Claire Boston | Contributing Writer
Dr. Merrin Guice is the new assistant professor of vocal music and director of Buena Vista University’s (BVU) various choral and vocal ensembles this school year.
Guice was born in Detroit, Michigan. Her parents are both in the mental health field; her mother is a psychologist and her father is a licensed therapist. For much of her younger life, she believed that she was going to go into the science field to become a biochemical engineer. She went to a science prep high school that happened to have a really great music program.
“As a result, everyone I graduated with was either a musician or some form of science,” Guice said.
Guice didn’t discover her love for music outside of singing until she was in high school.
“I was given the opportunity to kind of lead groups, and then I kind of started to write plays and musicals and some other things and it was like ‘I’m kind of good at this, so I’ll go into this!’” Guice said.
Guice decided then to attend Spelman College, an all-female college in Atlanta, Georgia.
“While at Spelman, I had the opportunity to conduct mostly because the girls’ school did not really offer conducting. Across the street there was an all-boys school, Morehouse College,” Guice said. “They also taught conducting because they didn’t teach it at the girls’ school. So, I went across the street to the boys’ school for conducting.”
For three years she studied under Dr. David Morrow. Guice applied to Rutgers University, which only invited one to three students a year to study conducting, in pursuit of her Master’s degree. Guice began work as a church musician, worked with different groups at Rutgers, and ran her own ensemble after receiving her Master’s. From there, she headed off to the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she had the privilege of running her own group as a graduate student. Guice then had the opportunity to work at University of Wisconsin-Baraboo as a student.
“I had a lot of experience, but my favorite experience was I was invited to conduct the Madison City Orchestra,” Guice said. “The opportunities I had really bolstered my confidence and my abilities.”
It was because of these experiences that she nailed down her job at the Miami University in Ohio.
“I wanted to be somewhere where I got to see my students all the time because the position I was in, it was my job to prepare the students and send them to better choirs. I didn’t like that. I wanted to have the students for four years and see them grow, see them blossom, see the group blossom and develop, and I couldn’t do that where I was at,” Guice said.
Guice preferred to go to a liberal arts college where she could have that experience. It was then she applied to BVU and was invited to join the faculty.
“I chose Buena Vista because I liked the faculty. I liked the exchanges I noticed with the faculty. I liked the school’s mission. I liked what the school was doing, and I liked the students. All the things put together that makes Buena Vista. Buena Vista really appealed to me overall, and I also like the way the choir sounded!” Guice said. “I realized this was a group I could really work with and that we could do something musically inspiring and amazing for all of us, as well as for the community.”
Guice feels that her first concert with the BVU choir was a success. Because the students recognized it was awesome, she felt the magic of the choir.
“That is the magic moment when watching people’s faces when we sing ‘Jericho.’ That’s a moment when you are inspiring people, when you are inspiring the choir, when you are inspiring the audience. That’s magic,” Guice said.
The choir also performed the next week during the American Heritage Lecture Series with Condoleezza Rice.
“For me, she represents going after every accomplishment regardless of any challenge you might, that someone says might be in your way. So it was amazing being near to someone who was a personal icon of mine,” Guice said.
Guice’s love for music stems from her fascination for what music can do. “It’s the ability for music to bring a group of people together for one common goal. It is the fact that we are singing emotional things. We are being emotional, we are looking at music that has touched people’s hearts for generations or will touch people’s hearts for generations after us. It is before us, it’s after us, it’s our present, our past, our future. The element of people coming together and participating in an activity like that is really what drove me to music,” Guice said. “Anything that would have done that, I would have been thrilled to do it. I like collaboration, I like working together toward a common goal, and I love how music shows off humanity’s essence.”
“My current philosophy is that often times, most of the time, in life, you are given the unexpected that plans and preparation may or may not turn out the want you want. However, even in those moments, you have within you the ability to succeed and thrive through whatever happens. Whatever triumphs you’re given, you can succeed. Whatever challenges you’re given, you can succeed. That you have to walk and look at each day, not as a prepared script, but as an unknown and have the preparation and the mindset to approach the unknown every moment,” Guice said.
Photo courtesy of Dr. Guice
Alex Creighton • Oct 30, 2013 at 5:35 pm
BVU is incredibly lucky to have Dr. Guice on staff. We singers at MU miss her terribly!