Name: Anna DuganÂ
Year: 2014
School: Columbia CollegeÂ
Major: European History and MusicÂ
What is the joint program between Columbia and Juilliard: This is a bit confusing, especially considering I didn’t really understand the program until I got here freshman year. Basically, I’m a full student at Columbia and a pseudo student at Juilliard. I get coachings, lessons, and diction at Juilliard. Oh and chamber groups, but there isn’t a great deal of chamber music for voice, so I’m a little out of luck in that regard. Apparently, it’s time to force myself upon the Columbia community for performing opportunities.
What type of music do you sing? If we’re not counting in the shower, which ranges from French art songs to Lady Gaga even to Lynyrd Skynyrd, I sing opera, but I did a lot of musical theater in high school and still really enjoy it.
How do you balance both schools, both social scenes, the commute, etc? Hahhhhh it’s interesting to say the least. I’m mostly at Columbia during the fall semester, but work a great deal more at Juilliard in the spring because of an end-of-year recital. I found my niche pretty quickly at Columbia, so I stay around here most of the time. I do have some very close friends at Juilliard and the Manhattan School of Music that I hang out with rather frequently though.
Which campus do you live on and why? I live at Columbia because the program is based here, but if I wanted to switch over to Juilliard and go there full-time, I could. I’d miss academia too much though.
How often do you perform and in what type of situations/groups/venues? I actually haven’t been performing that often of late because most performances occur at the end of the semester. The BCJ Exchange (Barnard-Columbia-Julliard Exchange) has concerts every semester and I also have recitals at Juilliard.
How and when did you first become interested in singing? I have my mother to thank for that, actually. She loves to sing, and so she was, without a doubt, the one to open Pandora’s box. I doubt she would have thought I would end up studying at Juilliard. Needless to say her opera-buff parents are ESCTATIC.
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Hometown: Cranford, NJ
Relationship Status: SingleÂ
On-Campus Activities: BCJ exchange, Greek life (I’m a sister of Sigma Delta Tau)Â
Off-campus activities: I guess the exchange counts for this as well? I’m a cantor at my church back in Jerz.
Favorite class you’ve taken at Columbia and why: I’d say probably my music theory/ear training classes last semester. I worked with this great professor, Patrick Zimmerli, who is a recorded, well-received contemporary composer. His sarcasm and wit pervaded every class and I looked forward to it every day. He made theory significantly more interesting and cohesive than I could’ve hoped for.
Pet-Peeves: Lateness, my best friend is always late and it drives me up a wall every time.
Dream Job: Singing at the Met would be pretty awesome, not going to lie.
If you were stuck on a deserted island, you would need: A never-ending supply of books. And a good bottle of bourbon.
Every girl needs these three things in her closet: A mansweater, preferably hand-knit. A good pair of jeans. And black pumps, because being 5’9” apparently isn’t tall enough.
Your perfect date in 7 words or less: Good coffee and a walk through Central Park.
Favorite off-campus location: Either the obvious, Lincoln Center, or the Metropolitan Museum of Art. You can be there all day and not see everything. Talk about an impressive collection.
Favorite thing about NYC: How accessible everything is. NYC is such a diverse place, and going to school here allows us to be aware of different cultures and ideas.
Spirit Animal: A kitten probably, because I have a random tendency to make cat noises when you least expect them. No joke.
Dream husband:Â Hugh Jackman. Or Enrique Iglesias. Or a happy combination of the two.
One thing you want to do before graduating: Hopefully do a stage production of something. An opera/operetta, musical, or play…it doesn’t matter!
Top three albums/songs of all time: This question is SO HARD. Joan Sutherland and Luciano Pavarotti’s La Traviata (seriously had to compromise for this question, it’s just my favorite opera), Rolling Stones’ Get Yer Ya-Yas Out! (Live), and any album by Ella Fitzgerald.
If you could have a super power what would it be and why: I’d love to be able to read minds. People can read my face very easily (I’m horrible at masking my emotions), so it’d be nice to have a level playing field for once.
If you could invite anyone to dinner, you would ask: Mr. Darcy. No explanation needed.
HamDel decides to name a sandwich after you (what’s it called and what’s in it): The Panda (a nickname used in my friend group) – Swiss, pesto chicken and sun-dried tomatoes toasted on a whole grain roll.