The first Coffeehouse of the year is set for November 3rd, and many performers are preparing for the big night. While being very musically involved in school, many of these singers and instrumentalists are musically active outside of school as well.
Katie Garner ’24, a vocalist and guitarist, enjoys “anything that involves collaboration. I love co-writing songs or learning covers from my friends.”
Garner writes and publishes multiple songs and albums under her stage name, juniper, and she is coming out with a new song this winter based on the book, Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. Garner uses her experiences to learn and make her songwriting the best it possibly can be. This practice has allowed her to develop as not only a singer, guitarist, and music producer, but also as a performer.
Singer-songwriter Garner plays gigs regularly at local coffee shops and breweries. This helped her “get comfortable performing music in front of large crowds of people as well as improving my stage presence.”
To improve his performances, Oskar Hafner-Orange ‘24 tries “to look at what other acts are doing, both in Coffeehouse and outside, to try to get better and learn ways to engage the audience and put on the best show possible. I never stop thinking about the audience.”
Hafner-Orange is a songwriter, drummer, guitarist, and bassist, and also enjoys writing songs outside of Coffeehouse. After coming out with an album, 30 Songs, and playing in bands including Rock ‘n’ Roll for President, he incorporates his experiences writing and rehearsing to make each of his Coffeehouse performances better than the last.
The students of Minnetonka who participate in Coffeehouse not only share their musical abilities with their school, but in their personal lives as well. By performing outside of school and writing songs, they are able to improve their talents to make their performances the best they can possibly be.
