Nestled between the English hallways is Scituate High School’s musical sanctuary, the band room. Here students participate in symphonic band, music tech, and advanced musicianship. One of these students is senior Emma Dwyer.

A key member of the SHS artistic community, Dwyer has been playing music for as long as she can remember. When The Scituation asked her about her musical origins, she said, “I guess I started with the recorder in third grade, but if we aren’t including that, then the clarinet in fourth grade. I don’t think we actually had songs on the recorder; it was just one note continuously with a backing track.”

Dwyer has greatly progressed since then as she is now known as a skillful clarinetist and saxophone player. Her favorite songs include Artruro Marquez’s “Danzon no. 2,” and “Vesuvius” by Frank Ticheli. “I’m a huge fan of classical. It’s my homie,” she enthuses, “but I also dabble in jazz.”

Dwyer has showcased her musical talent as First Clarinet in Scituate’s Symphonic band, a soloist in Jazz Band, and at last year’s All-State music festival, an orchestra comprised of some of the state’s best musicians.

The journey to All-State’s is a long one, making this accomplishment even more outstanding. Dwyer filled The Scituation in on her audition process saying, “First, you have to audition for the local district. There’s five districts in Massachusetts. We’re part of the Southeastern District, which is comprised of 90 schools. You need to audition and get accepted, and then get a recommendation to go and audition for All-State. If you’re scoring in the top half of your district, then you can audition for All-State. Finally, if you audition for All-State and do well then you get accepted.” Along with learning new songs and making new friends, Dwyer says one of her favorite moments of All-State’s was performing in Symphony Hall. “It was like a dream come true for me,” she says.

Dwyer attributes her success to the wonderful Scituate Music department, saying, “All of my music teachers that I’ve had along the way have really helped contribute because they’ve all had such a big impact on me and my life. They’ve encouraged me to keep going with music.”   

The Scituation had the privilege to speak with one of Dwyer’s former music teachers, retired band director Ms. Sally Tucker, who worked with Dwyer for three years at SHS. Ms. Tucker had endless praise for Dwyer, saying, “Emma doesn’t just play the notes — she finds the music behind the black dots on the page. She also is very attentive to the conductor, so you can ask her to do a lot musically in the moment, and she responds right away. It makes for a great partnership between the musician and the conductor.”

While Tucker is proud of all Dwyer has accomplished so far, she can’t wait to see where music will take her in the future. When The Scituation asked Ms. Tucker if she had any advice she would like to pass on to Dwyer, she said, “Be fearless. Actually, be confident even when you are scared…Emma is one of my all-time favorite students. It’s been so wonderful to watch her grow over the years and to listen to her play. I wish her all the best as she starts on her musical journey in college. I know she will shine!”