For many students at the Blair School of Music, merit scholarships and university-wide financial aid programs like Opportunity Vanderbilt are essential in making their Vanderbilt education possible. Even still, scholarships often do not cover the myriad expenses around auditions, performances, instrument repairs and maintenance that are necessary for student musicians to reach their full potential.
“There are so many costs that Blair students have to pay in order to thrive, even when their tuition and room and board are covered,” said Laura Michelson Sievers, BMus’11. “We were drawn to the idea of supporting this gap.”
Laura met her husband, Jacob Sievers, BMus’10, when they were both students at Blair studying vocal performance and piano, respectively. While they were both drawn to Vanderbilt for its world-class undergraduate music program, they came from very different backgrounds—with Laura having grown up in the San Francisco Bay area and Jacob coming to Vanderbilt from a small town in Southern Illinois, where he was the only person in his high school class to leave the state for college.
The need for support
Amid many positive memories from their time at Vanderbilt, the couple recalls a more stressful period during Jacob’s senior year, when he was starting to apply to master’s programs. “Many schools at the time required a pre-screening recording,” he said, noting how that recording alone could be costly. “Once I was invited to audition in person at several schools on the east coast, I knew I didn’t have the funds to get on an airplane, stay in a hotel and pay all the additional expenses.”
Upon learning that he could apply for funding from Blair to alleviate these costs, he was relieved. “The idea that such funding existed, and was so critical for students, really stuck with us,” Jacob said. “We knew we wanted to give back and make sure other students had access to similar support.”
In 2025, as part of Vanderbilt’s historic Dare to Grow fundraising campaign, the Sievers acted upon this goal, giving $75,000 to support the Blair Incidental Needs and Audition Support Fund—a resource that is widely used today. Among the many students who benefit from the fund is Iris Shepherd, a violinist and member of Vanderbilt’s Class of 2027, who says the fund enabled her to not only purchase violin strings and rehair her bow, but also to cover application expenses for a summer music program.
“While these may seem like small costs individually, they can accumulate quickly and are essential for musicians,” Shepherd said. “The fund allows us to focus on our education, artistic development and goals. I am deeply grateful.”
Recent graduate Catie Brenmark, BMus’26, says the fund played a significant role in her ability to attend the Yale School of Music, where she will start pursuing her master’s degree in fall 2026. “Auditions are stressful enough, and this fund really helped take financial pressure out of the mix,” Brenmark said. “As a result, I was able to focus on performing to the best of my ability. I would not be heading to Yale without the incredibly generous support of these donors.”
Broadly speaking, the fund helps cover music-related expenses so Blair students can seize opportunities, focus on their studies and reach their goals at Vanderbilt and beyond. Other recent funding recipients have included a brass instrumentalist who urgently needed $200 for a new mouthpiece and a percussionist who wanted to take advantage of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to perform in Portugal.
“Auditions are stressful enough, and this fund really helped take financial pressure out of the mix. As a result, I was able to focus on performing to the best of my ability.”
The power of music education
In addition to supporting individual students, the Sievers’ philanthropy was inspired by the even broader impact music can have.
“Musical performance is sometimes seen as a hobby or a side pursuit,” Laura said, “but at Vanderbilt, it is so much more. Blair offers a rigorous and intentional program that teaches students the skills they need as musicians and as people.”
In light of the school’s differentiators, such as its unique focus on interdisciplinary collaboration and undergraduate education—which is rare among peer schools and conservatories—as well as the fact that Vanderbilt has an entire school dedicated to music education, as opposed to just a department, Blair is especially well-positioned to empower young musicians to think big and apply their talents more broadly.
“Music adds so much to a college campus, and to the greater community, far beyond the physical spaces of the classrooms and performance halls,” Laura said. “Much like sports, which teach young people about cooperation, collaboration, practice, commitment and so many important skills, music can really bring people together through a dedication to the greater good.”
The Blair Incidental Needs and Audition Support Fund, by helping students focus on their passion for music, helps to deepen this very culture.
“Music adds so much to a college campus, and to the greater community, far beyond the physical spaces of the classrooms and performance halls. Much like sports, which teach young people about cooperation, collaboration, practice, commitment and so many important skills, music can really bring people together through a dedication to the greater good.”
“If anyone wishes to contribute to the fund, even just a few hundred dollars will be actively used toward tangible need,” Laura said. “By offering these small but critical contributions to students, we are helping to strengthen our community at Blair and, ultimately, the joy that music provides for us all.”
—Lucie Alig