Secret lives of our profs
Associate Professor of Music Karen Leigh-Post
Stacey Day
Issue date: 4/17/09 Section: Features
"You have to dream big, and then throughout life you will find you will eventually come around to your dreams," began Karen Leigh-Post, associate professor of music and teacher of voice.
Starting at age 4 when she joined the cherub choir at her church, Leigh-Post took advantage of every opportunity that came her way in the fine arts in her community, from musicals, to plays, to choirs and more. "I was always an actress," she said, blushing.
Throughout high school, she was in all three of the singing ensembles her school supported, and she participated in every musical. At a ninth-grade job fair, she took a career aptitude test that suggested she become either a mechanic or a physical therapist. However, music and acting consumed her life so much she could think of doing nothing else. "It was just what I did!" commented Leigh-Post.
While her family was generally supportive of her then-current plan to enter music education, her parents were less enthusiastic about a major in performance. Leigh-Post exclaimed, "I can't even tell you what my dad said! It wouldn't be politically correct!"
Prior to college visits, she dabbled with the idea of going into music therapy, but at the school where she was interested in pursuing that route, she walked in to find her interviewer slobbering drunk. While appalled at the time, Leigh-Post now looks back with a smile, calling the incident "divine intervention."
Having eliminated all schools with inebriated interviewers, she decided to attend Lawrence University, where "everything fell into place."
Here she majored in choral education and vocal performance. She also discovered her passion for one-on-one, personal instruction through her relationships with professors.
When she was not working, singing or at rehearsals for the school opera, Leigh-Post revealed that she often used to ride her bike to Highview Park and made frequent use of the rentable tents from the student union.
After Lawrence, Leigh-Post spent 15 years performing as a single mother. She recalls moving to New York City with her 4-year-old, describing how all their earthly possessions were stuffed into her car, leaving barely enough room for the two of them: "I could hardly even get out because of the bikes tied onto the side of the car!"
Starting at age 4 when she joined the cherub choir at her church, Leigh-Post took advantage of every opportunity that came her way in the fine arts in her community, from musicals, to plays, to choirs and more. "I was always an actress," she said, blushing.
Throughout high school, she was in all three of the singing ensembles her school supported, and she participated in every musical. At a ninth-grade job fair, she took a career aptitude test that suggested she become either a mechanic or a physical therapist. However, music and acting consumed her life so much she could think of doing nothing else. "It was just what I did!" commented Leigh-Post.
While her family was generally supportive of her then-current plan to enter music education, her parents were less enthusiastic about a major in performance. Leigh-Post exclaimed, "I can't even tell you what my dad said! It wouldn't be politically correct!"
Prior to college visits, she dabbled with the idea of going into music therapy, but at the school where she was interested in pursuing that route, she walked in to find her interviewer slobbering drunk. While appalled at the time, Leigh-Post now looks back with a smile, calling the incident "divine intervention."
Having eliminated all schools with inebriated interviewers, she decided to attend Lawrence University, where "everything fell into place."
Here she majored in choral education and vocal performance. She also discovered her passion for one-on-one, personal instruction through her relationships with professors.
When she was not working, singing or at rehearsals for the school opera, Leigh-Post revealed that she often used to ride her bike to Highview Park and made frequent use of the rentable tents from the student union.
After Lawrence, Leigh-Post spent 15 years performing as a single mother. She recalls moving to New York City with her 4-year-old, describing how all their earthly possessions were stuffed into her car, leaving barely enough room for the two of them: "I could hardly even get out because of the bikes tied onto the side of the car!"
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