Meet the Students

When her parents heard a clear, strong, melodious voice coming from the ranks of their church choir, Blaire says they couldn't believe it was hers. They encouraged her to audition for Boston's Handel & Hayden Society, where she was accepted into the professional singing group's prestigious youth program when she was only a fourth-grader.

Since enrolling at Phillips Academy, Blaire says she has been "extensively involved" in music. Voice lessons are an integral part of her program, and performing in several campus classical vocal groups will help, she believes, in her career goal: to sing opera professionally.

Blaire has taken advantage of the school's visiting performers' workshops and master classes. She was especially enthusiastic about the visiting artist Morten Lauridsen, the most frequently performed American choral composer. "I've sung his music and I love it," she says.

An advantage of membership in the various choral groups is travel. She sang with the Cantata Choir in Puerto Rico, Washington, D.C., Savannah, Georgia, and Italy. "Italy was my favorite," she says. "We sang in Venice, Rome, and on the Amalifi Coast. It's such a blessing to perform in these places at such a young age."