At Musical U, we love seeing our members get involved in our community and start to accomplish the musical goals they set for themselves. It’s encouraging to see others succeed, but also to take part in their journey.

Joining Musical U is a great step toward meeting your goals and becoming the musician you’ve always wanted to be. Get involved with a supportive online community, get access to tons of helpful modules, and get to where you want to go faster.

This month, we chatted with one of our members, EmilyGrapes, about her experience with Musical U and how she has been setting goals and moving forward. Emily graciously took time out of her busy college schedule to answer some of our questions.

A Quick Introduction

Musical U: Where did your username come from?

EmilyGrapes: My full name is Emily Grace but, my 4 year old sister insists that my middle name is really Grapes.

Where in the world are you?

EG: I’m in the United States.

MU: What instrument(s) do you play?

EG: Guitar, Piano / Keyboard, Singing, Wind instrument

What’s your main musical ambition?

EG: To earn my Bachelor’s degree in Piano performance and spend time performing and touring for a few years. After that, I plan on pursuing a Master’s degree in music education and returning to the high school I attended to teach.

MU: What have you struggled most with in music in the past?

EG: Musicality, Ear training, and singing.

MU: What’s your #1 favorite music track?

EG: “The Proof of Your Love” – live by For King and Country (live is my favorite because it includes a guitar solo and the monologue)

MU: Anything else should we know about you?

EG: I am a devout Christian. Music and Colorguard make up my entire life. I have two younger siblings Colin (15) and AnnaBella (4) and they mean the world to me.

Jumping In with Musical U

MU: How did you become interested in Musical U?

EG: I became interested in Musical U after participating in Christopher’s masterclass ”The 3 Major Pitfalls Every Musician Faces.” The philosophy behind Musical U was an approach to ear training that I had never heard of so I immediately wanted to try Musical U.

MU: What do you like about the site?

EG: The thing that stood out to me the most about the site is how community-based it is. If you get stuck there is always help available.

Musical U community

Staying Ahead of the Learning Curve

MU: What has stood out most to you during your journey?

EG: The biggest thing that has stood out to me on my journey is taking the time to listen carefully. A lot of times we tend to just take quiz after quiz and hope we will get it eventually. The real key is to carefully listen first. This has dramatically changed the way I train my ears and sped up the amount of progress I’ve been making.

Musical U community

MU: How have your plans changed along the way?

EG: My plans have changed a lot. Mostly with flexibility with the time frame on my goals. A lot of times life gets in the way and that’s when flexibility becomes so important.

Notes on Making Progress

MU: How has keeping a progress journal helped your musicality?

EG: Keeping a progress journal has helped me immensely. Not just with musicality but also with the pieces I am studying. The progress journal gives me somewhat of an outside looking in perspective that helps me identify issues in my training. I also find that keeping progress journals help to boost my confidence.

Musical U community

Musical U community

Musical U community

We’re so proud of the progress EmilyGrapes has made so far at Musical U and how she’s been making full use of the training resources and community support to help her improve. Our thanks again to Emily for joining us for this Member Spotlight!

If you would like to jumpstart your own musical development with this kind of clear planning and fully supported follow-through, you can join Musical U today. We’d love to welcome you to the community!