Balancing between school and art: student musicians share their stories

A city known for its role in music and the arts, Cleveland is home to many stellar student musicians, working to balance their craft with their pursuit of education.

Nate Collins, a sophomore music education major, has loved music since he was six-years-old. Having first learned how to play instruments in fifth grade, he went on to play in his high school’s gig combo which inspired him to further pursue his own group in college. However, he has had to learn to balance pursuing music in school with his art outside of it. 

“Being in music school is a very challenging thing,” said Collins. “You spend a lot of time practicing and relearning your fundamentals that class work tends to fall under the radar, since your commitment is to playing and honing your skills rather than academics so you have to find a good balance between school work and practicing. The way I did this was working outside of the music building, finding cafés or going to the library to just get some peace and quiet.”

Collins playing saxophone at a gig. Photo Credit: Nate Collins

Though the program is technically only one major, the music education program can be extremely rigorous at times with its dual focus on music and teaching. With a large emphasis on music theory and the variety of skills needed in order to teach music, the major is less aligned with students’ individual music pursuits than one might think.

“Studying music in school is completely different,” Collins explained. “It’s very specialized, you learn very specific things about music and have to learn how to apply that to how you play and learn about the details and techniques they teach you to become a better musician, so you can apply it to your gigs and performances so you can make a living.”

In the future Collins hopes to start a big combo group in the Cleveland area, a continuation of where his music is currently at. His ideal end goal would be to both play gigs and teach at the same time, involving both of his interests in his daily life. In addition to an upcoming gig in November, Collins shares his music journey on his Instagram, @nwcmusic.

Not all CSU students pursuing music are also studying it. Lana Grabski is a junior double majoring in political science and international relations with a minor in psychology, and additionally holds three positions in Phi Mu. 

Having grown up around music, she has been singing her whole life, but only since learning to play the guitar at 14 has she been writing her own music. More recently, she has started playing gigs around Northeast Ohio, and has released four singles under the name Lana Ann. While currently working on an album and another five-song project, Grabski has had to learn to confront the issues of time management and scheduling.

“I 100% have encountered lots of challenges balancing music and school,” said Grabski. “I would say a big one is time management, especially with my involvement in Phi Mu. This is a challenge since gigs are sometimes booked out over a year in advance […] As anyone would guess, this is a challenge since there’s no way of knowing what my school or Phi Mu schedule will be like at that time. Along with anything else that may be going on in my life.”

Grabski posing for the cover of her latest single “Bad Apology”. Photo Credit: Lana Grabski

In overcoming this difficulty she has had to remain dedicated to sticking to her commitments and focuses on managing everything she needs to do in a timely way in order to avoid stress as best she can. In addition to the logistics of her schedule, Grabski has also found it difficult to fit her song writing around her school work. 

“A lot of times, when I have the urge to write a song or have an idea, it’s at the worst possible time – like during an exam or when I’m trying to go to sleep,” she said. “I’ve found that if I sit down and force myself to write a song, it’s never as good as the ones I write spur of the moment. To overcome this, I write down the ideas I have at the time and honestly just hope that I can remember where I wanted to go with the song.”

Grabski sees her majors as completely separate from her music. However, she enjoys pursuing interests in multiple different areas and professions. She hopes her music, inspired by her own life, can help people feel less alone. She has various gigs and projects in the works for the near future that can be found on her Instagram, @lana_ann014.

College life can cause a loss of focus on individual goals and interests, but it can also open new doors of inspiration. Music is just one of the many arts, businesses and projects students include in their lives beyond school. 

The music community on campus may not be the first thing one notices, but students thinking about including their music in their life as a college student should know that there are more fellow musicians than they realize.