The Players
The Players:
Michelle Kadonsky '08
When asked which instrument she plays, McKendree senior Michelle Kadonsky said, “It would be easier to tell you those I haven’t played.” She has played every single instrument except French horn, trombone, trumpet and baritone, but noted “I haven’t had methods of brass yet— I’ll take care of those in the fall.”
Although Kadonsky grew up on the outskirts of Lebanon, Ill., her first McKendree campus visit did not come until her high school (O’Fallon, Ill.) band was invited to play at a basketball game. “It was really awesome… playing at a college,” she said. “It was like we were moving up in the world.”
Kadonsky returned to campus during her college search. A generous scholarship package—presidential, marching band and music major scholarships—helped her decide to attend McKendree. “McKendree offered the best scholarship package and majors for what I wanted to do,” said Kadonsky.
Kadonsky is pleased with her decision. “Coming here, I got to be part of a history making band—how many other places can you go to say that? My freshman year was the first year that we marched a pre-game show, my sophomore year was the first year that we ever marched a half-time show, and every year it’s just been building upon that,” she said.
In seven semesters at McKendree, Kadonsky has been a member of seven campus ensembles—Marching Bearcat Band, Concert Band, Pep Band, Concert Choir, Percussion Ensemble, Jazz Band and Jazz Combo. She has also studied with every faculty member in the music department. “All of the instructors have a way of bringing their specific instrument to life, and they can tell you what to watch for and what to listen for that impacts a performance,” said Kadonsky.
With her broad background in music, it might surprise some that Kadonsky is majoring in both music education and mathematics. However, she did not attend McKendree with the goal of majoring in math. That decision came her sophomore year, inspired by a calculus course taught by Dr. Alan Alewine, an assistant professor of mathematics at McKendree. “I loved the class; I loved him [Alewine], so I just tacked on another major,” she said. Her enthusiasm does not end with one professor, “The entire [mathematics] department is very knowledgeable and very willing to sit down with you outside of class and say, ‘Okay, what don’t you get? Take this approach and see if it helps.’”
Kadonsky shared a similarly enthusiastic appraisal of the Russel E. and Fern M. Hettenhausen Center for the Arts. “I love it! It’s so nice to have a performing space that’s an actual theater.” She appreciates the details in the building’s construction, “The student lounge is just perfect to sit in and do homework, or meet with people before class or band,” said Kadonsky. “I really like that
there’s a loading dock near the band room, because, as a percussionist, it’s not much fun to maneuver things down a hallway and down stairs to get it somewhere—especially our 5-1/2 octave marimba—it’s huge and it doesn’t like to go anywhere.”
Outside of the classroom, Kadonsky participates in the Marching Bearcat Band, Alpha Omega sorority, and Kappa Delta Pi, the honor society for education. Kadonsky expects to graduate in the spring of 2008. Although undecided how she will apply her McKendree experiences after graduation, Kadonsky is confident her education, passion and talent will help her continue to move up in the world.