From Lesson Plans to Librettos:

A TEACHER'S TRANSITION TO OPERA

SHANNON JONGEMA thought she’d found the perfect harmony as a middle school chorus teacher. Her love for music and teaching came together in perfect sync. Plus, the excitement the 28-year-old felt molding and guiding young voices was equaled only by the sense of fulfillment she got from the stability and security of her job. It was her life's symphony — until the discordant note of change struck.

“We were on a break from school, teaching in the middle of COVID and the [Metropolitan Opera] was doing live streams for free every night,” said Jongema. “I had a subscription at one point, so I said I’m going to take this time and I’m going to do something for myself.”

She put all her grading and lesson planning on the back burner.

“I remember I was trying to cook at the same time. I was sitting there with things burning on the stove, but I was enthralled by what I was seeing,” she said. “The way that the singers in that show threw themselves into the role and they were taking risks dramatically.”

The passion she saw on stage, she said, made her feel more alive than she had in a long time.

“I don’t want to be doing this, I want to be doing that,” she said. “And I want to do it like they do it and I want to do it at that level. After that is when I really couldn’t stop thinking about how I could change my career.”

The more she listened, the more she realized opera was her true calling. It was a difficult decision, but in a bold move, she decided to leave her teaching position to chase her dream of singing. Making that choice was the most agonizing part of her journey.

In the beginning, Jongema was determined to finish her education degree and pursue her teaching career. But during an internship with a teacher in her last semester of college in Orange County, Florida, she began to have doubts.

“I told him that I’m going to be 100% here when I’m here, but, just so you know, I’m probably not going to be teaching when I graduate,” she said. “And he said, ‘We’ll see.’ He made me think I could be really happy as a teacher because he was so happy as a teacher. His students were amazing, and the school was great, and I had a phenomenal experience.”

Jongema told herself she could make it all work.

“I’ll make my parents happy,” she said. “I’ll have a 401k and insurance, a steady paycheck and all that kind of stuff. I think there’s something here that I can enjoy. But all in all, the experience that I had was not one that was full of joy and full of life and made me excited to go to work.”

Following her operatic dream meant moving from Winter Park, Florida, to Memphis to study with Mary Wilson, UofM’s associate professor of voice.

“I’ve been hearing Mary since I was about 15 years old,” Jongema said. “I’m in awe of everything that she does. So, when I was looking for graduate programs, everyone from that part of my life said, ‘you’ve got to talk with Mary Wilson. You’ve got to go study with her.’ We just really hit it sample lesson,” Wilson said. “I’m like, ‘great, that sounds wonderful’ and I kept going back and we would always meet every time I went down, and she would email about advice or email about ‘what do you think about this?’ or some ideas for repertoire and it just ended up that she wanted to audition for us mother introduced her to piano lessons. However, a few years later, when she heard her sister sing in a choir concert, she decided to take a break from piano for a year and try singing. That’s when she completely fell in love with it. off and clicked and she was a big part of the draw for me to come here.”

Jongema went on to get a bachelor’s degree in education with a minor in music, thinking she could change it all at some point if she felt like it. Back then, a performance career was only a distant dream — she never believed she was good enough to pursue it. But, as others encouraged her, she found the idea intriguing and decided to give it a shot.

“Shannon and I about three years ago — just met and wanted to have a in Memphis — and it worked! And I’m thrilled! I’m thrilled that she’s here.”

Music has always been a part of Jongema’s life. At five years old, her

While she didn't think she was anything special, she worked hard, improved and found she loved being on stage. Although it took her a while to admit she wanted to pursue a career in opera because it seemed so unrealistic, she delved deeper, fell in love with it and never looked back.

So far, Jongema has taken a very practical approach to her career change.

“It’s tricky because one of the ways people say to be successful in a career is to not have a backup plan,” she said. “I’m going to be in this 100% and I’m not going to consider other options and I’m never going to let anyone know that I want this more than anything else. Usually, the longer you can stick it out and keep showing up to auditions, eventually you get something. I fully intend to do that. But I also think it’s practical that you can want to be the next big singer as much as you can, but that doesn’t mean you’re going to get it.”

Wilson says the toughest thing Jongema will face in her career is hearing ‘no’ a lot more than she hears ‘yes.’

“There are so many well-trained, good singers in the United States. It’s really hard to get the audition, let alone get the job,” Wilson said. “And she’s a soprano, which outweighs other voice parts at least two-to-one if not three-to-one. The odds are against professional singers at the start. I liken it to professional sports. Everybody can play high school ball, but college ball is a little more select, then you get to AA or AAA ball, and whew, they’re really good and then you get to the pros. It’s the same tiered system in opera singing and what she wants to do.”

Jongema said she’s received several performing opportunities as a UofM graduate student.

“This semester I was fortunate enough to sing in a backup ensemble for [Metropolitan Opera] star Renée Fleming, develop and perform an outreach program with the UofM opera program at local schools, cover for Mary Wilson in Mozart's “Requiem” and sing in a production of “Amahl and the Night Visitors” with Memphis Light Opera,” she said. “My professors are also wonderful about setting up times for us to audition for local conductors and directors, as well as sending notices about competitions and summer programs to apply for.”

This spring, Jongema will play Mimì in the UofM’s performance of “La Bohème.”

“I am so unbelievably excited to be singing Mimì as my first role here at the UofM,” she said. “It almost feels too good to be true. Vocally, this role is a stretch for me, and I've already grown a lot in the process of learning it thanks to the guidance of my professors Mary Wilson, Ben Smith and Dr. Stephen Karr. I feel very lucky to have the chance to interpret this iconic role at this stage of my career.”

Jongema admits she’s tackling her graduate degree later than most and that her time as an opera singer will be limited after she graduates. Afterward, she’d either like to get back to teaching music full-time while singing periodically around the country or explore conducting operas.

As of now, though, Wilson thinks she’s right on track.

“She’s in a very academically rigorous program,” Wilson said. “It is a very difficult undertaking and I do believe she’s very driven. She’s very focused. She’s quite amazingly positive. It’s going to be a lot of energy, but I really think she can balance it all. She goes above and beyond. I think if we can get her into the right auditions, people are going to scoop her up.”

So far, Jongema said, taking this road less traveled has been completely fulfilling.

“If I take the time to think about it, I think about how I could be in a classroom, but I’m not,” she says. “So now, I’m always excited to go to school and rehearsal and to class. Anytime I get to sit down and practice or perform I realize how special that is.”

“We get bogged down in the day-today studying of music, and we forget that we all love it and that’s why we’re there,” Wilson said. “Shannon is able to bring that light. I really think it’s very special. She loves what she’s doing. It’s a choice that she’s made, to come back and pursue performing after she went into teaching so it’s a real conscious decision that she’s there and she’s going to work hard and she’s going to enjoy it.”