Two MWSU students selected for symphony finale
By Charles Christian
Two Missouri Western State University music students have been selected to appear with the Saint Joseph Symphony in the orchestra’s season finale on Saturday, April 20, at the Missouri Theater.
After rigorous tryouts, vocalist Sara Poet and trombonist David Welter were selected to perform their selected pieces with the symphony. The theme of the finale is, “The Future’s So Bright,” and both students recognize the boost this appearance can give them for their future musical aspirations.
Poet, a senior who sings soprano, is performing an excerpt from the opera HMS Pinafore. She said this is an opportunity of a lifetime for any young musician.
“I’ve been working on this piece specifically for about two and a half years,” Poet said. “This opportunity is amazing, and I am very excited to be selected.”
Likewise, Welter, a sophomore, said performing his piece with the symphony will feel like a reward for over a year of hard work on the piece.
“It’s been a dream of mine for the last couple of years,” Welter said. “This is especially true in the last two years, since I have really been taking a career in music seriously.”
Both students are St. Joseph natives and come from musical families. Symphony conductor Chris Kelts said adding these Missouri Western students to the finale is part of a bigger vision of connecting more deeply to the St. Joseph community.
“Missouri Western has been a part of the fabric of St. Joseph for many years,” Kelts said. “So, we wanted to feature these talented students who attend there. So, with the help of faculty like Shaun Agnew, we came up with this idea of the young artist composition.”
Tickets for the symphony season finale are available at saintjosephsymphony.org.
