MozArt Maestro Award

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When I first moved to Los Angeles, I had no clue where I was going to work. I also didn’t know where i was going to live. I was an ambitious and freedom-struck 22 year old only a month graduated from college. Indianapolis to Los Angeles was about a 35 hour drive. I don’t recommend, although driving through some places such as Colorado and Utah were magical. I honestly didn’t know that the US was so beautiful out west. I had an Air-Bnb for one week somewhere in the Valley, and crossed my fingers that I could find somewhere in that time frame.

Since this was pre-pandemic, I got extremely lucky and found a place on the second day of looking. One week later, I was moved in and after being told I was overqualified to work at Ikea (like what?), I got a job doing meal prep for a casual Mexican restaurant. It included benefits for part-time which was rare, and it was flexible enough that I could still audition and accept gigs. I really enjoyed it at first. It was hard work, but everyone I worked with was an artist of some sort and it was easy to make friends. I also worked background acting gigs for shows such as Grey’s Anatomy, Sex Lives of College Students, Bless this Mess, and a few more. I learned so much everytime I was on set, and felt like I was finding my place in LA.

Then, 2020 happened. I have an entire other blog post dedicated to this you can find here.

My job at the restaurant suddenly became extremely stressful. Many of the staff quit, and we had to completely transfer to online orders only. Working there became unbearable after a number of bad experiences. I was able to quit after doing some online music streams on BIGO and LIKEE where I would play guitar, piano, ukulele, and sing. It was fun and I made online friends, but I missed making music with people in person. On top of that, I was extremely homesick. I knew that I needed a change, and I decided to throw myself back into the world and hope that something would stick.

After sending in a number of applications to a range of workplaces, I got a call from MozArt Music Academy. The woman on the phone was my future employer, Dr. Tarina Kim. We got along right away, and after two interviews, she offered me the job that would change my life.

I started working at MozArt Music Academy in the summer of 2021. I slowly but surely built a schedule of students that I would teach several instruments to. I honestly haven’t had a bad day since I have started. Teaching music became therapy for me, and I felt like I belonged right way. With each lesson, I felt myself becoming a better teacher as well as a more practiced musician. I especially love working with kids, because they are the easiest people in the world to talk to.

Preparing them for the MozArt Recitals took me back to my childhood of doing the same thing that I was preparing those kids for. I loved those opportunities when I was a kid to perform on the stage for big audience. I really wanted to help the kids understand what a memorable experience this would be for them.

In our January 2023 MozArt recital, I will forever remember how honored and humbled I felt being given the MozArt Maestro Award. This award is given to one chosen faculty member each recital, I was able to capture the moment on video, which I have included below.

The Vocalist Competition!

Mara Phelps is currently a live streamer on the BIGO LIVE platform, and has made it to the Final 4 of the 8th Season of The Vocalist! Download the App BIGO LIVE from the app store to tune in! The singing competition will start at 5pm PST/ 8pm EST. Tonight’s stream will be under the username: taylorsmama

Live Streaming and Content Creating

In the midst of the 2020 Pandemic, I was fortunate to find an online community allowing me to network and connect with others from all over the world. The app is full of ambitious people including many amazing artists and performers. I have taken to the platform not only to promote myself as a performer, but to network with like-minded people. I am with the Hashtag Communications Agency for Live-Broadcasting Hosting. To see my streams, download the BIGO app and follow my account id @maraphelps

I also livestream and create video content on an app called Likee. This app has a younger target audience, and focuses on short videos instead of live streaming alone. You can download Likee from the App Store and follow my account at @marasings

Using the Desktop version of these apps is not recommended.

Note - As of 2024 I am no longer active on these apps, but you can still see past content on Likee. Check out my Youtube and Tiktok for more updated media and content!

Shifting Online (Covid-19)

2020. I’m not sure where to begin just because so much has happened. I look into the future and I try to think how I would explain to someone the series of unfortunate events that have made up this year thus far. Starting in March, the WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic and cases rapidly rose in the US, shutting down the country. In May, the horrible murder of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer led to protests, rioting, and looting all over the country. Climate Change brought record high temperatures and the end of summer brought wildfires to the West coast. Whenever things seem like they can’t get worse, They do. Schools are closed, and social distancing is just a normal part of life now.

Unfortunately as a performer, jobs are scarce and tensions are high as artists scrape to find a living during these times, along with so many other professions. My heart goes out to anyone and everyone affected by this pandemic, and we must stay positive and search for that light at the end of the tunnel.

I am grateful to be living in such a vibrant and beautiful place during these hard times. I have taken this time to grow as an individual, artist, as well as learn about putting my content online. I will have more information soon, as the world of performance is changing, and I am eager to ride out the storm and see where it takes me.

Teaching in Brazil

I discovered one of my greatest passions one summer in a small favela outside of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Its called Bangu, and its home to some of the most amazing kids you could ever meet. I was given the opportunity by JIVE! Brazil to teach English and Music to these kids, and its a summer I will never forget. Let me start at the beginning.

I never thought travel was a possibility for me, until I did some actual research. I have always seen study and work abroad opportunities before, but I always felt like I wouldn’t really be making an impact, which was nonnegotiable for me. I then found IVHQ, which would allow me to go to Brazil for a month to teach music. I remember getting chills when I was reading all about it on their website. It just felt like I was meant to do this. There was so much to learn and I would have the opportunity to gain valuable perspectives.

I stopped dreaming about doing it and applied for a position in the program. Fortunately I was admitted, and I started preparing immediately. I had to get a passport, a visa, do my training, get a background check, get travel insurance, get plane tickets, and not to mention get 4 vaccination shots (ouch!). But it was all worth it the day I was dropped off at the Chicago Airport. I’d have a layover in Houston, and then be on my way to Rio De Janeiro. I kept a journal with me, to make sure I didn’t forget a moment of the experience. After an 12 hour flight, I had arrived.

One of the staff from the program picked me up and drove me to my living accommodations in Gloria. I had messaged the other people in the program, and we were very excited to meet each other. There were 3 girls my age that were staying with me, and we all clicked immediately. One girl was from Nevada, and the other two were from England! They said that they were waiting on me to go to the beach, and the next thing I know I am laying out in the sun at the Copacabana. It all happened so fast. There were some volunteers that had been there for a few weeks and taught me everything I needed to know about getting around and converting my money to reals. Over the next month, I would go to many amazing places like Christ the Redeemer, and see breathtaking views in many of Brazil’s national forests. The Highlight of my trip however was a small group of kids that I would come to know and love in a favela called Bangu.

On the first day of work, I was told very little about where we were going and what we would be doing. I was up for an adventure however and was excited to what was next. They broke us up into groups, and a small number of us was told that we were going to a small daycare in Bangu. We would have to take the metro for 40 minutes, and then a bus for 30. However, the metro went through the majestic mountains, so I didn’t mind. We arrived to a small orange building that was falling apart. There were holes in the roof as well as black mold in the corners of the rooms. We asked what we could help with and it was made clear very quickly that the woman who ran the daycare didn’t see what we saw. She just wanted us to play with the kids, and perhaps paint a mural on top of the water damage.

This daycare was for kids of any age to have a place to go during the day when they weren’t in school so that they wouldn’t get involved with gangs or drugs, which are both epidemics in Brazil. When I met the kids, there were a lot less of them then I was anticipating. I took this as an opportunity to get some one on one time with some of them, and really teach them as much as I could. The language barrier was very difficult at first, especially because most of them couldn’t read in any language yet. Therefore, if I didn’t pronounce a Portuguese word correctly, they would be very confused as to what I was talking about.

I found a way past this by implementing singing and dancing into our lessons. They had a tiny dance studio inside the building, and the kids were very excited to participate in whatever I had in store. I taught a dance routine that included singing the names of certain body parts and actions. For example, we would do a grapevine and then jump, and the kids would yell out “Jump!”. We would follow with a shimmy and singing “Shoulders!”. I remember the kids running up to me excited to show me this particular move every day.

Each week, the kids got better and better and English, and I even taught some music theory! Some days we would be missing more than half the kids, and I wondered where they were and what they did when they left. The area we were in was extremely poor, with a lot of crime. Volunteers had told me horror stories of seeing kids rent machine guns from the corrupt police officers so that they could use them in gang related activity. I hoped that the kids I had come to know and love did not get involved in this. I wanted these kids to succeed.

By the end of my month, the kids could exchange greetings in English, as well as say the alphabet and count to 100. They could name most of the parts of the body, and could tell me the days of the week and months of the year. One kid in particular, named Gabriel, I bonded with greatly. I would always ask how he was, just for him to respond excitingly, “Fine, how are you!!!”. It was hard saying goodbye, but I knew that these kids were bright, and had good people helping them stay on the right path.

This trip taught me patience, and what is really important in life. I saw how beautiful nature could really be, and I met amazing people with different perspectives. The kids I worked with were very poor, and had never even seen an iPhone before. They played with a broken basketball hoop and a rusty slide that was falling apart. They didn’t notice however, as they were the happiest kids I had ever seen. They didn’t start misbehaving and fighting until we introduced the games on our phones. Music and dancing was enough to keep them happy. I think that we should learn from that.

One day, I will return to beautiful Brazil. :)

Last Days in Music School

Mara Phelps and Timothy Noble

It’s crazy how fast four years goes by. It feels like I was just a college freshman who was decorating her dorm and excited for the future. Now, I’m just days from graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Music and Theatre, having just finished my senior recital. Preparing for my Senior Recital taught me many things. I had to pace myself, as I was taking a trip to see my new home (Cali!) right in the middle of this preparation. This recital was to showcase my talent, and what I had learned over my time at Jacobs School of Music. I studied Classical Technique with the amazing Timothy Noble, who also allowed me to explore other genres as well. I was able to not only sing Mozart and Saint-Saëns at my recital, but also Gershwin, Kern and Rodgers and Hart. It was difficult singing a wide variety of genres, but it gave me the confidence as a singer that I’ll need in Los Angeles. It was an amazing feeling to be finished, after months of creating a program, finding a venue, and practicing like a mad woman. Videos from my recital are available to watch here. And now, Graduation is just around the corner. This means that the countdown to moving out West has begun! I’m so ready to say goodbye to aural skills hearings and music theory exams (although helpful in the long run), and say Hello to making music and collaborating with artists from all over the world! Wish me luck!

David Gatchel and Mara Phelps