Wakefield’s talent proves instrumental in serving others in time of need
Whether strumming a chord, hitting keys, or composing new melodies, senior Marcus Wakefield’s life is defined by notes and measures. His passion for music began early in life, starting with a recorder in a third grade classroom, which then led to an interest in piano and piano lessons at the age of 10. Since then, Wakefield has also learned how to play the clarinet, guitar, bass guitar, drums, cornet, tenor saxophone, and ukulele.
“My favorite instrument is piano because that's the one I’m best at,” he said. “To me, piano makes a lot of sense as an instrument. A lot of other instruments have complicated or harder-to-understand layouts, but the piano is really organized, and from a music theory standpoint, it makes a good deal of sense.”
Photo courtesy of Daisy Wakefeild
Often found sitting at a piano, Wakefield enjoys composing and creating his own songs. He plays multiple instruments including clarinet, guitar, bass guitar, drums, cornet, tenor saxophone, and ukulele.
Playing instruments in a band with other talented musicians makes the experience more meaningful for Wakefield and continues to fuel his passion to create.
“What has kept me in music is the community aspect,” he said. “It's really cool to be making music with so many other people, especially once you get into high school, that are so passionate about it.”
Wakefield has also taken up composition, utilizing multiple instruments in each project.
“Around sixth grade, I started writing music with my piano teacher, and I've kept doing compositions of that sort, of more classical type music,” he said. “I did that for a couple of years pretty regularly. I also took composition lessons with the professor from UWO for a couple summers.”
Besides practicing piano, he enjoys creating different projects such as mixing songs or writing music for podcasts during his free time.
“By sitting down and learning new instruments and new pieces of music, I have found that I legitimately like to do it, and I chase that feeling of learning and working really hard on something,” he said.
Having an avenue to channel talent and energy has been beneficial to the young musician, but it also derives from hard work. He is grateful for the encouragement and guidance he has received from his mentors at school.
“The music teachers at West have been really supportive and really great about providing opportunities for things that I am interested in doing and pursuing,” he said. “You can tell that they are really passionate about their jobs and music, and it excites them to see kids who are passionate about it as well.”
Wakefield joined the band as a freshman and has grown in his relationships with the teachers and in his musicianship.
“When he was a freshman, he was already a strong musician, and so he has only grown since then,” band teacher Brian Wilson said. “It has been really fun to watch him grow as much as he has; he is at a really high level as of now.”
Playing for three different bands at West, the teachers count on him as a leader and strong asset to the group.
“He plays his grandpa’s 100 year old cornet that he learned over quarantine as a secondary instrument,” band teacher Daniel Singer said. “Even if he is not there holding a clarinet in one of the bands, I can ask him to demonstrate finger placements for the other students, and it's nice to have him in the class helping to assist.”
Wakefield joined choir in his junior year, and choir teacher Bethany Meyer was excited for him to enjoy a new area of music and grow even more by adding his physical instrument to his repertoire.
“He came into choir last year because he felt that he wanted to have more experience,” she said. “He plays a lot of instruments and is very intelligent when it comes to musicianship, so he wanted to explore the area that he hasn't had a lot of experience in.”
Along with band and choir, Wakefield takes every opportunity to share his passions with the students and staff at West.
“I try to integrate music into my academic classes as much as possible,” he said. “I think I've brought one of my instruments in on at least five different occasions for non-music related classes.”
Combining his skills in composing, singing, and playing instruments, he jumped at the chance to showcase his passions concerning the content being taught in his classes.
“In Mr. Scott's English class, I had a lot of fun integrating music. For the Romanticism project, I brought in my electric guitar and played Green Day’s “Jesus of Suburbia” and explained how Green Day is a romantic artist.”
That choice was right up Scott’s alley.
“I really enjoy the Romanticism unit for a variety of reasons,” he said. “The speech particularly fascinates me as students can choose a modern artist to connect to the ideas and drives of this period in literature. I get a chance to see and hear their tastes and talents in a new way. Marcus took that to another level.”
Wakefield wasn’t the first such musical interlude, but he was especially memorable.
“I have had students play acoustic guitar, roll a piano in, and even compose a blues lyric on the spot,” Scott said. “Marcus went electric and really punched it across. You can’t really go halfway with Green Day, and he certainly didn’t hold back in his commitment to the speech. If anything, he should have really kicked out the jams and brought in a vocal amp as well for a true concert experience.”
Opportunities to play music have arisen outside of school as well for Wakefield. He plays piano often at church and also leads worship at his church’s youth group.
“Uplifting and serving others is just an important thing to do, no matter how you do it,” he said. “Helping other people and being a part of the community is important. I choose to do just about everything through music.”
He values each and every opportunity to be a musical light for his community.
“This last fall, I did something fun for a service project,” he said. “I wanted to go around to different retirement homes and take musicians there since the residents just haven't seen many people because of quarantine; they haven't had a lot of entertainment and were pretty lonely.”
Along with touring multiple different retirement homes, he also visited the Oakwood Manor assisted living facility weekly to play for hour-long segments, occasionally bringing along other musicians.
“Marcus called us in the summer when COVID-19 had us on lockdown for indoor entertainment,” community manager Cheryl Gomez said. “He put together an outdoor concert with a few other people and brought so much joy and happiness to us at a time of need.”
Photo courtesy of Brian Wilson
After requesting to lead a piece of his own, Wakefeild conducts the West band during a pep rally. Both of the band directors have counted on Marcus as a seasoned musician to help lead his peers
Gomez has also heard encouraging thoughts from the residents at Oakwood about how they’re excited to continue supporting Wakefield in his future musical endeavors. But in the meantime, Gomez always has room for him to perform.
“All of our residents here loved Marcus and talked about how talented and polite he is,” she said. “A few of them stated they would see him up on stage a few years after making it big time. We will welcome Marcus anytime with open arms! He is such a talented young man with a very bright future.”
With plans to attend the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, Wakefield hopes to continue his education by studying the music industry in the fall. With music playing a large role in his life, he embraces the passions that have driven him from the start.
“Pursuing your passions gives you a sense of purpose, something to look forward to, something that makes you want to work and learn, which gives you a great feeling,” he said. “Even if it's not your career, it is a life-giving thing to have passion like this.”
While he continues to pursue music throughout his life, Wakefield is grateful for how much experience he’s gained over the years and how many paths music has opened up for him. With whatever he decides on in his life, he knows that music will be the center, and he’ll always have a passion for it.
“I'm not sure what exactly my music career will look like,” he said. “I’m interested in so many different aspects and areas of music, and I'm definitely hoping and planning to pursue one or more in the future and to continue to explore many of them.”
By K. Ambati, A. Eaton
Oshkosh West Index Volume 117 Issue V
February 26th, 2021