~Bio~

STEVENS STORY: 

Jennifer M. Stevens, Lyric Spinto Soprano and visual artist is the youngest daughter of Ernest L. Stevens Sr. of Oneida descent and the late Patricia (Brewer) Stevens, of German, French, Swiss, Irish and Lakota descent.  Stevens was born in Annandale, Virginia and at the age of five her parents relocated to West De Pere, Wisconsin.  Stevens father was a nationally known leader, historian, educator, oratator, and economic development specialist.  Stevens' father worked very hard to provide for his family-a father of 8 kids, who strived to instill strong values and inspiration for them.  Due to her father's work, Stevens had the opportunity to live in Annadale, Virginia, De Pere, Wisconsin, Window Rock, Arizonia, and Albuquerque, New Mexico, although mostly lived in Wisconsin, were she graduated from West De Pere High School and furthered her education at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, Kansas University-School of Music and Dance, and St. Norbert College; studying Vocal Performance and later changed her major to a Bachelor of Arts degree in Studio Art which she will be receiving from St. Norbert College.

The arts have become more than just a form of expression for Jennifer M. Stevens, it motivated her, became a major inspiration in her life, and helped her overcome some obstacles of her own.  Stevens at the age of six was diagnosed with a learning disability, in turn created many set backs for her; Stevens was told she wouldn't be able to go to college-something she told her parents she always wanted to do as early as nine years old. 

Stevens had many dreams; to be a psychotherapist, dancer, singer, and artist.  Although a long road, by the time Stevens was a Junior in high school, teachers discovered she had advanced musical and artistic skills, which was the beginning of a new light in her life.  In high school Stevens was on the honor roll, voted Student of the Month, part of the Gifted and Talented, sang the lead role, Kate, in the musical, Kiss Me Kate, and very active in school. Her life began to change...

While entering into college, Stevens was receiving music scholarship offers to attend various schools, had the choice to go to the Crane school of Music, and University of Arizona.  She chose to go to Univeristy of Wisconsin-Green Bay, on a Muscial Theater scholarship, and later decided that opera was more interesting to her.  She later attended St. Norbert College, where she was selected for the Honors Recital in 1999, and transfered to Kansas University-School of Music and Dance as a Vocal Performance major, where she made the Deans List.  Jennifer M. Stevens discovered her artistic expression and creativity as a lever to overcome what others would call a disability.  Stevens has over turned many leaves to engage an enriching life through the arts.    

ART:

Music has been a major part of Stevens’ life, but there has always been undertones of her visual creativity since she was able to put a pencil in her hand.  Stevens’ Mother in particular recognized her daughter’s natural ability through her sketches as young as 3-5 years old and kept her original sketches; Her Mother put a special effort to supply her with art supplies since she was very young; Stevens’ Mother not knowing she would end up a professional artist!  The encouragement was very helpful to Stevens.  Stevens Great-Grandfather was also a painter...it must run in her DNA.

Stevens had an interest in sketching portraits, painting and sculpture since she was a little girl, but it wasn't until her late 20's that she actually started to hone her skills.  She was invited to work with Iroquois-Oneida potter, Rose Kersetter who groomed her to be an Iroquois potter and instructor.  Jennifer M. Stevens also studied studio art with a focus on painting and ceramics at St. Norbert College with professors’ Donald Taylor (Ceramics) and James Cagle (painting), and Marilyn Stasiak (Painting), who all have been very helpful and encouraging for her creative endeavors. Marilyn Stasiak in particular has influenced Jennifer's interest in contemporary art and told Stevens, "We know you can paint tight, now paint with a pallet knife on a larger canvas." 

Stevens focused more on water color, portraits and sketches in pencil and charcoal in high school.  She has always appreciated various styles especially art by Michelangelo, Gustav Klimt, Auguste Rodin, and Claude Monet.  She also enjoys old world fresco paintings that caught her eye during her travels to Italy.  Recently, she has been experimenting with a texture style of the old world fresco inspired with her Native American styled art.  Fusing both European and Native American art is something she enjoys-makes it unique.  Stevens doesn’t plan on stream lining her style… Stevens enjoys the creative process and exploring various styles of art and mediums. (See Samples of Art.)

MUSIC:

Stevens showed an appreciation for music where her family noticed her immediate response to music; as soon as they turned it on she would dance.  Stevens parents noticed her interest in playing piano when she was 5 years old;  Stevens was at a family function and her cousins were playing various songs on the piano-the kids left and Stevens sat on the piano bench and imitated what she heard the other kids were playing.  Stevens parents were trying to raise 8 children and didn’t always have the money for piano lessons, but bought her big sister and her a Baldwin piano-Stevens continued playing piano, and mostly taught herself how to play piano both by reading music and by ear as well.  30 years later, Stevens still has her Baldwin piano and currently being refurbished, pitch raised, and tuned for many more years of piano playing.  Stevens is grateful for her parents effort to put a piano in her hands very young-although not a concert pianist, she  uses her piano skills as a major tool for writing her original compositions.   

To say the least, music has been a major part of Stevens’ life.  Since, Stevens started taking piano lessons, was singing in choirs, receiving encouragement from instructors, and her parents playing Pavarotti; she grew a great appreciation for classical music and opera.  Jennifer was fascinated with the beautiful sounds that opera singers made-felt it was so soulful and amazing, not to mention a huge fan of Mozart, Handel, Vivaldi, and especially, Puccini. Stevens first opera aria was, O mio babbino caro, by Puccini-she has been hooked on his arias ever since. Stevens is inspired by her favorite sopranos such as; Leontyne Price, Maria Callas, Keri Te Kanawa, Beverly Sills, Renee Fleming, Anna Moffo, Montserrat Caballé, and Kathleen Battle.  Stevens is also a huge fan of Barbara Streisand, although she is not an opera singer, Stevens loves her voice and the emotions she expresses.

Stevens is currently a vocal student of  Margaret (Drummond) Colbert, Soprano, who just moved to Appleton, WI from Darmstadt, Germany.  Mrs. Colbert heard Stevens sing and felt she had a special talent-she gifted her vocal coachings to help her prepare for her performances.  Colbert was the student of Tilly de Garmo and Fritz Sweig of Los Angeles, California and was a West Coast Regionals Metropolitan Met Auditions Winner.  Stevens has also studied with;  Marshall Moss, Baritone, Linda Parins, Soprano, Joanne Bozeman, Soprano, Dr. RubyAnn Poulson, Mezzo, Barbara McAlister, Dramatic Mezzo, and Sondra Kelly, Dramatic Mezzo, and Inci Bashar, Mezzo. 

Stevens continues to share her love for music and performing as a concert recitalist and soloist in such venues as; the Green Bay Civic Symphony, Choir/Student Recitals in Germany, Austria, and Italy, Native American Music Awards, Club Italo-Americano, First Nations Composer Initiative Concerts, Heard Museum in partnership with the Arizona Opera, Oneida Nation Museum, Indian Summer Festival-Awards Ceremony, and will be performing at the Meyer Theatre and will be featured in the documentary, “The Lesson,” produced by Eileen Littig and Dean Thomas. (Hear Samples of Music.)

Special Note:  The documentary, "The Lesson," was inspired by Jennifer M. Stevens receiving voice lessons with Metropolitan Opera singer, Sondra Kelly, Dramatic Mezzo in 2009.  Stevens met Sondra Kelly through friends, sent her demos and resume, requesting for Sondra's honest opinion of her voice, in turn Sondra Kelly flew to Green Bay twice to train Jennifer M. Stevens for a week at a time, and mentors her via e-mail and phone from the East Coast.  Producer Eileen Littig witnessed the connection that Sondra Kelly and Jennifer M. Stevens has while observing a very exciting and inspirational time for Stevens receiving lessons from a Metropolitan Opera singer in Green Bay, WI.  Sondra Kelly has been very supportive and demonstrated she has a lot of faith in Stevens' singing; Producer Eileen Littig, NEWEST/CESA 7 was inspired to produce the documentary which will be released in the summer of 2011.  

COMPOSITIONS: 

Composing classical music for piano and voice has been a secret hobby for Stevens.  She feels she has performed songs in many languages, especially Italian and Latin, and lately inspired to composing her own art songs for recital.  She has written compositions for school as far back as 1998, where her instructor Dr. Cook of St. Norbert College encouraged her to keep her compositions and start building a portfolio.  Stevens struggles with music theory, didn't think she could be a composer, but her compositions and lyrics have always been very fluid for her.  Stevens Voice Teacher, Sondra Kelly in 2009 also encouraged Stevens to continue her exploration in her composition for recital.  Currently Stevens is writing compositions influenced by her classical foundation but also combines her classical training with her indigenous language and culture to give a new flavor to some of her songs for recital.  Stevens wrote and performed her first song cycle entitled, Elements; Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water at the Heard Museum and will continue to develop her compositions and exploring new ideas. Stevens will always continue her classical music singing art songs, oratorio, sacred song, and opera arias-standard repertoire for recital, but enjoys adding something a little different that she knows her audience has not heard yet, because it stems from herself through her original compositions.

Stevens has performed songs for recital for the past 20 years and through her experience she loves inspirational and romantic music.  She enjoys it so much that she is inspired to create a similar ambiance of romantic or inspirational music through her own original compositions.  To Stevens it doesn’t matter what language she is singing in, what is most important to her is either finding music or composing music that she enjoys performing for recital.  Being a classical singer, you sing in many languages…Stevens appreciates all cultures and enjoys honoring them through her performances.  (Hear Samples of Compositions.)

CREATIVE WRITING:

Jennifer M. Stevens favorite subject in school was English and Literature-with Art and Music as a given.  Stevens especially appreciated reading poetry, short stories and a huge fan of William Shakespeare.  Stevens Father enjoyed reading his favorite poems and short stories to her since she was a little girl.  He had a collection of classics and found that his daughter enjoyed the sensitivity and depth of his favorite literature.  Stevens Father also noticed her ability to write so he worked with her since she was in middle school to develop her writing skills.  Sometimes grueling hours of edits with her Father, but she was able to learn some valuable writing skills-He set a standard that helped Stevens get through all her course work in college. 

Mind you that Stevens has a reading disability… but found through beautiful literature and poetry it helped her over come her fear of it because she enjoyed it so much.  Her Father gave her examples of good writing, explained why it was, had dialogue about the literature, and than showed her how she could also write.  Stevens Father always told her, “If there is one skill that I can teach you; that you can use for the rest of your life-is teach you how to write.”  Stevens is very appreciative that her Father took the time from his demanding schedule to help her hone her writing skills.  Stevens Father was right-writing has become a skill she has been able to use in all areas of her life.  Stevens Father was noted for his gift to write and many don't know he also enjoyed writing poetry.  Stevens English teachers also encouraged her creative writing and poetry, and she continues to add her favorite poems to her collection of poems. 

On a more serious note, Stevens has been successful utilizing her writing skills in other areas of her life; Stevens sits on the Green Bay Press-Gazette Conversation Panel, where she is an occasional columnist, she writes editorials on social/humanitarian issues for her local Oneida newspaper, Kalihwisaks, and utilizes her writing skills to benefit the arts such as; drafting scripts for community theatre and a respectable grants writer.  Stevens has drafted two grant proposals and was successful in raising $10,000 for the CESA #7 for the documentary,  "the Lesson."  Stevens has been successful in the past five years of grants writing, and received funding for all of her grant proposal submissions. 

Stevens still enjoys sitting down at a coffee shop, drinking a cup of Chai, and enjoys writing mostly poems and lyrics for her songs.  Stevens feels that her Father gifted her by sharing the importance of writing and exposing her to some beautiful literature and poetry; in hand, it has become a major inspiration for her to hone her own creative writing skills.  Stevens feels that writing like any art is a powerful tool-to communicate in a level that makes people think and feel on a deeper level.  When she writes she always thinks in terms of leaving words behind that are thought provoking and inspirational.   (See Samples of Creative Writing)

COMMUNITY INVOLVMENT:

Miss Stevens has strived to utilize her love and skills in the arts to benefit her community; for the past 20 years sang for funerals, weddings, special events, and sang the National Anthem for the Oneida and Wisconsin Vets, and sporting events since she was 18 years old.  Jennifer M. Stevens has supported VET events due to her father being a Drill Instructor for the Marines and fought in the Korean War who also suffered PTS-Post Traumatic Syndrome. 

Jennifer M. Stevens has also directed children's productions such as L. Frank Baums', the Wizard of Oz, Charles Dickens', the Christmas Carol, Dr. Seuss', the Lorax, and Oneida Legends with her community children encouraging their own creative endeavors and interests.  Stevens feels that Children's Theatre is an excellent way to get children involved with various interests and their community.  Stevens discovered through working with kids her hidden talent; adapting children’s stories and Oneida legends for stage.  Writing scripts and bringing them to life in community children’s productions has been a wonderful growing experience for her cast and for herself.  All her productions so far have been well attended. 

AT HOME:

Jennifer M. Stevens resides in Green Bay, WI, enjoys her peaceful home and studio, beautiful white shepherd, gardening and landscaping, writing poems and ballads, plays piano as a hobby, encouraging youth in the arts, and works for the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin as an Executive Assistant.  She is taking in all the wonderful opportunities during her creative journey as a multi-faceted artist and singer. 

Jennifer M. Stevens has enjoyed being single-to develop herself for a professional career, but also looks forward to meet someone special-to build a nurturing foundation for a family of her own.  In the mean time, Jennifer M. Stevens has a soft spot for humanitarian efforts, the arts, youth, and elders.  Stevens strives to balance her life to become the best that she can become; she feels she can paint a thousand paintings and sing a thousand songs, but what good are they if she can't share them with others.

Georgia (Left) and Shadow (Right)

 Georgia was adopted through the White Paws Rescue in Green Bay... she was in various shelters in WI and managed to find her way to her new home of 6 years!  Shadow is a new member of the household!  Another rescue dog that a family adopted, but recently needed to find a good home for.  He was a perfect match for Jennifer's dog Georgia and a joy to have around.    They are both settling in and doing great...plus Jennifer enjoys training them as a hobby!