Natalie Lugo

MUSC-2700

Dr. Stevens

December 9, 2020

About Me

I have always been surrounded by music. Growing up, we always had music playing and

danced and sang along to nursery rhymes and the masterworks alike. I started taking Suzuki

violin at age six, which was the springboard to a long musical journey. I played piano and cello,

sang in choir, joined orchestras, and played in a string quartet with my siblings.

Each of my music teachers growing up sowed the seeds of music and teaching into my

heart. They nourished me, they embraced me for who I was, and they invested themselves in me.

Music was a place where I felt seen and cared for.

I always loved choir the most of my various music activities, but it didn’t cross my mind

that this could be a career option until I was 15 years old. That winter, my grandmother passed

away in the middle of concert season—which meant we were performing concerts literally every

day of the week. Those weeks were so painful. I struggled through orchestra and playing quartet

gigs and violin concertos, but choir was a place of healing and nourishment. The way that my

choir conductor reached out to me and ministered to me was what touched me the most. Nobody

had ever done that to me before. Suddenly, it hit me. I knew that I wanted to have that same

influence in the lives of children. I wanted to be that safe person who showed them love and care

while making something beautiful together that encompassed the hearts and souls of humans.
 Currently, I am a sophomore studying Vocal Music Education. I am minoring in Human

Learning and Development in order to understand the deeper, human side of my future students.

I have attended many conferences and workshops and have several levels of Suzuki Cello

Teacher Training. I have a dear cello studio with cellists ages three and up. Through my teaching

in my studio, I have learned to cherish every step of the process of music education—breaking

things down into the tiniest steps, triumphing over every small victory, and watching the sparkle

in my students’ eyes as they succeed. Additionally, I am the Student Intern with the Mountain

Empire Children’s Choral Academy. I teach and conduct a piece with the children’s choirs each

semester, lead warm-ups, work on administrative tasks, and during COVID, am engineering the

virtual choirs.

In a year from now, I see myself in a very similar position to where I am now. I plan to

continue with my cello studio and my work with MECCA. I do plan to take more Suzuki,

Kodaly, Orff and Dalcroze training as soon as the courses are offered again. For my own musical

growth, I hope to use this year to focus on my own solo voice.

My dream for my career is to work with a regional children’s choir and run my own

Suzuki cello studio. I intend to teach Suzuki Early Childhood Education classes for infants and

toddlers. I have a great love for the youngest children and desire to implant a strong foundation

in music, a love for classical music and singing, and character traits of loving and empathetic

people. I also have a deep interest in psychotherapy and counseling and intend to pursue a

master’s degree in counseling immediately following my undergraduate degree. I do not yet

know how these two areas of music and counseling will intertwine, but I do know that I

somehow have a calling for both. Right now, I am pursuing both and seeing where the paths

lead.
 The most important thing for me in my career is to somehow touch my students’ lives. I

am passionate about the fact that every child needs something. Sometimes those needs are more

explicit—such as food or clothing. But many times, perhaps even most times, those needs are

hidden. The percentage of children that experience trauma and adverse childhood experiences is

alarming. It pains me to think of what the majority of our young people live through each and

every day. Perhaps the hour of making music will be the one thing that keeps them living.

Perhaps I will be that safe adult who will take time to listen and care for them. Perhaps choir or

cello will be the activity that provides resilience and stability. I want my students to know that I

love them, and that I am there for them. That I care.

Perhaps the most unique thing about me is my energy. Normally, I am rather a quiet,

deep, introspective person who is carefully observing the atmosphere around me and fulfilling

the needs of others that arise. When I’m teaching, I have the ability to gauge the student, read

their needs and energy, and provide what I think they need. For some students, I find that they

need the most sparkling, energetic, inspiring version of me. And with others, they need the depth

and love and compassion. I am careful to always give my students my genuine self, but I am able

to adapt my energy to draw out what I think that particular student, or group of students, needs.

In three words, I am empathetic, passionate, and nurturing.