Aaron Appleton
Strengths: Positivity,
Ideation, Belief, Developer, Strategic
I graduated from Greenville in May 2007
with an I.T.E.P. Bachelor of Science degree in Music Arts & International
Development. I am currently working on various music related projects: ethnomusicology,
recording studio design and construction, songwriting workshops, recording
workshops, recording albums for indigenous groups in Guatemala and Belize, working
on a collaboration project with producers from The Netherlands, the U.S.,
Australia, and Portugal, and finding talented singers in Guatemala and Belize
to record vocals to the tracks created by the producers. These projects are being done in conjunction
with The National Kriol Council of Belize (www.kriol.org.bz),
S.I.L. International (www.sil.org),
and a Guatemalan organization (affiliated with S.I.L.
International) named Viña (www.vinyastudios.org). I have
been working with them since September 2007 and I will be finishing my work
with them on May 15, 2008.
The whole
reason that I came down here to do this work is to gain more experience in a
different cross-cultural setting. I am doing similar work to what I want to be
doing in the future, which is starting up a small non-profit organization in Jinja, Uganda
named Koinonia Music Center. My COR 401 group and I did our whole
presentation on this future organization last year. After I've gained
more experience, I am striving to start up this organization in about 5 - 6
years from now.
Here are
some excerpts from Aaron’s recent work:
“I'm just writing to let
you all know what's been going on in my work in Guatemala and Belize and
hopefully elicit a response to hear what's been going on in your lives!...In
that time I've gone back and forth to Belize a few times to finish construction
on the recording studio, and meet/stir up interest with potential
participants in the workshops I'll be leading in April. Things have been
going really well there! My friend's Jeff and Natalie
Anillo from Solomon's Porch (the ministry in Panajachel Guatemala that I lead worship music at) agreed
to come to Belize
with me and help finish up the construction. They were a huge help, and
really got me pumped up since they work so hard. I've attached a
photo of the nearly completed studio with my little Belizean friend Phillip
testing out the acoustics of the room. Now we are just waiting on
the ordered recording equipment to come in, and some minor fix-ups to be
done. So I'm super excited about the potential of this studio for
training talented Belizeans in the future! Please be praying for me as I
prepare for the first workshop I'll be teaching in Belize City on April 5 - 12. This
workshop is an ethnomusicology/songwriting workshop to teach talented Christian
Belizean songwriters to write songs based on the freshly translated Christmas
passages of the Kriol bible. We will be using all traditional Kriol
instruments (donkey's jawbone, dingaling bell, fork and grater, etc.) to
compose the songs in the "heart music" of the Kriol
culture. At the end of the workshop, I will start to record an album of
all the songs that were composed in the new recording studio, and
hopefully complete it by the end of April.”
For information, resume
writing, diagnostic career testing, caring counseling about the "Oh the
Places You'll Go" contact Mrs. Tonya Holman at our Campus Career Center at
extension 6613 or stop by her office on the North end of the main
floor of the library to schedule an appointment.