Page 22 | Friday, May 7, 2021
Old Gold & Black | Graduation
JULIANNE ZHU | MUSIC PERFORMANCE BY COOPER SULLIVAN Asst. News Editor sullcg20@wfu.edu When the clock strikes 5 p.m., the Wait Chapel bells begin their brief but beautiful song. These aren’t the only instances of music coming down from above — choir concerts, guest performers and symphony orchestras have all graced the stone stage, as has senior Julianne Zhu. “I’ve always wanted to major in music,” Zhu said. “Even before I came to Wake Forest I knew I was going to major in music. At that time, I wanted to be a singer. But, when I got to Wake Forest and I saw the organ in Wait Chapel, and I thought, ‘I want to play that.’” Having only played piano for a few years as a kid in Shanghai, China, Zhu was determined to master the giant instrument. During her sophomore year, Zhu decided to make organ, not voice, the concentration of her Music Performance degree. This past September, Zhu was able to perform, albeit virtually, her senior recital on the Wait Chapel organ. She played pieces from Bach (her favorite composer), Butehude, Eben, Franch, Boellmann and Wake Forest’s own composer in residence, Dr. Dan Locklair. Zhu has also written her own short two-to-three minute compositions on the piano for her music theory class, and she is aiming to write longer organ compositions in the future. “I would also like to know how to improvise,” Zhu said. “Because that’s a really important skill for any organist, and I just have no idea how to do it. My teacher [adjunct faculty member Susan Bates] can just sit on the organ and play some amazing music. And she’s like, ‘Oh, I just made it up.’ So, I really want to learn how to do that.” The organ has not received all of Zhu’s musical attention — she has also learned the viola da gamba, a Baroque-Renaissance style string instrument played similarly to the cello, for the Collegium Musicum, an ensemble she has been involved with since freshman year. Zhu also made sure not to neglect her initial Photo courtesy of Katie Fox musical love: singing. A video recently posted to
the Wake Forest Music department’s Instagram page shows the Bach enthusiast performing Mozart’s “Ah perdona al primo” in Italian. Zhu’s artistic attentions are not confined to music, however. As a member of the Ballroom Dancing Club, one of her fondest memories at Wake Forest was being a part of a theatre student’s honor project, which combined different styles of dance into one performance. “I got to do the polka and wear the giant dress,” she recalled. “That was really fun.” As graduation quickly approaches, Zhu can’t think of anything that she would change about the past four years. Adamantly, she believes she has “made the most out of college.” “I don’t feel like a senior,” Zhu said. “I feel like this past year, because of COVID, I didn’t really have that year, and it feels like I had [only] three years here. I’m not ready to graduate.” But Zhu won’t be going far following graduation. Next year, she will be attending the UNC School of the Arts (UNCSA) in downtown Winston-Salem for a two-year graduate program. After that, the possibilities are endless. “I am thinking about going to Europe to find other graduate schools [where I can] continue playing. For music, you can really do anything with a bachelor’s degree,” Zhu said laughingly. Zhu credits Dr. Stewart Carter, her Collegium Musicum conductor and a professor of music history, as the instructor that helped and inspired her the most over the past four years. As for her advice for others thinking they may want to major in music performance as well,” Zhu explained the importance of remaining flexible and open to change. “I’d say ‘keep your mind open.’ Like I said, when I came here, I wanted to major in voice and I ended up doing organ. Take two or three music classes before you decide what you really want to major in. I know a lot of people struggle in music theory, and when they attend that class they weren’t expecting that kind of difficulty. I would also say, take at least one theory class before you decide your major.”
LORRAINE HAYES | PHILOSOPHY BY BEN CONROY Print Managing Editor conrbd19@wfu.edu Lorraine Hayes’ hometown of Johnson City, Tenn. is home to a culture far different from that of Winston-Salem. For this reason, it was a leap of faith for her to choose to attend Wake Forest. In the end, the lure of a full scholarship and the appeal of remaining within three hours of her hometown proved too sweet to pass up. “My mentor [for the scholarship] went to Wake Forest,” Hayes said. “I thought, okay, maybe I should branch out. I [also] wanted to be able to drive home whenever I needed freshman year … I’m the first person from my town that’s come to Wake Forest.” Like many students, Hayes’ academic career has followed an entirely different trajectory than she initially planned. After a period of trial and error, she discovered the subject and major that would come to define the rest of her time on the Reynolda campus — philosophy. “Freshman year, I took a couple of science classes,” she said, “[but] I was more attracted to helping people and learning about people … I quickly realized the sciences weren’t for me.” What resonates most with Hayes about the subject of philosophy is how it can be applied to so many aspects of the world around us. Though it may not always be readily apparent, Hayes learned through the various classes she took just how intertwined philosophy is with the human condition. “I took … Philosophy of Emotions, and it showed me how philosophy can be used in day-to-day life to solve personal issues,” Hayes recalled. The instructor of that class, Professor Francisco Gallegos, was one of Hayes’ most influential mentors within the major, and she’s incredibly appreciative of how he helped her find her footing when she’d just begun to explore the subject matter. The feeling of admiration was mutual, as Professor Gallegos spoke highly of Hayes and all she’s accomplished.
“Lorraine is one of the most well-rounded students I have had the chance to work with,” Gallegos said. “She is an excellent writer with a sharp, analytical mind. Power with heart — that is Lorraine in a nutshell.” However, Lorraine’s accomplishments extend beyond the classroom; she’s involved in a plethora of extracurricular organizations and activities, including the Pan-Hellenic Diversity and Inclusion Council and Habitat for Humanity. Hayes cited her affiliation with these organization as a way to stay true to her roots and her heritage while still broadening her horizons. “When you come to Wake, you want to hold onto the parts of you that feel like home,” she said. “It’s been really cool to talk to other kids with similar yet different experiences than me.” As it did for all of us, the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic threw Hayes for a loop. Even so, she was able to lean on the connections she’d established earlier in her collegiate career and make the most of her final year as an undergraduate student at Wake Forest. “A senior year with COVID was [something] no one saw coming,” she said. “I’m very thankful for the friendships and relationships I’ve made.” As graduation looms just around the corner, Hayes noted that it’s the little things about life at Wake Forest, such as studying with friends or spending time outdoors, that she’ll remember the most fondly. “During finals, my friends and I always rent out a couple rooms in Tribble and literally live there for three or four days,” she said. “I think that’s one of [my favorite memories]. And being on the quad. I’m going to miss that.” After graduation, Hayes intends to pursue a law degree from Boston College, where she was recently accepted. Even as she shifts gears from philosophy, she’ll continue to carry with her all she’s learned from the time she spent studying the subject. “Professor Gallegos phrased it like this: ‘Philosophy makes the familiar strange and the strange familiar,’” he said. “I really appreciate the new perspectives I have been given and the tools philosophy gives you to unpack the way the world works.”
Photo courtesy of Andy Woehr
