Aaron Krasting (Bachelor
of Music in Music Education, 1993) studied music education at Hartt from 1989
to 1993. He is currently living in West Deptford, New Jersey.
What have you been up to since you graduated from Hartt?
Life has been extremely
busy since I graduated from Hartt. My first teaching job was in the Pennsville,
New Jersey middle and high schools. I was the choir director there for three
years. During that time, I grew up a lot. I can honestly say some tough lessons
were learned. Musically speaking, I accomplished a great deal. I had the
opportunity to perform with the late Robert Shaw for three special concerts at
Carnegie Hall. I can definitely thank Drs. Gerald Mack and Pamela Perry for the
high level of preparation for such incredible opportunities. I also became the
tenor soloist and section leader at historic Christ Church in Philadelphia, a
position held for 5 years (thanks to Jack Zei for the vocal preparation). I
lost my job in Pennsville due to a reduction in force.
After a few very short
stints in other jobs, I became the choir director and theater producer at
Paulsboro High School in Paulsboro, New Jersey -a short 7 minute drive from my
childhood home. I am still at Paulsboro. While here, I received the school and
district Teacher of the Year honors in 2001 and, in 2010, was selected to
conduct the All South Jersey Junior High Honors Chorus. Over the last 20 years,
I held other performance positions at churches -including Trinity Episcopal
Church in Moorestown, NJ where I currently am- and performed on the stages of
area semi-professional theaters, namely the Ritz Theater in Oaklyn, NJ and the
Broadway Theater in Pitman, NJ where, most recently, I played the part of Edna
Turnblad in Hairspray. I also performed with Philadelphia's professional choir,
the Philadelphia Singers, as well as the Philadelphia Boyschoir and Chorale
with my sons, and directed/vocal directed many productions at the high school
and semi-professional level.
Personally speaking, after
graduating from Hartt, I married Tina Oslin, whom I was dating while in school.
We have 3 great sons (Michael, who is preparing for a career as a tenor, Tyler,
who is currently singing with the Philadelphia Boyschoir, and Christopher, who
is in the Boyschoir training program) and we successfully built Tina’s
Polynesian dance business and our summer theater programs. We have, however,
divorced amicably. I am happy and have a
new love, Becky, in my life. We’ll see
what the next half of my life has in store!
What are you involved with right now?
Right now, I have just
completed the coursework for my Masters Degree in School Leadership at
Wilmington University. I'm looking forward to the challenges that go with becoming
an administrator for the remainder of my career. I have also decided to
basically retire from performing to focus on my new profession and life. A
performer can’t stay away forever, so I do hope to return to singing and the
stage someday. Right now, I’m enjoying watching my sons perform. I’ll actually
be bringing my son, Michael, for a visit to Hartford as a possible college
choice.
What is one of the most things about your time at Hartt?
There were many memorable
things that happened while at Hartt. 1) While at the University of Hartford, I
was a Red Cap as part of the Preview Orientation program, serving as the
director of the group my senior year. As such, I was involved with helping
incoming freshmen select their courses and prepare for their lives as Hartt
students. Thanks Joan Glazer for all your help, guidance, and support as I did
this. 2) My freshman year, Hartt celebrated the birthday of William Schumann. Preparing
for that celebration imbedded music in my head that I find myself humming to this
day (On Freedoms Ground). 3) The Hartt Chamber Singers (if memory serves right)
performed at the MENC Eastern Division convention in Pittsburgh. 4) I also
attended the ACDA National Convention in Phoenix which was an amazing experience
(thanks Tom Nerbonne). There were more, but 3 is enough
What did you
learn during while at Hartt that you did not appreciate or recognize until
after time passed and you had some time to reflect?
