Megan Bober: A Giant Voice

Fresh off a New York University (NYU) summer music program, junior Megan Bober is ready to take the stage again this year in Advanced Performance Workshop (APW), ‘Til Dawn Acapella Group and open mic nights in Marin.

Playing piano since third grade, Bober has always had music as a constant in her life. In early middle school, her piano teacher encouraged her to sing whilst playing piano and eventually convinced Bober to give it a try.

“That’s when I realized I really like singing… I was really nervous because I had never sung before. But I still did it and I’m really happy I did because it’s made a huge impact on me,” Bober said.

By the time high school came around, Bober was immersed in the singing world. She took Intermediate Performance Workshop (IPW) as a freshman, where she learned how to further develop her musical talent. Through this class, Bober met other musicians, including fellow singer and junior Berta Bunch.

“Megan and I [are] in bands together a lot because we sing well together. We harmonize together. Her and I are kind of like a duo in the class,” Bunch said.

The two, along with many of their IPW peers, auditioned for APW at the end of freshman year and enrolled sophomore year. In addition to Bober’s music elective in school, she performs with an acapella group called ‘Til Dawn. ‘Til Dawn’s 15 vocalists come from multiple Marin County high schools and practice twice a week. According to Youth In Arts, the arts program based in San Rafael that runs ‘Til Dawn, they maintain an extensive year-round performance schedule, singing at schools and community events. Bober sent her audition to the group freshman year and has been singing with them ever since.

Through ‘Til Dawn, Bober was able to meet close friend Lara Burgert. Although Burgert is not a part of APW with Bober, Burgert loves to watch her perform.

“Whenever I go to her APW concert at school or I just watch [her] performances, [it is] really inspiring since she’s so confident. She has so much power. It’s taught me about being confident when [I am] singing and performing,” Burgert said.

The confidence Bober exudes has stemmed from techniques she has learned throughout her years of performing. Bunch admires this characteristic along with her coordination with her band.

“[Megan and I] always make sure that we’re working together on harmonies before performances [and] making them perfect. So that on stage when we’re nervous, we don’t have to be worried about messing up or sounding off-key… she makes sure to put her band first, makes sure to practice enough so that everybody is comfortable with playing [the piece],” Bunch said.

Confidence is key when you have a singing passion like Bober’s. While researching colleges specializing in music, she stumbled upon NYU’s summer program “Contemporary Performance Workshop”. In February, she applied with two songs for their July camp. Once accepted in May, she headed off on a two-week adventure to learn from the professionals.

“[The program] was basically a workshop where every day we would learn new things and people would come in [to help us improve],” Bober said.

Managing school and music can be challenging for Bober, but she sees a future in singing, so she is motivated to stick with the musical aspect of her life.

“I make time for [music] because it’s what I love to do,” Bober said.

Bober isn’t the only one who believes in her future music career. Burgert is inspired by Bober’s powerful stage presence and anticipates a musical future for her.

“She just has so much to offer and I feel like she could definitely be a singer or write music and perform,” Burgert said. “She definitely has so much to show to the world and so much to share with everybody.”

At her NYU showcase, Bober sang “Manhattan” by Sara Bareilles. Although this was a cover, Bober does not limit herself to covering other musicians’ pieces. She also writes her own music. Bober has not yet performed these original tunes for Redwood, but she has wowed audiences at open mics, including Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley and HopMonk Tavern in Novato. This fall, she plans to go more out of her comfort zone and vocalize her authentic music on the Redwood stage.