To many people on campus, he seems to have a suave and self-assured presence. But there's more to Michael Roberts '96 than just a good wardrobe -- he's a rising star with a bright future in music.
From opera to a cappella, Collis to the classrooms, Roberts is trying to do it all -- and succeeding. The music major and tenor divides his time among a variety of activities, yet Roberts makes it quite clear where his true ambitions lie.
"My primary work is my solo work, studying voice," Roberts said in an interview with The Dartmouth. He added, "I'd like to enter competitions and compete and hopefully get noticed by an opera company."
His mentor in the music department, Music Professor William Summers, believes he has the ability.
"I think Michael has the distinct possibility of having a significant musical career," Summers said, citing Roberts' "God-given beautiful voice," his good looks and his experience as a tenor.
Roberts is also active as president of the Dartmouth Chamber Singers, business manager of the all-male campus a cappella group the Aires, treasurer of the historically black Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and an intern in the Alumni Relations Office.
He also is a student assistant to Collis Cafe Manager Cynthia Crutchfield and a reimbursement account assistant at the College's Benefits Office.
Roberts will certainly have plenty of musical practice before he graduates from the College in June. Last week, he performed in the Vaughan recital series in what he deemed his "first solo classical singing at Dartmouth" and a chance to practice audition material in front of an audience.
On March 10, Roberts will perform with the Hanover String Orchestra in a concert conducted by Joseph Marcheso '96 and prominently featuring students and alumni.
And during Spring term, he will perform a full recital as part of his culminating experience in the music department.
While Roberts has not yet decided what exact pieces he will perform, he does have some ideas.
"I've looked at a lot of stuff ... I know I want to perform works by women composers, African-American composers and African American women composers ... it's a repertoire that's somewhat neglected," Roberts said.
Roberts, a native of Wenham, Mass., and the youngest of four siblings to attend Dartmouth, first became interested in music while attending Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter.
According to Roberts, the preparatory school "had a fantastic music department ... I got a chance to become as involved as I wanted to be."
He ended up joining three a cappella groups at the school and becoming a soloist with the glee club, concert choir and orchestra, thriving on the "pretty competitive, yet very friendly" atmosphere there, he said.
Yet Roberts had trouble finding a suitable voice teacher during his first two years at Dartmouth, he said.
That would change during the fall of his junior year, he said, when he was introduced Ellen Nordstrom Baerto, a private voice instructor in Norwich, Vt. who teaches Collis Miniversity courses.
Baer is "absolutely incredible ... by far, the best," Roberts said, attributing his vocal success to her.
In a telephone interview with The Dartmouth, Baer said Roberts is "one of the more charismatic and most courteous students I've ever had."
Concerning her protege's operatic aspirations, Baer said, "Michael can do anything he wants to ... as long as he makes music his sole master."
Upon arriving at Dartmouth, Roberts was also disappointed by what he said was a relatively underexposed arts scene.
"I think ... the experience of Western art and music is really separated from ... campus life," he said.
Roberts said participating in the music department's Foreign Study Program in London "changed my outlook."
According to Roberts, seeing more than 50 different performances in London's thriving arts scene "gave me a conception of what performing was all about. It was just a different world than anything you could imagine at Dartmouth."
Roberts participated last summer in the University of New Hampshire's McNair Graduate Opportunity Program, which helps to prepare minorities, women and other nontraditional students for the long road to a doctoral degree.
After Dartmouth, Roberts said he will be attending graduate school with the goal of earning an M.A. in voice.
Roberts, a dual-citizen of both the United States and Canada, said his first choice for graduate school is McGill University, located in Montreal, Quebec.
Eventually, he said he would like to earn a doctor of musical arts degree. But after receiving his master's, Roberts hopes to embark on a career as a professional singer.
As an African-American at Dartmouth, Roberts had mixed opinions about his Dartmouth experience. While he maintains strong connections with all parts of campus, it has not always been easy.
"There's some distinct cultural differences that I don't think are adequately dealt with by the campus in general. They stem from the cultural separation that exists in the larger world ... you can't expect people to leave their values at home," he said.
Yet Roberts said he found his personal experience "very profitable," and cited his involvement in Alpha Phi Alpha and in the Aires.
"I think I've achieved a very good balance and a very good overlap," he said. "I think I've managed to blur the distinction between black and white."
