Hello! My name is Chase and I am a '25 from South Carolina. I'm currently considering studying more film scoring and video game composition to learn about writing music for movies and games! But when I'm not hanging out with friends or doing classwork, you can find me composing music. I'm involved in the Dartmouth College Wind Ensemble (DCWE), Dartmouth Chamber Orchestra (DCO), and the fraternity Zeta Psi.
As someone who did not know the ins and outs of marine policy, I loved learning about aspects of the blue economy. This class encourages us to be aware of the human aspect of marine problems regarding coastal erosion, pollution, and climate change. Professor Webster is the coolest!
I could not recommend this class enough to anyone who goes to this school! Professor Beaudoin has truly influenced me as both a musician and a student. We learn the music from the 1800's to present day including famous composers like Tchaikovsky, but also music by Beyonce and even the music of Dartmouth's professors. This is much more than a music history class. It is a class about music, our lives, and exploring the concept of sonder through musical lens.
If you're scared of coding or have a love for music, this is the class for you. This computer science class is cross-listed with music to teach students how to code using a language called processing to learn the basic principles of design through coding. We created several projects throughout the term, but Professor Casey really taught me that there is more to music than I think. For my final, I created an interactive keyboard which created a visual effect for each key that created music which made it a musical instrument! Genuinely such an amazing and fun class that I think people should consider.
Although this class is only offered during the F.I.R.E. study abroad program, it was such an amazing class. I absolutely adored having Professor Canepa teach us about Italy from its politics, music, food, and much much more. This class taught me hands on what Italian culture is through visits to famous landmarks, food tastings, or tours of Italian regions. If you don't want to study abroad, I suggest taking a class with Professor Canepa because she truly is one of my favorite professors I have had yet.
FallHanover, New Hampshire
I was on an off term, but decided to live on campus to join a fraternity and work in town. I took the time to write music for one of my friend's short films and learned a lot about the film music industry.
Dr. Moseley has been one of my most favorite professors by far. I have loved taking this class to divulge into my musical passion through creating music and learning about ways to create music. If you are interested in taking a music class, I highly recommend Dr. Moseley if you find a class with him that interests you!
I took this class with composer Miguel Kertsman who was incredibly knowledgeable in every type of compositional technique that I wanted. I studied electronic music composition with him to understand music digital signal processing better.
Although I'm not a fan of reading literature for the classroom, this class completely changed the way I perceive literature. I adored this class with Prof. Hollister as it engaged with the dissections of film, novels, and short stories regarding how humanity views the end of the world.
I took an off-term this Fall, but I decided to sit in on a class on how to arrange music for strings and woodwinds! After many hours of long work, I had a piece performed and recorded by professional musicians that I worked on in the class!
This has to be arguably one of my favorite classes I have taken at Dartmouth with one of the most qualified and talented professors! Throughout the term, I mixed eight different songs of all different genres and learned the ins and outs of sound engineering. This means figuring out the best ways to create and produce music in the industry. Now, I feel confident publishing my own music and have started helping others publish theirs too by working on their projects!
Jodie Mack's "History of Visual Music" truly changed my Dartmouth career. In their class, students learn about the ways artists has dealt with the intersection of sound and sight through film, sculpture, and live performance. Throughout the term, students present two films or performances of their own creative works. Now, Professor Mack is one of my advisors for my thesis which is a long-form piece of visual music!
SummerGreer, SC
During this Summer, I spent time at home with my parents while teaching at a high school marching band. I took a lot of time to write music to prepare my composition portfolio for grad school applications and took time to visit friends before we graduate!
Throughout this year, I am working on a film entitled "Queer Idyll." You can read more about the senior fellowship and my project on the blog, or at the link on above. My favorite part of my research and project this term has been visiting farms owned or cared for by queer individuals. I have witness so many amazing stories, beautiful locations, and friendly people!
So you've decided to visit Dartmouth? I mean it definitely feels quite out of the way, but definitely is totally worth it! However, visiting a new place can feel like a lot and you may have no clue what to do. For me, I was not able to have an in-person visit and I simply arrived on campus for orientation, which was definitely a wild experience. Currently, I am planning things to do with my parents for when they come this week for family weekend. Below are some things I would do when you visit Dartmouth after your tour.
Rauner Library!
Rollin's Chapel!
When it is a nice sunny day out, I encourage you to take some time on the Green (the heart of our campus). When you look around you will see almost every building you will need to know on campus. More importantly, you will also get to see how students spend their time by seeing students read on the grass or friends playing spikeball together. The most noticeable building will be our beloved Baker-Berry Library. It definitely is worth having someone you know take you to the Tower Room to see the most iconic part of the building.
I would recommend walking on many of the streets where dorms are located to get a feel for the campus. For example, I would walk down Massachusetts Row (typically just called Mass Row) to look at the buildings and to see what FoCo (a nickname for the 1953 Commons, our main dining hall) looks like.
After walking around some of those streets, I highly recommend going into town on Main Street! There are many places to try out to eat, and it is really hard to say exactly where you should go. After your meal, you can go into the record store or even one of the two book stores. There are also a few small shops like the Dartmouth Co-op, and if you are lucky you may see "the ring man" outside of Molly's (a very friendly guy who sells beautiful handmade rings). You could even walk back to campus to look at the art inside of the Hood Museum of Art.
This is the Hopkins Center! Home of the Courtyard Cafe, Music Department, and Theater Department.
Overall, there are a lot of small things you should try to experience when you visit Dartmouth. If you have any questions about exactly what to visit or where to eat, reach out to a student on the "Connect with a Student" page of the Admissions website! Safe travels.
In addition to blogging, I work as a Fellow for the Tucker Center, which focuses on promoting spiritual and ethical life on campus. As part of this role, I'm leading the Interfaith Alternative Spring Break Trip. Read on to learn more about my work!
