This Sunday, November 22, will mark the culmination of many months of study and preparation. And to be frank, I’m ready to give this child that is my senior voice recital up for adoption. Though not a music major, I will present a 16-piece voice recital of Spanish songs this Sunday, finishing my degree as a Spanish major. The idea’s been floating in my head for a while now (since the fall of 2008, in fact) and with the opportunity to study with a voice teacher during my months in Madrid, this idea became a reality.

I’ll be singing in Spanish and while only a few will understand the literal meaning of the text, the music conveys a universal message. Stevie Wonder got it right when he said that music is a world within itself, with a language we all understand. It’s a world to which we can escape, a world where the effect of the sounds comes less from the author and more from the subjective experience of the listener. It’s a world whose language is common to all, a language that speaks to the soul more than anything else.

I gave up music as my career path after some time at Loyola, but I didn’t give it up as my love. I think this is going to be one long-term relationship from which I’ll never want to leave.