2022 Arts Award: Kaylee Drew
by Tyler Dean ‘25
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Kaylee Drew ‘22
Major: Applied Psychology and English
Minor: Music
What's it like having the voice of an angel? Tell us about yourself and your involvement with the Arts on campus!
I'm Kaylee Drew from North Attleboro, Massachusetts, a senior this year. I’m an Applied Psychology and English major with a minor in Music. I was involved in choirs all throughout my childhood and highschool, so coming to BC I knew I wanted to be involved in choirs here because it was where I met a lot of my friends and it was a great place to relax and do something that I’m passionate about. So at BC once I arrived, I auditioned for Chorale and the Chamber Singers, and I fortunately was accepted, and that’s where most of my involvement in the Arts has been at BC. Since then, I’ve been honored to be the Music Librarian and the Vice President for the past two years. I’ve been able to give back to the group in that way.
What work have you done as music librarian and vice president?
2021-2022 Senior Chorale Officers, Winter Concert, February 2022
As the Music Librarian last year, all our rehearsals were on Zoom, so I made sure that people had access to PDFs of all the music we were singing for our virtual rehearsals and for our virtual recordings, and I also helped getting our physical music back from when we shut down suddenly in 2020, so that was nice. And then this year as the Vice President and as the Treasurer, I’ve been able to manage all of our finances, make sure our budgets are looking good, and make all of our purchases. I also helped in planning our Spring Break trip to Rome that we had over this past March.
Tell us a little about the Chorale Spring Break trip to Rome.
It was an incredible, kind of unbelievable process. Leading up to it, we were very uncertain of whether or not it would actually be able to happen, given all the COVID restrictions and the fact that things were constantly changing. So, we didn’t really know how things would go, and there was a lot of paperwork that needed to be filled out, lots of insurance policies that we were worried about. It's definitely kind of stressful and nerve wrecking leading up to it, but fortunately when we were there, everyone stayed safe and tested negative so we could come home. We had an incredible time seeing all the sights and doing some really awesome performances. We were in some pretty incredible Churches and historical sites, and it was just incredible to be able to do that after a year of not being able to do it in 2021, so I think it really helped bring the group together, and I was humbled and proud to be part of it and to help make it happen.
Chorale Seniors at the Vatican
2021-2022 Chorale Officers and Director John Finney, Christmas on the Heights, December 2021
What are some of your favorite moments from being involved in the arts here? Some performances you really enjoyed?
I think the Christmas on the Heights performance this year was really special. It was the first one we've been able to do in person since 2020 or 2019, and I think it was great to be able to bring the Christmas Spirit back to audiences. They seemed to really enjoy it. We had four performances compared to the three concerts that we’ve done in the past, so it was a marathon weekend to be able to be with people again and to be able to spread that holiday cheer. That definitely stands out as one of my favorite performances. Pops on the Heights too is always a really awesome time to be part of such a huge scholarship gala that raises so much money and helps so many people and to be able to perform with some incredibly talented and really famous artists is a super cool experience.
What role did you play in those events or in getting Chorale to them?
Not so much for Pops on the Heights but definitely for Christmas on the Heights—I think especially this year making—sure all of our collaborating musicians are getting paid—that’s big—, making sure that everyone gets together and gets prepared and that we have everything in order. I help out with getting all of the purchases that are involved. That's the main thing I’ve been able to do this year to contribute, so the president mostly does the work of hyping us up and getting us where we need to be, but behind the scenes, I kind of coordinate some logistics and I've been able to do that work. It's been very exciting.
Have you had any notable mentors that have helped you here on your arts journey?
Definitely John Finney. He’s the director of Chorale. I feel like he really is the driving force behind everything we do. His passion for the group and choral singing and for music in general is just so evident, and he brings so much knowledge and enthusiasm and energy to every rehearsal. So we wouldn't be anything without his direction and his passion. Beyond that, I think a lot of my peers in chorale [are mentors]. Being able to be with such dedicated and inspired musicians, I think I get a lot from connecting with other people in the group, and I'm definitely inspired by their talent; we kind of feed off of each other. It's been awesome, and I've been really fortunate to be around some really incredible people and musicians in these last couple of years in Chorale.
Chorale and the BC Symphony Orchestra, Christmas on the Heights, December 2019
Have you had any experience with the arts at BC outside of Chorale?
So many shows in the theater department. Many of my friends are [part of the theater department], so it's been really great. I think, speaking a little bit to how I'm inspired by my peers, a lot of my focus has been in Chorale, but being able to go watch the Acapella shows and being able to watch my friends form and direct shows and theater, I am really inspired by the talent that exists within many of the domains of the arts on this campus, and seeing people play in the orchestra and what their instruments are like. It's awesome to be able not only to participate in [the arts], but to be a consumer of the arts here as well and an appreciator of the talents other people on this campus have to offer.
And you’ve had those collaborations firsthand with the orchestra when they perform with Chorale in concerts. You really get to see that happen upclose.
Yes, it's really inspiring. When we were playing with the Symphony Orchestra for Christmas on the Heights, you wouldn't know that they’re students. It sounds like a professional orchestra, so it's really awesome to be able to collaborate with people of such high caliber.
What advice do you have for people that are coming to BC and are interested in Chorale or the Arts in general?
Oh my gosh, just audition, get out, do it, get involved in whatever way that you can. I think sometimes people might feel intimidated by the arts scene on our campus because there are so many groups and many of them are auditioned, but I’d say find the things that you’re interested in, try out, keep trying differing groups, don’t box yourself into just doing one thing, and try to get involved in as many ways that you can. I think it's been my favorite involvement. There are so many great people within the arts community at BC who I think would be really excited to welcome anyone interested in joining, so just get out there and get involved.
Thinking about your time at BC so far, what does “New Nostalgia” mean to you? How has your artistic expression evolved since coming to the Heights?
I think we are at a turning point in a weird way. Last year, everything was online and we were doing things in a way we never thought of before, like virtual rehearsals for Chorale, putting together virtual videos; it wasn’t like anything anyone in Chorale could have anticipated we would be doing. So now, being back in person again, it feels like a return to what is most comfortable to us and what the essence of the group really feels like it is—being in person with people, making music together. I think we’ve taken a lot of lessons from the pandemic and we’re a more depthful group because of it. I think we're more appreciative of the fact that we can be in person because we've had this experience where we haven't been. So, when I think about New Nostalgia, I think about where we’ve been coming from, the challenges that we’ve been through.
Chamber Singers Christmas Concert, 2021, St. Mary’s Chapel
Us at the Arts Journal are grateful for the opportunity to interview Kaylee and get to know more about her and the Arts On Campus.
Edited by: Sindey Amar 24’