Editor’s Note: Below is a transcription of responses collected from various interviews I conducted with music students. The majority of these interviews were conducted last Friday, before it was announced that campus would be online for the entirety of the spring semester. Students were given a list of questions and responses were sent over text. Responses have been edited for clarity.
Students interviewed: Gabe Waters (sophomore music education major from Bloomfield, Missouri), Victoria Brownhill (sophomore instrumental music education major from Searcy, Arkansas), Noah Wright (sophomore music performance major from Ash Flat, Arkansas), Leyandra Snyder (sophomore music performance major from Boise, Idaho)
Will you be going home for spring break?
Waters: I’m not sure.
Brownhill: I live full time in Jonesboro now, so I’ll be staying here mostly. But I’m going to attempt to see my family for a little bit.
Wright: Yes, but I will be back after, while we are online.
Snyder: As far as I know right now, I will be going home for break. I am a little concerned though about going through major airports and all the people I will be exposed to.
Will you still continue to practice in the building even after we go online?
Waters: I have nowhere else to practice.
Brownhill: I will do most of my practice here, but I’m going to ask my landlord if it’s alright if I practice during set hours during the day.
Wright: Yes.
Snyder: I am definitely still going to practice in the building despite online classes. My private lessons will still be held as normal and I will actually still be teaching my own students in elementary and middle school because their schools haven’t done anything yet.*
What’s your biggest concern right now with the virus and everything going on?
Waters: Travelling home and what the h— to do.
Brownhill: I’m not concerned for my own health really, but I am very concerned about my parents and the older faculty members that I’m around a lot.
Wright: The effects on the elderly and immunocompromised.
Snyder: My biggest concern is possibly getting coronavirus while traveling through big cities but not knowing it and accidentally spreading it on campus.
How safe do you feel on campus, health-wise?
Waters: I feel pretty safe at the moment.
Brownhill: I feel pretty safe for the most part, but being in big rehearsals with lots of people and not a lot of space kind of makes me anxious.
Wright: I feel pretty safe.
Snyder: I feel pretty safe on campus, especially with the big push for health and social distancing.
How has the shift online affected your motivation to practice?
Waters: It’s given me more time, for sure.
Brownhill: It hasn’t really affected it a whole lot.
Wright: I will be in the building less so I will be less likely to practice. Though we might have more time to practice, it won’t happen as much.
Snyder: The shift to online classes hasn’t affected my motivation to practice much. If anything, I’ll be glad to have even more time to practice in a hopefully relatively more empty building. I feel like my motivation for my other classes has suffered a tiny bit though.
What changes have you already noticed around the building or amongst your peers?
Waters: Everyone is hella on edge.
Brownhill: There is hand sanitizer EVERYWHERE.
Wright: I have noticed panic about what is to come and how we are going to stay on track with a four-year plan.
Snyder: There are many more changes in the building with all of the hand sanitizers and wipes available throughout. I haven’t noticed any changes amongst my peers, but I think we’re all on the same page of just wanting to know what’s gonna happen next.
* Since then, Governor Asa Hutchinson announced a mandatory shift to online schooling for all K-12 schools for the March 16 week of school.
Categories: Opinion
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