BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
A music degree can be an intense – and intensely rewarding – life experience.
It doesn’t matter how old we are, or what discipline we choose to study. When we make the decision to learn about our art at an academic level, we are stepping toward a future dedicated to our passion. And that’s why it’s important to make the most of it while we can, before we venture into the professional world.
In this new series, we learn about what happens to musicians after they graduate from university. Through these interviews, we’ll explore how some of our generation’s leading talent have taken the knowledge they obtained at uni, and applied it into their careers.
You’ll read about the biggest challenges they faced during their studies, their confidence, and their big breaks.
Each one of these artists has graduated from the Queensland Conservatorium, and now reflects on how far they’ve come since their first day of study. In our first interview, we get up close and personal with Amber Evans.
Amber is a soprano who, after graduating from the Queensland Conservatorium, undertook a wealth of further study and is now making her way across the music scene of New York. Most recently, she performed an all-Australian program in New York, including a world premiere performance of a composition by Michael Grebla among works by Jakob Bragg, Christopher Healey, and more.
Here’s how she made it there.
Thanks for taking part in our chat! Tell us all about your musical life and career.
I am a vocalist, conductor and composer who is currently based in New York City. I regularly perform as an early music soloist, chorister, and contemporary chamber musician throughout the United States and internationally.
I’m particularly committed to the vital artistic collaboration with composers to contribute to the musical canon of the present day.
Before we move forward, let’s talk about how you’ve arrived there. What did you study at university and why did you want to enrol in this area?
I began my university journey at Queensland Conservatorium, in the Bachelor of Music (Honours) specialising in Vocal Performance and Opera Studies as a student of Margaret Schindler.
After completing this degree at 21 years of age, I decided that my voice needed some more time to develop. So I tried my hand at hardcore academia, and completed a Masters of Music in Choral Studies (Conducting) at the University of Cambridge.
I made a swift decision to change to the US scene after graduating, where I completed a Masters of Music in Contemporary Classical Voice at Manhattan School of Music in New York under the tutelage of Lucy Shelton.
How did you find your academic experiences and uni life?
My academic experience was a varied and wholesome one. I wouldn’t change any aspect of my journey in education. I must say that moving away from Brisbane, having lived there my entire life, opened up viable options in curating a career for myself as a multi-faceted musician. The grounding I received in my undergraduate degree, and the life experiences surrounding it, gave me the best platform possible to continue my learning overseas.
Through hard work and careful planning, I was able to experience academic life at some of the best institutions in the world, with much-needed financial aid along the way that made my learning experiences possible.
What do you remember being your most challenging year, and why did you decide to push through?
My most challenging year was certainly my year at the University of Cambridge. It was a one-year intensive academic Masters program that truly pushed me to my limits. Handing in at least three essays a week, having ridiculously long contact hours, being constantly reminded how far behind I was in my conducting technique, realising what a small fish in a huge pond I am, and feeling like I’d been mashed through a sausage grinder after some gruelling sessions with my thesis supervisors all built a significant amount of character, and fast-tracked a lot of growing up.
I was fortunate enough to have an incredible support network during my time there, and was given every excuse to not give up.
What were some of the most important lessons you picked up while you were a student that were not academic?
The framework of academia was initially there for me to add structure and purpose to my life. I soon realised that this is unhealthy, and gradually allowed it to not govern my life and my perception of myself. It is of the utmost importance to define yourself outside of the career you choose and the degree you study.
I found that my self-worth lies in my thoughts, words, and deeds – not in a final grade, or what my lecturers and fellow peers thought of me.
How did studying music at uni help increase your confidence as an emerging young artist?
Studying an undergraduate degree in music solidified my reasoning for wanting to make this my life and career path, and not just a hobby (which was constantly encouraged by the majority of people I respect and look up to).
I received a plethora of varied pods of knowledge that not only focused on the theory and practice of music-making, but included inside knowledge on the industry, the niche markets that promise artistic careers to suit everyone, and a team of lecturers that were there for me from the beginning.
Tell us about how you navigated the world of music after your graduation. Did you have a “big break” or was it a very slow burn?
Moving to New York and deciding to have my home base be here is certainly the best decision that I have made. The contemporary classical music world in this city is the niche in which I have truly found my place amongst some of the most inspiring colleagues imaginable.
I am currently on track to apply for an artist visa that will prolong my stay in the US so that I can continue to solidify these artistic relationships I’ve made.
How have you used the networks obtained through your degree, and how do you work to maintain these relationships?
Through the networks that I developed during my degree at Queensland Conservatorium, I have been able to co-organise tours for my percussion/ sound art/ voice duo panSonus alongside New York artist Jon Clancy; in conjunction with associate professor Vanessa Tomlinson’s duo Clocked Out as a Project Week residency in August 2019.
I’m so looking forward to returning to the Queensland Conservatorium with new and exciting ideas to present in concerts and masterclasses for the current students.
In what ways do you continue to use the knowledge or skills you achieved during your studies, now that you’re well into your career?
I sing every day, whether in rehearsal or performance. The voice lessons, coachings, operatic productions, and other academic musical experiences I’ve gleaned along the way have contributed to my stamina and my artistic blueprint that I present to my employers.
I now regularly conduct instrumental chamber music as well as choral ensembles. Most recently, I was the chorusmaster on the CD of Poul Ruders’ new opera The Thirteenth Child under the Bridge Records label, due to be released in conjunction with the Santa Fe Opera premiere in the summer of 2019.
I now receive regular commissions, thanks to the theoretical groundings I was given throughout my academic studies that gave me the opportunity to find my own voice as a composer.
What words of advice would you offer to young musicians along their academic journey?
Take the ‘one-size fits all’ façade of academia with a grain of salt. The standardised university degree is not for everyone. You must make everything you can out of whatever situation you are in. Be a pioneer for creating and forging new opportunities to display your creativity in ways that will make others want to be alongside you on your academic journey.
Comparing yourself to others is always a waste of time. Invest in yourself, and in the people who will also do the same.
We’re excited to collaborate with Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University to shed light on life after university for those studying music.
Stay tuned for our next interview with a talented artist who started out in Australia, and is achieving success in their music careers!
Images supplied.
