May 4, 2000

Recital takes note of Central singer

By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
       If Dan DeRushia ever wins an Oscar in his future performing career, they are going to have to drag him off stage.
      To the senior at Central High School, it is crystal clear that his singing success is due to the contributions and support of many, many people, meaning that his acceptance speech could be as long as the ceremony itself.
      What he credits as his God-given talent has been nurtured, encouraged and trained by a host of family, friends, mentors and teachers, each helping him to aim higher and go farther in his singing. He also gives credit to the community at large for their musical sophistication and support, their expectation of excellence from the schools that keeps everyone in music programs there striving to be their best.
      "The thing that has made me be successful has been the success and support of everyone else," DeRushia said. "Everyone in the choir is so supportive of one another, nobody could succeed on their own."
      A performance this month in the Youth Arts Solo Recital, a showcase of youth talent in Michigan, is the culmination of DeRushia's high school career. One of 16 singers chosen for the recital from around the state, he also competed with this group two weeks ago for the solo position for the state and was chosen as the alternate.
      "It was a privilege to be down there with so much talent," said DeRushia, who will attend Western Michigan University in the fall as a music performance and music education major. "It was the best of the best and I was just honored to be there"
      Choral director Jeff Cobb has watched DeRushia flourish in the choral program during the past three years. He encouraged him to join Choral Aires as a sophomore and helped him arrange his schedule for the past three years so he could pursue his singing goals.
      "Singing in the recital is quite an accomplishment and an honor for him and speaks volumes about what he is doing," Cobb said. "Dan does have a lot of talent but he is also a hard worker; he knows what he needs to do to get the job done."
      DeRushia is an integral member of the close knit group of choral students at Central High School. During his tenure there, he has played the lead roles in the school musicals for the past three years, sang for three years in the Choral Aires and participated enthusiastically in everything musical at the school.
      DeRushia's family has been supportive of his choices to sing from the beginning, even though it meant signing up for years of hectic scheduling and trading off some academic classes. His brother, Corey, 14, pitches in with chores and his parents, Jeff and Sherri, have encouraged his every endeavor.
      "Although I am proud of him I also respect him for the decisions he's made in his life, Sherri DeRushia said. "It's been a wonderful ride and I don't want to see it end."
      DeRushia dropped into the lap of the singing program in Traverse City Public Schools five years ago. He first joining choir in the eighth-grade when a close friend encouraged him to take the class with him. Despite his late start as a singer, his love of singing was apparent from the begining. Wendee Wolf-Schlarf, director of choirs at East Junior High, immediately noticed both DeRushia's innate talent and his joy of singing.
      "It was more of a natural gift with his voice, it was also a love of singing that really comes through every time he sings," Wolf-Schlarf said. "Quite honestly, when he showed up in my class and I wasn't sure about him. When he started singing it was like, 'Oh my goodness, this is great!' I didn't have to go recruit him, he just showed up on my doorstep."
      Despite the steep odds against success, DeRushia plans to pursue a singing career. With the full support of his family he is forging into a very difficult field, letting his love of singing lead him. He has also seen how much of an impact music teachers can have on the lives of their students and would be honored someday to give back to high school singers as a teacher.
      "When I started singing the light turned on and there's nothing I want to do more," DeRushia said. "If I am going to be a music teacher instead of a performer, I want to be like Mr. Cobb; without him, none of us would be doing what we do."