicing for two winter concerts that are taking place Thursday, March 17, and Sunday, March 20 at 7:30 p.m. (PLEASE NOTE, THE FINAL CONCERT TAKES PLACE THURSDAY, MARCH 31.)

The concerts, which were organized by students in the Events Management stream of the Tourism and Travel program, were originally scheduled to take place throughout the winter, but after several delays due to COVID-19 shutdowns, they have been condensed into two performances, explained SoPA instructor Sara Campbell. 

There will be a variety of different musical genres played by several bands of students over the two nights. 

“A few of our grads are Celtic band and traditional music players, so we will see some celebration of St. Patrick’s Day on stage Thursday,” said Campbell. 

Ryan Van Winkle, who is in his second and final year of the program, is looking forward to performing the jazz tunes he has been working on throughout the semester.  

Ryan plays electric guitar. His band is in Thursday’s concert, but he will also perform as a member of some of his classmates’ ensembles in the Sunday show. 

“I am looking forward to it, it’s been pretty hectic because each second-year gets to put together their own band and performance, but I am also in a few of my classmates’ bands as well, so there are a lot of rehearsals to get to,” he said. 

After he graduates this spring, he plans to continue his musical education at Humber College in Toronto. He would like to be a session performer one day, and write his own music as well. He said the Music Performance program has prepared him for the realities of the business of music.

“This program has taught me a lot, and not just academically. I’ve learned how to carry myself as a professional musician and interact in the music industry,” he said. 

Another second-year student, Lucia Dostal, is a vocal performance major who also plays the flute, piano, and bass guitar. 

She will also be performing in both shows. Her band performs on Sunday, when she will be singing three of her original songs. Lucia’s songs are in the Indie genre, and she has arranged parts for each band member to play. 

“Preparing for these performances has been difficult at times with all the delays but I’m really looking forward to it,” she said.  “It’s so cool to see what each individual student creates when they are given this opportunity because each student is so different, and all the performances are so unique.” 

Lucia plans to transfer to Berklee College of Music next year through a degree pathway Holland College has with the prestigious school. She hopes to major in composition so that she can focus on writing her own music.  

The students will have one final performance before the end of the semester. The Music Performance Spring Showcase is scheduled for Thursday, April 21. The showcase will welcome industry guests and members of the public.