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Before entering college, Nuri Noaz ’03 knew that she wanted to major in music.
She chose Lafayette over “another excellent college” because, unlike the other school, Lafayette offers the major. She knew she also wanted to pursue a second major, government and law, and notes that Lafayette makes it possible to double major in music and another subject.
“What I really love about the music department is its professors,” she says. “I’ve been able to build an individual, personal relationship with each of them. They are truly dedicated to the students’ learning process.”
One course the student particularly enjoyed was Introduction to Electronic Composition with William Melin, professor of music. “This was a wonderful class because I was able to compose interesting pieces using cutting-edge programs, synthesizers, and technology in the music department,” she explains. “I also gained a greater appreciation for modern music through this class.”
Noaz is planning a senior project with Larry Stockton, professor of music and head of the department, in which she will investigate chromesthesia, or colored hearing. She will use the David L. Burge system to determine if it is possible for someone to learn relative pitch and identify pitches by letter name when they are associated with colors. “I’m so excited about this project,” she says.
Noaz says she likes applying what she learns in other classes to the music she is playing or singing. She also appreciates the performances at the Williams Center for the Arts and attends as many as possible to supplement what she learns in class. “Lafayette brings some of the most diverse and original performers and artists to the Williams Center stage. I have loved everything I’ve seen here.”
“My experience at Lafayette has been very rewarding,” she adds.
Noaz participates in Concert Choir, and sang music from the 1930s and ’40s in this year’s Fringe, a showcase for original plays, music, poetry, performance pieces, scenes, dance, and improvisation by students, alumni, and faculty. She says a course in Italy during last May’s interim session has aided her when learning Italian arias and operas in the private voice lessons she is taking this semester. As a first-year student, she sang in the Marquis Players production of Guys and Dolls and began private piano lessons that she continued through her sophomore year. A DJ for the campus radio station, Noaz is a member of Association for Lafayette Women and Lafayette Christian Fellowship. She is a Meals for the Homeless volunteer and participates in HAPEN, an HIV/AIDS awareness group. She is also on the staff of The Lafayette.