Bonnie Duffy
Soprano Dr. Melissa Lubecke Sarabia belts out “Me Alquilo para Soña” while Steven Agulió-Arubes plays the piano in the background. They worked with CMU vocal students earlier that day to increase their technical singing knowledge.
The CMU Vocal Studies Department welcomed professional performance group Art Song Colorado on Friday, September 12th. This event featured a master class with vocal students from 2-3:30 p.m., and a recital at 7:30 p.m., titled, “Me Alquilo para Soña” (I Sell My Dreams).
Art Song Colorado, founded by Music Director and Tenor Soloist Eapen Leubner, strives to “make art song accessible to a wider audience by synthesizing music and poetry.”
Both the master class and recital featured Soprano Dr. Melissa Lubecke Sarabia and Steven Aguiló-Arubes playing the piano.
The master class also featured three vocal students, with a fourth being absent due to illness. Each student received half an hour to workshop during the 90-minute session. Each performed either an art song or an aria, and Dr. Sarabia would work with each student, equipping each of them with tools and tricks to improve the technique of their singing.
Aguiló-Arubes would also provide feedback during each student’s clinic time, providing another teaching perspective for the student. Their comments helped the students build more resonance in their tone, and to sing in a healthier way.
Later in the evening, Love Recital Hall in Moss Performing Arts Center was abuzz with excitement for the Art Song Colorado recital “Me Alquilo para Soña (I Sell My Dreams)”. The recital featured Spanish art songs, including short classical solo voice and piano pieces, strung together into a cohesive story with live poetry readings.
The readings featured poetry by Gabriel Garcia Márquez and Pablo Neruda. Dr. Sarabia sang three sets of songs, with Aguiló-Arubes playing piano for each piece, as well as a piano interlude in between each song set.
After the recital, attendees were treated with some lively tunes from the CMU Mariachi band who played in the lobby outside of the recital hall.
Both the master class and the recital shone a new light on music performance for the CMU Vocal Students, with several students expressing excitement about what they were taught in the clinic.
Music business major Taegan Metz, who is the voice area student worker, said, “Learning from different teachers is always an amazing opportunity, and a new perspective is always enlightening.”
The music department has an exciting season lined up for the 2025-2026 school year, and many of us will see the impact of this master class in more upcoming projects by the vocal department.