Bella St. Cyr was a freshman at the 杏吧传媒 when the Osher School of Music moved its annual scholarship gala off campus. The gala returned home this year. Now a senior with only a few months left on campus, St. Cyr gave her all in a featured singing role.
鈥淚 have absolutely adored my time in this University working with Dr. Malinda Haslett and Scott Wheatley. They have helped refine my technique so much,鈥� St. Cyr said.
Both instructors who were name-checked by St. Cyr watched proudly as she and her classmates performed at the McGoldrick Center in Portland on December 1. Wheatley was a supportive presence by providing piano accompaniment for several performances.
In addition to his classroom work on the music school鈥檚 artist faculty, Wheatley also serves as director of the Osher Chamber Singers. He鈥檚 new to the role this year. He was eager for the gala audience to see how much his students have learned in just the past few months, as demonstrated by one number in particular.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an African American spiritual (鈥楢in鈥檛 Got Time to Die鈥�) and we do a big, giant slide up to a crazy high note and it sounds really exciting,鈥� Wheatley said.
Ed Reichert shared piano duties with Wheatley and also shared his enthusiasm. Reichert鈥檚 specialty as a voice coach is musical theatre. The end of the semester is a busy time for him with so many concerts and recitals on tap. The gala benefits from all the practice.
鈥淲e just ended a week of auditions for our main stage musical, 鈥楾he Prom.鈥� So last night, a lot of these students were in final callbacks from 5 to 9:45,鈥� Reichert said. 鈥淚鈥檓 not exaggerating saying that these kids sounded and acted like they were in New York, auditioning for a Broadway show.鈥�
Students demonstrated their vocal and instrumental skills across a wide range of genres from jazz to classical to folk music. St. Cyr and Nicholas Sutton sang a duet from the opera 鈥淭he Crucible,鈥� based on Arthur Miller鈥檚 play about the Salem witch trials. When the program shifted to its spoken portion, St. Cyr once again stepped forward.
In her speech, St. Cyr recounted several of her favorite college memories. She traveled to New York to perform with the USM Choral Union and cried for joy during rehearsals at Carnegie Hall. A research project sent her back to New York for an interview with one of the last living students of renowned music teacher and conductor Nadia Boulanger.
鈥淚 absolutely would not have been able to do that without my scholarship and without this University and all the faculty here,鈥� St. Cyr said.
The audience for St. Cyr鈥檚 speech was filled with dozens of music school donors. They contributed up front with their admission fee to the gala. A pledge round let many of them multiply their gifts, driving up the grand total to roughly $20,000 to support the Music Talent Scholarships at USM. A sponsorship from the Crewe Foundation accounted for about half of the proceeds.
Attending the gala is an annual tradition for Dick McGoldrick. He鈥檚 built friendships with many of his fellow guests over the last three decades. This is the first year the gala was held in the building that bears his name. The McGoldrick Center for Career and Student Success opened just ahead of the fall semester after years of construction.
鈥淲e鈥檙e so happy with what鈥檚 ended up here,鈥� McGoldrick said. 鈥淵ou walk in here and you see all the students, it鈥檚 just incredible what鈥檚 going on.鈥�
Ground was broken on the McGoldrick Center during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when public gatherings were prohibited. Meanwhile, the gala carried on with students performing remotely to an online audience in 2020 and 2021. The Cumberland Club in Portland hosted last year鈥檚 gala while construction at the McGoldrick Center entered its final stages.
Not far from the McGoldrick Center, another construction project of special interest to the gala crowd is underway. The Crewe Center for the Arts is scheduled to open in 2025. The Osher School of Music will make its new home there.
Megan Marino is one of the most prominent public faces of the campus transformation. After graduating from USM in 2005, she rose to national prominence as a star of the opera stage. Her ties to campus remain strong. She frequently returns to work with students and lend her clout to fundraising efforts.
Marino closed out the Osher Gala by singing a full slate of operatic and Broadway favorites. It was her first time in the McGoldrick Center. A year earlier, she served as emcee at the launch party for the Great University Campaign which raised money for the building鈥檚 construction fund.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 a pretty cool thing to be brought in toward the end of a process as something has almost come to completion and then to help to bring it across the finish line,鈥� Marino said. 鈥淭hen to get to actually walk inside the real building and see how beautiful it is, to see all the students and community coming together in it is pretty cool.鈥�
Marino鈥檚 career is the dream that many of the students who saw her are striving to achieve. Bella St. Cyr is one of them. She wants to continue her studies in Classical Voice Performance at the graduate level. Whatever happens after that, there鈥檚 no doubt music will be big part of her life.
鈥淚鈥檝e been singing ever since I could walk,鈥� St. Cyr said 鈥淚 was part of the church choir when I was a little kid and from there on out, I knew that I wanted to be a performer.