They are students by day, musicians by night.  Like normal students , they attend classes and do homework. However, when they are not doing their scholarly duties, they are writing, practicing and performing their music.

For student musician Jennie Zelenak music will “definitely always be a hobby.”

Although the senior English major has only been seriously playing guitar since she began attending college, she taught herself to play.

“I never took lessons,” Zelenak said.

In addition to playing guitar and singing, she is picking back up the piano by taking lessons on campus.

Zelenak writes her own music, which is inspired by day-to-day life.

“I will be messing around and a note will inspire song, or I’ll write a poem and put it to music,” Zelenak said.

She previously played at open mic nights at The Billiken Club, and has also played at places such as Felix’s Restaurant in Dogtown and Iron Barely in South St. Louis. On April 15 she will be playing another show at Felix’s.

Although she typically tries to play every day, Zelenak has found it difficult.

“This semester has been hard because it is my last semester,” Zelenak said.

After graduation, she is looking forward to having more free time to write music. She is thinking about going to San Francisco and playing in the streets.

“I don’t expect fame out of it,” Zelenak said.

Check out her fan page on Facebook for more information.

Freshman Ellie Meyer is another student musician on campus. She has been playing the acoustic guitar for six or seven years.

“My dad used to have a guitar. He used to play and I’d be in awe,” she said.

She explained that her grandma was the one who pushed her to continue playing. Like Zelenak, she also writes her own music.

She is inspired by “Everything that goes on…life experiences. I’ll just be messing around and something will sound good… [I] build it up from there.”

Meyer said that although she doesn’t play in public very often, she is looking for opportunities. In the past she has played at coffee shops in Texas, where she is from. She also organized a concert that took place in Reinert Hall in February.
The first time she played in public was at her high school, where someone told her that her song was moving.
“I am glad people can relate,” Meyer said.

While Meyer is only a freshman, she plans on pursuing a career in Occupational Therapy, which is her current major, music or perhaps a combination of the two.

For more information about Ellie Meyer and her music visit her MySpace page www.myspace.com/elliemeyer8.
Student musician Tony Burwinkel currently plays under the name of Y2Canine. The senior Philosophy major previously played with the student band Ithaca.

Although Burwinkel is unsigned, he has already recorded one album and is in the process of recording another.

He started playing the drums through a grade school program and has now been playing for 11 years.  In addition, he plays the acoustic guitar, which he has been playing since he came to college. He also plays a little bit of piano.

Burwinkel, like Zelenak and Meyer, writes his own music.

He said that his songs are “inspired by people and relationships.”

Burwinkel wasn’t sure if music would become a career in the future or remain a hobby.

“It’s hard to make anything I want to do into a lucrative [job] … [I might] get a regular job that I enjoy and do music on the side,” Burwinkel said.

For more information about Burwinkel and his music,  check out his MySpace page www.myspace.com/y2canine.
Some student musicians choose to play in a band, as opposed to playing solo.

“There is something more tangible when you can share the experience with other people. There is give and take,” sophomore Owen Needham said.

Needham, an English major, is a member of student band Hither and Yon. Along with him, the band is made up of sophomore Theology and Music major Adrienne Edson, freshman English major Patrick Gibson and Pre-Med student Mike Tarkey.

Edson and Needham have been playing together since their freshman year, and were later joined by Gibson and Tarkey. Edson sings and plays guitar. She said she has been playing some sort of instrument for four-and-a-half years, but guitar for three.

“I was interested in learning guitar for liturgical purposes … Once I had the skills to play, then I was able to branch out,” Edson said.

Needham also sings and plays guitar. He has been playing guitar for four or five years. As he started developing different musical interests, he started playing mandolin and has been for about a year and a half.

The Haiti Benefit concert hosted by The Billiken Club in February was the band’s premiere, and they are looking for other benefits.

“All of us are part of Micah. There is a common awareness of … helping people through our gifts,” Edson said.

Keep a lookout for more news from all of these musicians around campus and online on their MySpace and Facebook pages.