09 | features
March 29, 2017
FEATURES MUSIC
Two sisters form band, play at churches, weddings, dinners
SISTERS ELAINA AND ANNA STEENSON, who go by ClearJoy when they perform together, perform at the Lenten Music Series at First United Methodist Church. PHOTO BY HALEY HODGES | STAFF WRITER Haley Hodges Staff Writer haley.hodges@drake.edu
Despite having separate chaotic lives, two musicians at Drake University have been playing together most of their lives, and still make time to perform together under the name “ClearJoy.” Sisters Elaina and Anna Steenson are Des Moines natives who both chose to attend Drake, albeit following different tracks. E. Steenson is a senior majoring in viola performance and music business with minors in business studies and French language and culture. A. Steenson is a sophomore pursuing degrees in both music and digital media productions. “Both my parents were music
majors so we kind of had music in our lives since before I was born,” E. Steenson said. Their parents, David and Natalie Steenson, have always brought music into their house, fostering an ever-growing collection of instruments. The family will often play together at church services, either singing or on the piano. “(ClearJoy’s) default setting is Elaina and I, but we can grow it and shrink it as needed,” A. Steenson said. For their performances, both sisters can play a variety of instruments. E. Steenson comfortable on the viola, violin, flute and pennywhistle while A. Steenson plays cello, guitar and mandolin. Both said they’ve experimented trying to learn more complicated instruments, like the hammer dulcimer, but their main
combination features E. Steenson on viola and A. Steenson on cello. A. Steenson said she and her sister started performing together to raise money for their youth choir trips around the time they were in middle school. Together, they’ve become “ClearJoy” and have booked gigs playing at weddings, churches, holiday parties and even as ambiance for a romantic dinner. By the time they formally created their band, it was D. Steenson who suggested the name. “I don’t know how long he had this idea but he knew that our name was going to be ClearJoy. He had this set in his head because Anna’s middle name is Clarice, so Clear, and my middle name is Joy,” E. Steenson said. “He’s been our roadie ever since so we can’t really complain.” The Steensons find that they are easily able to communicate
with each other on stage often with nothing more than a look at the other. “Elaina and I are very close in age and the things we do and there’s often times we feel like we’re a touch telepathic with each other,” A. Steenson said. “It comes across in the music too; we may not communicate a musical idea. We might not decide on the actual musical representation we want, but when we play together we kind of understand what the other’s thinking and we go along with it and that shapes the music. … We can go into a gig knowing we’re going to be able to read off each other and feed off of the room and make it into something that we can enjoy and hopefully the audience will enjoy as well.” With E. Steenson graduating in May, ClearJoy’s future’s uncertain. “It’s been so fortunate that
we’ve been in the same state and same area so we can perform together as much as we have, but it will change quite a bit,” A. Steenson said. “We can still come back and play together but it won’t be the same. … We might take a break for a while, but we can always bring the group back.” Currently, the two have some gigs booked already for the summer and have recently performed together for E. Steenson’s senior recital earlier this month and for the Lenten Music Series at the First United Methodist Church. “It makes it so much more fun to play so you’re not just an individual person,” E. Steenson said. “You’re actually playing with somebody and making music with somebody versus just making music.”
CAMPUS ORGANIZATIONS
Swimmers start club, hope to swim competitively in near future Ashley Flaws contributing Writer ashley.flaws@drake.edu
Drake University Swim Club is one of the newest clubs on campus. It began in fall semester of 2015. The club’s founder, Natalie Hagen, wanted to create a club where students could get together to share a love of swimming. “I was a competitive swimmer all through middle and high school. So when I got to college, I realized how much I missed being part of a team and having regular meets,” said Hagen, a sophomore majoring in biochemistry, cell and molecular biology, in an email. “My first semester at Drake, I met many other former swimmers who felt that way too, so I decided to take the initiative to start a formal club.” The club meets from either 8-9 p.m. or 8:30-9:30 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays at the Bell Center Pool. The times shift in order to accomadate for other events hosted in the pool. Around five members attend the practices each night. But that turnout is still a testament to how far the club has come since its
beginning. “It was about a year and a half before the club became a reality,” Hagen said. “We still have a long way to go as far as building the team and competing with other college clubs, but I’m really proud of it.” Although the club does not host or attend any competitions against other colleges, Swim Club President Darryl McCabe said
that members can eventually expect to get the opportunity to compete in the future. “This semester, we’re trying more to get more people involved with it, kind of up our membership a little bit,” McCabe said. “We’re aiming for next semester trying to start competing with other schools and going to meets and stuff like that.” Because the club is focused on
recruiting members, swimmers of all levels are encouraged to join. At each practice, members swim at their own pace, following along with a workout designed by McCabe. McCabe provides some guidance along the way, but swimmers mostly complete the workout on their own to the best of their abilities. “Anyone who is interested in doing or learning how to do
competitive swimming or just kind of wanting to do swimming to stay in shape (can join),” McCabe said. “You don’t have to have a competitive swimming background or anything like that. You just have to have an interest in being able to swim or swimming to stay in shape, really.” Caroline Gander, the secretary of the club, said that she has been swimming at a competitive level since she was eight years old. Like McCabe, she encourages students of all swimming levels to join, whether they have plenty of experience like her or are just starting out. “I would definitely encourage other students to join, especially if they have a swimming background because we’re not super intense,” said Gander, a first-year pre-pharmacy student. “It’s just mostly about staying in shape and meeting new people, so it’s more fun the more people that come out.” Anyone interested in joining the club is encouraged to email McCabe at darryl.mccabe@drake.edu or to look out for a practice schedule posted at the Bell Center for information about the upcoming meetings and practices.