July 15, 2004

Rising star in Almaden looks torward a musical future

By Miranda Schultz
Staff Writer

Eryn Elash is gearing up for Chapman University in Southern California this fall, where she will be studying opera. But before she goes, a couple more audiences will have the opportunity to see this talented singer on stage. The Leland valedictorian took up opera when she was a freshman.

“I’ve always loved to sing, but I didn’t know anything about opera. My friend basically got me into it, urged me to go to her voice coach. I did and I started learning about it, and I love it now. I’ve gotten jobs from it, weddings, dinner shows. It’s a lot of fun,” says Elash. “It’s the size and the power of the voice and the music that hooked me, but it’s kind of like an acquired taste.”

Her father Silas began singing a few months after his daughter, and now they perform together on stage. “It’s great singing with my dad. We never really had anything that we did together. Now we do and it has brought us much closer,” says Elash. “Of course we annoy each other, but we also support each other 100 percent.”
Eryn belongs to the Opera Institute of San Jose, and has participated in many events through the company. She and her father perform often in Monterey Bay and Carmel.

“We have a little following there, people come to see our shows,” says Elash.

Their shows are free, but donations are accepted. “The donations go to cover the pianist, and we usually get enough for that,” says Elash. The proceeds go to the Eryn Elash Scholarship Fund, to aid Elash in her education.

Elash was drawn to Chapman because of its excellent voice program and a scholarship offer. “I should get a great music education there,” she says.

She says that music has in a way, interfered with her studies. Which is one of the reasons she is excited about college. “In high school, I would get home from a show at midnight and stay up until 3 a.m. doing homework. The two kind of clashed. I’m really glad that now, music is going to be my curriculum. It will make things a lot easier,” Eryn says.

“Opera is probably one of the most difficult instructions because you have to learn many different languages, but it’s challenging for me and I like that.”

She says that her family is incredibly supportive of her love of music. “My dad is out there singing with me, and my mom is like the backbone. She gets us where we need to go and keeps us sane most of the time.”

Eryn has an older brother who plays drums in a band, and is also looking to study electronic music. “My brother isn’t a huge fan of opera, but how much is a 20-year-old guy going to like it, or even admit it?”

She hopes for a career in music, whether it be opera or Broadway, “I could be in an opera house, or on Broadway. I love to sing and perform. Anything that helps me bring music to an audience. Since I’m studying opera, I would like to go that route,” she says.

Elash, a mezzo-soprano, and her bass-baritone father will be joined by Sergio Maclean, a professional tenor from New York and pianist Bruce Olstad for two shows at the end of July. On July 22, they will perform at Le Petit Trianon Theater in San Jose, and on July 25, they will perform the same show in Carmel at the Church of the Wayfarer.

For more information about the San Jose show, call (408) 993-2290, and for Carmel call (831) 624-3550.