Final Gala to Celebrate Music Therapy Seniors

LOGAN, Utah — Utah State University’s Department of Music is inviting the community to this year’s Music Therapy Senior Gala to highlight the clinical musicianship and creativity of students. The event will be at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 25 at the Russell/Wanlass Performance Hall and is free to the public.

This event marks the fourth annual Senior Gala and is designed as a live performance. In the Music Therapy Program, seniors memorize a list of 60 songs for level exams. The senior gala is part of the program’s level IV exam.

The Gala gives students the opportunity to present their preparedness for careers as music therapists by emphasizing their growth, flexibility and the ability to adapt. The event will also include audience engagement and collaboration.

“This year’s Gala promises to be an inspiring night, celebrating students’ achievements as they move toward becoming qualified, compassionate music therapists,” said Music Therapy Instructor Corinne Pickett.

A unique aspect of the event is the surprise program. The audience and performers will walk into the event without knowing what’s to come.

“The seniors will find out what song they will be performing at the same time as the audience,” Pickett said. “Each year our seniors have shown that they can rise to this challenge, and we are excited to witness another cohort showcase their hard-earned skills in this way.”

Ben Teeples is a senior who will be performing in the Gala and looks forward to the unique program. Within the list of 60 songs they are given, each performer submits their top 10 songs to perform.

“Those are the songs I'm spending the most time practicing. I'm running through the rest of the 60 songs but not worrying as much about them,” Teeples said. “I've just been practicing every night for a couple of hours. I'm focusing mostly on making sure that I have the chord progressions down, and I've also been trying to write down lyrics to make sure I'm comfortable there as well.”

The Music Therapy Senior Gala is free and open to the public. For more information, please visit online.