MARIA JOSE “MAJO” INSUASTI came to Concordia from Colombia to study 商业音乐 和 brought with her an immense talent as a singer/songwriter.
“She’s a game-changer in our program,” says Steve Young, director of 商业音乐 at Concordia. “Just by her presence, she sets the bar 和 shapes the culture.”
Majo came from a family of engineers in the city of Pereira, 和 from her earliest years dreamed of being a musician. Guitar 和 vocal technique lessons fueled the passion.
“I said, ‘Oh, my goodness, this is my language. It’s the best way I can express myself,’她说。.
Original melodies flowed, 和 at 14 she began competing nationally as a soloist 和 songwriter.
“I was really persistent in going to a lot of festivals, 和 I started winning some of them,她说。.
在高中毕业之前, she arranged 和 recorded her songs on an album which combines Colombian folk music, 爵士乐, 还有流行情感. She studied composition under a leading Colombian folk artist, 露兹·玛丽娜·波萨达, 和 wanted to study music in college, 但不是在音乐学院. Discovering Concordia’s 商业音乐 major, she says, was “exactly what I was looking for.”
“I prayed a lot, ‘God, if this is the place, let me know.’他确实做到了，”她说.
Her audition — to the 爵士乐-pop st和ard, “All of Me” — brought an invitation 和 a scholarship. She arrived in Irvine, her first time in the U.S., in August 2021, 和 here has continued her songwriting odyssey in her time on campus.
“It’s been a whole journey exploring how much of 拉丁 American, 有多少爵士乐?, how much of this 和 that should I put into a new song?她说。. “Should I make it completely folky? 罂粟? 爵士乐? 拉丁? 或者什么都有一点? ... My goal in music is to convey a good message to people, a message that transforms.”
She calls it “the fresh sound of youth.”
Young calls Majo “a hard-worker who’s crazy talented,” but emphasizes that it’s her kindness 和 affability that speak volumes.
“She’s so encouraging, always helpful. You wonder if she underst和s how talented she really is,” 说年轻. “She’s also curious about how music is built. Where does it come from, what are the hallmarks of each style?”
In six years, the 商业音乐 program has become the biggest major within the music department. This year’s class is particularly talented, with several students functioning at a semi-professional level already, 说年轻.
For Majo, Young has become “a mentor to me,她说。. “If I’m not doing something right, he tells me. He explains that an artist is not only a musician but a great person. I connect with Steve 和 his ideals. He’s a great educator shaping new generations of musicians.”
Majo already has sung for projects for PBS 和 Kip Fox’s Songwriting Initiative in Concordia’s Center for Worship Leadership. She was invited by the owner of Campus Jax restaurant in Newport Beach to open for major artists such as Tony Guerrero 和 爵士乐 trumpeter Arturo S和oval. And for the recent Gala of Stars, she sang her original song, “Adios.”
Attending Concordia rather than a conservatory is broadening her thinking, she says.
“I am exposed to so many things: math, philosophy, biology. I feel like if I hadn’t taken those classes, I wouldn’t be half the person I am now,她说。. “它改变了我的整个观点. Going to college helps you underst和 why the world is the way it is.”
Those discoveries are reflected in her lyrics. She writes about places — her home city 和 country, 现在, California — along with critiques of violence in 拉丁 America, 和, 当然, 爱情歌曲.
“All songwriters need 爱情歌曲,她说。. “You can express so many messages in them. I talk about the world in love song form. There’s something special about the style. It’s always in awe of things, a hyperbolic way of saying things. Everything seems really wonderful when you’re in love. 这是非常理想化的. That is my way of writing about anything.”
她计划, 在上帝的帮助下,” to record her next project in Concordia’s music studio while still a student. After college, the sky’s the limit.
“I think she could do anything she wants,” Young says. “I see her being an artist who writes her own music 和 is involved in arranging 和 producing that music, 太. 我觉得她什么都能做. She may end up being the first big artist that comes out of our program.”
Meanwhile, Majo is flourishing at Concordia.
“California is a place for dreamers,她说。. “机会太多了.”