High school has been a harmonious exploration of music and art for an Okotoks graduand.
Jocelyn McHugh has had a passion for the arts throughout her life, that she honed over the past three years at Holy Trinity Academy.
“I feel like I’ve had great luck with the music teacher and with the art program here,” said McHugh.
The clarinet player developed her musical interest in kindergarten, when she decided she would play the “black flute” one day. In Grade 6, there was no doubt which instrument she would take up in the mandatory band program at Good Shepherd School.
It was love at first sight, and she played at every opportunity right through high school, where she joined the concert band, played the tenor saxophone in jazz band and also joined the pit band for school musicals.
Her journey at HTA actually began when she was still attending junior high at St. John Paul II Collegiate.
She went to work with her mom, a nurse, on a school-sanctioned “take your child to work day,” but knew that was not her career path. When another parent said she was going to HTA to pick up her daughter and would introduce McHugh to the music teacher – Martin Kennedy – she jumped at the chance.
“Two weeks later I got an email asking if he could give me private lessons, so I got to know Mr. Kennedy on a more one-on-one basis,” said McHugh. “He’s always been so encouraging.”
The purpose of the private lesson was to audition for the Alberta Band Association’s Alberta Honour Band – something no HTA student had done at the Grade 10 level. Auditions were held in the spring for the upcoming school year and McHugh worked with Kennedy to perfect her repertoire.
Not only did she make it into the band that year, she went on to hold the principle chair for the clarinet section for two years afterward.
Her commitment to music didn’t stop there. In Grade 9 she joined the Calgary Round-Up Band, moving on to the Calgary Stetsons Show Band in Grade 10. For the past two years, she has played with the Calgary Stampede Showband.
“That’s the big kahuna for Calgary marching bands,” said McHugh.
It’s also a huge time commitment. She spends three hours in rehearsals on Friday nights, 12 hours on Saturdays and eight hours on Sundays.
“I spend a lot of time practicing,” said McHugh. “It depends on the day and the season, but sometimes I’m clocking at least two hours a night.”
When she’s not making music, McHugh can be found with a sketchbook in-hand, working on her graphite drawings.
“I’ve always liked to do things with my hands,” said McHugh. “I was the kid who would sit at the craft table in kindergarten and wouldn’t go away. People would kick me out because I was using up all the paint.”
In junior high she began to focus more on drawing, finding her style in high school – an “expressionistic take on things.”
McHugh said she enjoys creating things that are a little offbeat. Some of her more recent sketches are of human bodies with mushroom or flower heads.
“Usually people look at my work and it’s like, ‘This is different,’” she said. “I enjoy having that kind of affect on people, when they look at it and it’s like, ‘Whoa, I wasn’t expecting this.’”
She also enjoys dabbling in realism, though McHugh said the detail can be tedious and time-consuming.
There have also been some freelancing opportunities along the way, which she said she plans to continue pursuing after high school.
For the moment, the biggest obstacle she faces is deciding which path to follow after she leaves HTA. Wavering between a degree in musical performance or visual arts, McHugh has opted to take a year off and explore each option before entering post-secondary.
In 2017, she plans to enroll in either University of Calgary music performance or an art program at the Alberta College of Art and Design.
“I’m not sure which direction I’m going in yet, but it will definitely be in that realm,” said McHugh. “It’s all very vague because I really can’t decide which way to go.”
In the meantime, she intends to continue playing in the Showband, whose members range from age 15 to 21, and find opportunities to join other local ensembles, perhaps finding a seat with groups at Mount Royal University.
The most important thing to her is to find outlets for the arts, which have played a vital role in her life.
“I think the arts are an outlet for a lot of people and it’s very expressive,” said McHugh. “I think that’s a big foundation of being human, is to express yourself, and through that expression maybe you can change things about the world or at least create different insight.”
Her expression will be missed at HTA, especially in the band room, said music director Kennedy.
“She’s a sweetheart and an amazingly talented kid and an unbelievable artist,” said Kennedy.
He saw that talent in her when they first met back when she was a St. JPII student, he said. Her great sound and keen attitude convinced him to work with her and try for the honour band.
He said her talent has grown exponentially in the four years he’s known her.
“She’s the best clarinet player I’ve ever taught in 35 years,” said Kennedy, who is also a clarinetist. “Frankly, I won’t play with her anymore. I can’t sit down and play along with her. I can’t keep up.”
He hopes to bring her into the HTA band room once in a while to work with his students and share her talent.
“She’s so spectacular and so shy, an unsung hero of the school,” said Kennedy. “People don’t realize how amazing it is to be part of the honour band and to be principle two times, it’s a huge accomplishment.”
