Support Bek's Musical Journey to Salzburg

Hi all! I'm Bek, a 3rd-year student at Western Washington University pursuing a BMus in Performance. I have been invited to play Sarastro in the Austrian American Mozart Academy's (AAMA) production of The Magic Flute/Die Zauberflöte in Salzburg, from July 7th to August 11th!

The financial costs prove to be quite a challenge for me as a full-time college student with a part-time job, so I am reaching out to ask for your aid! All donations will go entirely towards the cost of tuition, housing, transportation, food, and other relevant costs! Please don't fret if you can't assist monetarily—simply sharing my story helps me tremendously!

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About Me

For those of you who don't know me—hello! I'm Bek, and I'm training to enter the world of theatre, opera, and performance. When I first came to WWU, I honestly did NOT expect to be majoring in music, but I knew I wanted to be in choir! I loved music—I had been playing trumpet for ~6 years and joined my high school choir only in my senior year (thanks COVID)—so I knew I wanted to join a choir during university. So, I signed up for an audition slot, showed up with "The Vagabond" by R. Vaughan Williams, and prepared to sing my heart out....

...and honestly, it went about as well as you could expect from a fairly untrained freshly 18-year-old. Definitely not my best work. Despite that, one of the professors on the audition panel heard my voice, saw my potential, and strongly encouraged me to apply for a Music Performance major. That man was Dr. Richard Hodges, and I'm proud to be a part of his voice studio today. My voice and musicianship have both bloomed tremendously during my time here due to him and many other professors. I've been able to be a part of many opportunities offered here at WWU, including:

In a separate (but related) realm, I've taken a plunge into community theatre and have had a blast thus far! I've been fortunate enough to perform with Bellingham local theatre company Little Lemon Productions in their productions of Sweeney Todd (as Sweeney Todd) and Into the Woods (as Rapunzel's Prince & The Wolf), as well as assist technically as their Resident Music Assistant. I am a HUUUUGE fan of musical theatre and will talk about it nonstop if given the chance, so be prepared if the subject ever comes up!

Outside of music, I can often be found playing and/or discussing TTRPGs with my friends such as Pathfinder 2e, Draw Steel!, and D&D 5e! I'm also a big fan of video games—though nowadays, I only get around to playing them if it's Roblox or Minecraft with my little brother

Financial Breakdown

Looking back at this chance to perform in Austria, I am so thrilled that I am able to accept it. However, as a full-time college student who still needs to work part-time to cover his cost of living, the financial barrier is proving to be larger than anticipated. I've been fortunate enough to receive a €2,500 work-study scholarship from AAMA to aid me, but with the costs of tuition, housing, food, and more, it all adds up to a sizeable sum. I've broken it down below so you can know exactly how each donation helps me reach my goal:

Total Cost: ~$5,950

This total cost will cover all my necessary expenses for this trip. I am doing my best to raise as much money as possible via alternative methods as well, but my first goal is to raise $2,000 by June 5th—enough money to cover both tuition and housing by the deadline.

I want to thank you all once more for your support and willingness to see and share my story. These opportunities aren't easy to come by, and I want to make sure I can take full advantage of this one that's come my way.

Thank you :)

–Bek Gruber

(All photos courtesy of Avery Cyan Photography)