Written by Emma Weber // Photo provided by Rachel Myhan
For many senior music majors, a senior recital is a requirement to graduate. Senior Emma Myhan, however, chose to host a recital to celebrate her time at Harding, despite only being a music minor. Her recital was similar to a vocal music major’s recital in the quantity of repertoire performed, with 45-50 minutes worth of music.
“Musical performance is something I want to do, and because of that, I chose to take this project on,” Myhan said. “It actually gave me an immense amount of freedom because there is no rubric I have to meet or grade I have to get. I get to be my own artistic director and make the recital look the way I want it to look, so it is an authentic reflection of me and my time at Harding.”
Myhan said she realized early on that she wanted to include something special in her recital. This important aspect of Myhan’s performance was the inclusion of those whom she calls her “community.” Myhan said she knew she wanted to bring other performers into her show because of their importance during her time at Harding — bringing 13 of her friends in on this project exemplified their importance in her college career. Junior Aubrey Jones was a vocalist who performed in the recital alongside Myhan.
“Even though this was Emma’s senior recital, she made a point to prioritize other people,” Jones said. “She was the one shining on stage on Saturday night, but it wasn’t all about her. She’s such a kind and gracious person, and through her performance, she made those of us singing with her and those listening in the audience feel loved.”
To get to the shining stage on Saturday, Myhan said she has been working on her project for years.
“I essentially have been working on my senior recital since I was a freshman,” Myhan said. “This includes brainstorming, thinking about pieces, making a list of people to rope into my recital. There is a lot of mental work and organizational work that goes on before the actual hands-on practicing.”
Myhan said she wanted the culmination of her college career to reflect the love she received from others and the growth she has experienced as a performer. Vocal coach Dr. Susan Shirel, who has worked with Myhan as her coach for the last four years, said she enjoyed the unique way Myhan approached this performance.
“Since it was not a required recital, she had the freedom to choose repertoire from the musical theater and commercial music canons and present it in a cabaret style, meaning she provided narration between songs as a way to help weave the songs together,” Shirel said. “One of Emma’s strengths was her ability to collaborate with several other people on her recital and keep the performance authentic to who she is as a person and artist.”
Jones shared this sentiment of enjoyment with Myhan’s performance.
“Emma put together a program of songs that showed off her voice,” Jones said. “She chose different styles and vocal qualities to reflect everything she’s learned at Harding. Recitals are a chance to showcase the cumulative experience of a performer at Harding.”
In the next few weeks, both Emily Metz and Kylie James will perform in senior recitals. Myhan expressed her excitement for these performances.
“I would say to campus, whether or not you’ve been to a recital, if you have the time to support artistic students, it means the world,” Myhan said.
