Suzannah VanGelder to showcase talents in Europe

By Derek Liebig

Granville’s Suzannah VanGelder is taking her talents to Europe. Van Gelder at Battle of Bands (1)

The junior is among a select group of high school students who will showcase their musical talents during a two-week tour across the pond this summer.

“I’m very excited,” Van Gelder said. “It will be my first trip to Europe. I’ve never been abroad so it will be a new experience.”

A gifted singer, VanGelder has been pursuing music seriously for four years and taking vocal lessons for three years. She is a member of Granville High School’s chorus and has performed at New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA) festivals. She also performed the National Anthem at girls and boys varsity basketball games last winter and has participated in Granville’s Battle of the Bands.

“Music is very important to me,” she said. “But more than that, I love experiencing new cultures and doing new things.”

The tour is part of the American Music Abroad program, which organizes musical tours of Europe for high school and college students.

Although the tour is open to students from throughout the United States, Granville is one of the few area schools that has sought to send students on the trip.

“Granville is unique in that sense because there aren’t a lot of school in the Northeast that do it,” VanGelder said.

Students are chosen to attend the tours on the basis of recommendations from their teachers and musical achievements. VanGelder was selected based on the recommendation of her teachers and high scores at NYSSMA events.

Her tour will depart for Europe on July 18 and will include stops in Switzerland, Italy, Austria, Germany and France.

Along the way she and others—an orchestra will accompany the chorus of which VanGelder will be part —will perform at some of Europe’s well-known chapels. Those on the tour will spend three days in Pennsylvania prior to the trip learning music and getting to know each other.

“I am most excited for Salisbury (Switzerland). It’s where the Sound of Music was filmed and we get to visit the exact spot where Julie Andrews sang,” VanGelder said.

She characterized the trip as a dream come true and said it will help build her repertoire.

“Hopefully it’s a growing experience,” she said.

VanGelder aspires to one day become a recording artist and has been frequenting open mic nights to develop her skills and grow accustomed to singing in unfamiliar venues.

To offset some of the cost of the trip, which has been tabbed at more than $6,000, she is hosting a pair of raffles. Schoony’s Country Store will raffle off packages of assorted meats and VanGelder has solicited donations from businesses throughout the Granville region that will be part of a second raffle held sometime in June. Items include a 46-inch television, a SCUBA diving course and assorted gift cards to local businesses.

Tickets for each raffle cost $3 or five for $10. They can be purchased by emailing [email protected] or at [email protected].