EngineeringandAlto-Sax:MeetPerforming ArtsScholarJosephineJean-Baptiste

Jocelyn Visnov Editor-in-Chief

Josephine Jean-Baptiste explores her passion for music while pursuing her academic goals. As a sophomore performing arts scholar with a major in chemical engineering and a minor in music, Jean-Baptiste combines arts and sciences for an interesting and well-rounded schedule.

Jean-Baptiste has been playing the alto saxophone for nearly twelve years. She first picked up the instrument in elementary school and played in various concert bands and jazz bands through the end of high school.

“I’ve loved it ever since then,” Jean-Baptiste said. “So I definitely wanted to play in college and I saw that the jazz band here [at Manhattan College] was pretty good so I tried out and got into that.”

Jean-Baptiste first became a recipient of the performing arts scholarship for the spring semester of her freshman year and has continued with the program ever since. She’s a member of the jazz band and plays in the pit orchestra for MC Players’ musical performances. Jean-Baptiste can also be found playing with the pep band at MC basketball games.

Jean-Baptiste has taken a plethora of classes with the music department and noted that

Andy Bauer, Director of Music and Performing Arts, has been a big influence on her growth as a musician. Jean-Baptiste has also expanded her music education beyond the classroom by going abroad to take Music and French Identity: Paris and Versailles with Mark Pottinger, Ph.D., before he went on sabbatical for the 2022-2023 academic year. According to Jean-Baptiste, it was Pottinger who encouraged her to pursue a minor in music.

“Dr. Pottinger has made my music experience here amazing.” She said, “He really helped me get into the music minor because originally when I applied, I tried to get the music minor but I was told that it wasn’t possible with an engineering major, but obviously it is possible. So he [Pottinger] really helped me out.”

Recently, Jean-Baptiste has been able to successfully combine her love of music with skills learned in her engineering classes by 3D printing her own mouthpieces for her alto saxophone.

“I was taking a material science class and there’s like a 3D printing program that the professor, Dr. Bilchak ran.” Jean-Baptiste said. “So I joined, and instantly I was like ‘Okay, how can I make this about music?’ So you can find certain models for 3D printing mouthpieces online and then edit them, or you can make your own completely, so that’s what I’ve been doing. And then once it’s printed, you sand it out and kind of get the proper finish that you like.”

While balancing her current course load and performing in various musical ensembles can make for a jam-packed sched- ule, Jean-Baptiste explained she doesn’t mind the challenge and finds music to be a source of stress relief.

“I really use music as a way to de-stress,” Jean-Baptiste said. “It’s just fun for me too.

Like after a long day of engineering all day and homework all night, I know I have music to just kind of like mellow me out, you know? And I like not being confined to this, like, little engineering box.”