Struggling to engage millennials in classical art is common among English teachers, classical musicians and opera singers.
University of Idaho senior, soprano singer and music major Karen Hunt wants to show the world operas have messages everyone can easily relate to.
This prompted Hunt to give her senior recital song-set a 21st century twist by featuring original songs based on Jaden Smith’s tweets. Graduate student Jesse Hampsch, persuing a master’s in Choral Conducting and Composition, composed the set entitled “Songs of the Word Smith.”
Hunt said she hoped to break the stereotypical narrative that sopranos are divas by bringing this humorous twist to the recital. Smith’s iconic tweets such as “You Can Discover Everything You Need To Know About Everything By Looking At Your Hands” were among those used to create the songs Hunt sang at her recital, which she performed April 16.
“I think it’s really important to encourage new music,” Hunt said. “It was a really fun creative process for me.”
While her recital music may have been humorous, musical scores can bring people together in meaningful connections, she said. Hunt said opera creates more understanding of each other by forcing artists to assume diverse character roles.
“Performing arts create a degree of empathy for people not like yourself,” Hunt said.
Opera characters often come from diverse eras and settings, like ancient Rome, 18th century France or 1950s New York, Hunt said.
“When performing you have to adopt the thought process of the character you are playing,” she said.
Performing makes artists justify their thoughts and actions from a different perspective while they play characters from different settings, helping them to understand others’ plights, Hunt said.
Opera’s ability to unite us isn’t just limited to the stage, it extends to the experiences artists have throughout their lives. Hunt said she had an opportunity when she took part in a 3-week opera program in Verona, Italy, where she learned from many talented singers and collaborated with student artists from across the world.
During what she calls the best three weeks of her life, Hunt performed once a week at historic venues in the culturally rich city of Verona.
Her final concert took place in the Castelvecchio, a medieval castle built in the 14th century.
Working with many talented peers and dedicated faculty is not a brand-new experience for Hunt, though, as she said she is incredibly grateful for the skilled and supportive faculty at the University of Idaho’s Lionel Hampton School of Music.
“Professor Pfund with the opera program has put in so much of his own time and investment into that to create these experiences for myself and the other students. It is really unique and something I’m very grateful for,” Hunt said.
She said the highly dedicated and talented music faculty at UI make the artistic and educational experience personal and allow students to foster their skills in a positive learning environment.
“Pamela Bathurst has been amazing at helping me free my voice, find my own unique voice, and get rid of all of those tensions and holds,” Hunt said.
The university’s important traditions, such as the Vandeleer Concert Choir, were also vital to her growth as an artist. She said being a Vandaleer for four years taught her what being a Vandal is all about.
Hunt said she plans to pursue a master’s in vocal performance from the Chicago College of Performing Art at Roosevelt University. She said she hopes to continue to hone her passion for music there, and continue to impart her community values throughout her life.
“My goal is to make positive impact on the community.” Hunt said, “It eventually became clear that music was the best way to do that.”
Kyle Pfannenstiel can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @pfannyyy