Meet Emily
Tell us a little about your background – where are you from and what journeys have led you to Maine.
I am originally from Keene, NH and was a part of the vibrant music community there growing up, playing multiple woodwinds in the Nelson Town Band, Keene Jazz Orchestra, jazz jam sessions at the Vermont Jazz Center in Putney, VT, and in local community orchestra pits. We visited Ocean Park, ME each fall as a family vacation, and so landing in Portland has felt both like coming home, and a new exciting journey!
I went to Smith College in Northampton, MA, where I studied music (multiple woodwind performance) and theatre (sound design). I then went directly into a graduate M.F.A. program at the Yale School of Drama for sound design, where I studied composition, audio editing and producing, and live sound reinforcement, as well as how sound helps tell stories, and the importance of deep listening.
During COVID, I moved out to northern Michigan and lived and worked at Interlochen Center for the Arts, where I got connected with Interlochen Public Radio’s Classical station. I produced their educational programming, a podcast called Classical Sprouts, and a daily radio show called Kids Commute for two years.
And, after completing a Post–M.F.A. Teaching Fellowship at Smith College, teaching Sound Design, with an interest in settling down after years of bopping around and freelancing, my partner Victoria and I moved to Portland to start our lives as Mainers.
What’s your musical origin story – how did you first get started in music.
My parents bought a used piano from Keene State College’s rejected pianos for $18 and a few boxes of Girl Scout cookies when I was four. I would bang on the low notes and say it was thunder, or twinkle the high notes and say it was snow. I started classical piano lessons when I was 7 years old, but hated practicing and at the time, didn’t appreciate classical music. I’d also memorize all of the music, and then had trouble starting in the middle, reading the notation instead of just playing by ear. I started alto saxophone in 6th grade, and fell in love with it, and the freedom and creativity that came with improvising. But then, bored with some of the concert band saxophone parts, I learned clarinet and flute, and then started playing in orchestra pits in the area. I later added oboe and English horn to my roster, as many musical theatre reed books require being able to play up to 5 or 6 different instruments in a show!
Was there a particular “a-ha” moment when you realized this your life’s path would sit at an intersection of music and audio?
Smith College didn’t put on musicals, but I had worked backstage on a few plays at my high school, so I decided to take a few theatre classes my freshman year. I took a class called “The Art of Theatre Design” and was immediately taken by the sound design unit. I could bring music to the world of a play that didn’t innately have it. I could use my musical knowledge to help tell the story, and affect the audiences emotional responses to the story being presented onstage. I then went to the department and asked to sound design a show that coming semester, and I ended up designing and composing for shows every following semester during my time at Smith.
What aspects of cultural life in Maine have you had a chance to explore so far?
I’ve eaten steamers on Peak’s Island, explored the Cabot Mill Antique Mall in Brunswick, visited the Coastal Maine Botanic Gardens with Sarah Tuttle, and attended my first Yarmouth Clam Festival. I’ve also really been enjoying walking along the Back Cove Trail in the evenings (and, getting bagels with lox from Rose Foods).
Who are some of your favorite people in the arts? Present day or historical!
Composers Caroline Shaw and Amy Beach, cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, sound designers Palmer Hefferan and Beth Lake, and bands Sylvan Esso and Lake Street Dive.
What three words would you use to describe yourself?
Caring, creative, motivated.
What’s your most useless but proudly held talent?
I’m pretty good at reproducing sounds I hear. And, I know how to walk on stilts.
What’s your biggest irrational fear?
Losing oxygen in a spaceship or submarine. Thankfully, I can easily avoid those.
Tell us your last Google search.
1) luise vosgerchian pronunciation
2) nandos pea recipe
3) cuties portland
If you could swap lives with someone, who would it be, why and what would you do on your first day as them?
Julia Child during her years in Paris. (Or maybe I’d like to be there with her, and go to cooking classes!)
Here at Maine Public Classical we do not believe in guilty pleasures but if you had to name one that might qualify, what would it be?
I love ABBA. And the movie Dirty Dancing. And I’ve seen all of Gilmore Girls more times than I could count. Do Trader Joes chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches count?
What’s the most memorable advice you’ve gotten? Either best or worst!
You don’t have to know everything, but you should know what questions to ask to find out.
What are you most looking forward to in your new adventure as a Host-Producer here at Maine Public Classical?
I’m so excited to get to know all of the arts organizations that I’ll be working with as I host/produce Maine Stage, and I’m already loving how much new music, composers, and performers I’m learning about every single day. Getting to listen and share cool things about music, and helping others listen deeply is a pretty neat thing to be able to do for work every day.