Tyler Felson: Scholarship Recipient Bringing His Passion For Music Into The World
This week we interviewed vocalist, composer, and recipient of the 2018 Scholarships in the Arts, Tyler Felson, to find out about his journey since graduating high school.
Felson has an impressive list of artistic practices. He practices as a DJ, sound artist, trumpet player, vocalist, composer, and orchestrator. After winning a scholarship from Scholarship in the Arts, he was connected with a mentor Schuyler Beeman, whom he connected and built a strong bond with, learning a lot from this mentoring opportunity. Since high school, Felson has grown tremendously as an artist.
Below is the full interview with Tyler Felson:
SAA: How have you been involved with and supported by Shoreline Arts Alliance?
Tyler: “I was a recipient of SAA's 2018 scholarship for theatre performance. Through that, I was connected with an industry mentor, Schuyler Beeman, who I’ve had a wonderful friendship with ever since.”
SAA: How did this support help you get to where you are now?
Tyler: “SAA’s support went a long way in contributing towards my first year of school — less student loans I need to be worrying about now! Schuyler gave me some very valuable insights as I started college, which ultimately helped me navigate a very overwhelming time with a little more clarity.”
SAA: How would you describe yourself as an artist?
Tyler: “These days, I have many artistic practices spanning performance and design. I’ve only performed in a theatre once since the pandemic, and now that I’ve graduated I’m not sure I’ll have another chance to until I can take a summer off when I’m 30 and go do Shakespeare in a forest somewhere. I have been doing a lot with music technology, sound design, and interactive media.”
SAA: How has your artistic journey been through college? How was it evolved since high school?
Tyler: “College began as a direct continuation of my high school pursuits. I was set on earning a dual degree in jazz trumpet performance and theatre, and ran myself ragged in both programs until the pandemic hit. In my sophomore year I was meeting four nights a week with three student groups, and was rehearsing or performing with at least one production from mid-September straight through early March. The pandemic sent us home 2 weeks later. By that point, I had started to come to terms with how unsustainable my lifestyle was, and how it had started to significantly dilute my passion. Suddenly landing in my childhood bedroom with nothing to do for a few months really forced me to sit back and reevaluate. I realized that what kept me going with theatre and jazz performance was the act of collaboration, so I had to find a solo practice that brought that same fulfillment. I got really into electronic music and sound production, which ignited my pursuit as a DJ. I’ve found
DJing to be a very fulfilling performance and design outlet with many parallels to my background in theatre and jazz, and experienced many successes as we emerged from the pandemic. I’ve also worked with experiential design and interactive media, having produced a few installations in the past year. As a recent graduate, I’m making money by working in video production as a sound recordist and general utility. It’s been nice to work in something that develops my technical skills without draining my creative juices”
SAA: What do the arts mean to you?
Tyler: “The arts are everything to me! I work in the arts, I play in the arts, the arts are what I do when I go home at night. I look forward to living a life in the arts and moving my professional work closer and closer to what I would be doing for fun otherwise.”
You can check out more about Tyler on his website: www.tylerfelson.com
And be sure to check out Tyler's band, Morning Dew, on Spotify: Morning Dew
You can support artists like Tyler by donating to our Scholarship and Mentorship Program. For more information, click here.
