From performing with the Philadelphia orchestra to singing alongside well-known performers, Sydney Parson 22’ has accomplished much in her singing and dancing career.   Beginning at a very young age, music has been a huge factor in Sydney’s life. Her parents would send her to music classes as a baby, which first struck her love for music. Sydney took dance lessons from when she was as little as four years old. Along with her dance lessons, she also started voice lessons in elementary school and took up both the piano and the violin. From here, she started musical theater and enjoys it to this day. In a college essay question Sydney emphasized that music has been “reliable” and a reminder that “beauty is everywhere.”

Through her career, Sydney has gotten the opportunity to travel to countries across the globe, including Sweden, Germany, South Africa, and Australia. This summer, Sydney is beyond excited to visit Portugal and Morocco. Along with having visited places around the world, Sydney can also sing in multiple languages. She has sung in Swedish, Latin, Portuguese, Spanish, and French. Another major accomplishment of Sydney’s is that she performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra, which is world renowned and part of the “Big Five” orchestras in America. She performed alongside the famous composer Steven Schwartz, who is the composer of the musicals Godspell and Wicked, celebrated soprano Renée Fleming, who earned the National Medal of the Arts, and Kelli O’hara, a Broadway actress and Tony Award winner.

With this demanding lifestyle, Sydney has to balance her school work with singing and dancing. She has multiple tactics for time management and staying on-track with school work. Sydney constantly checks her calendar and makes virtual checklists to stay on top of things. Along with making a clear schedule, she finds time in the day to complete her school work, whether it’s using every bit of a study hall or free time during homeroom. She does this in order to save time and have less school work in the evenings to focus on singing. Her schedule can feel especially hectic during concert season. However, Sydney embraces her busy schedule and mentions, “You only go through highschool/life once and I want to make the most of it.” Next year Sydney will be majoring in mechanical engineering and will keep her love for music alive through joining groups in college and singing with friends.