Student Profile: The Conservatory of Music, University of the Pacific
With the launch of student profiles on “The Pacifican,” Ria Patel – a student of the Conservatory of Music – will be the first student featured.
Ria is a second year student with a Vocal Performance Major. Follow along with the interview to learn more about Ria and her experience at Pacific.
What drew you to University of the Pacific, and more specifically, to the conservatory?
My admissions interview with the voice area faculty made me feel like Pacific was a good fit. We had a good conversation about Eurocentrism in music and upholding diversity in curriculum, which I really appreciated.
What pathway/degree are you completing at the conservatory? What piqued your interest in this area?
I am a vocal performance major! As cheesy as it is, I study music because I love to sing.
Do you have a role model that you have looked up to while at the conservatory?
My voice teacher, Virginia Kelsey, is a huge role model for me. She is an incredibly talented and accomplished musician (she has a Grammy?!) and a super empathetic and hilarious person. I have improved so much during my time here in large part because of her.
Shout out Virginia!!
What would you cite as your favorite memory since being a part of the conservatory?
My favorite memory is definitely the Opera Follies. Follies is a show the Pacific Opera Theatre puts on in the fall every year. It's a musical revue of songs from musicals, operas, and jazz standards strung together in montages.
The audience sits around the perimeter of the room while we sing from the center. This year we sang a lot of Disney, and it was so fun. The cast always forms a great bond as well… I leave Follies feeling so lucky to be making music with my amazing and talented friends.
Fun Fact Section
Ria has several pets! Some of them include goats, chickens, a dog, a cat, a donkey, and a llama. She mentions, “they’re evil but [she] loves them.”
Thumbnail Picture: Ria Patel and her voice teacher, Virginia Kelsey, after Follies
