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MBA candidate and tuba player Helder Perez-Viera constantly endeavors to find bridges between music, community and the business world, and ��ɫ�ֿ�’s McNair Scholars Program and CCPA helped him synthesize his passions. But until a high school visit to ��ɫ�ֿ�’s Loop campus, he wasn’t sure if his dream would be a possibility. 

“Studying music isn't something first-generation students usually have the privilege to do,” he says. “Studying art is a privilege in itself. and looking at the different options, I was actually considering enlisting into the military before I applied to ��ɫ�ֿ�. I remember that I got my acceptance letter that day I was supposed to go sign the enlistment contract, and getting my acceptance letter from ��ɫ�ֿ� with tuition assistance just to play the tuba changed everything for me.”

Before accepting his CCPA placement and scholarship, Helder-Perez had the opportunity to visit the ��ɫ�ֿ� campus and discuss his career goals with tuba professor Charles Schuchat—an opportunity no other institution offered him.

“When I was looking at different conservatories, something that made ��ɫ�ֿ� stand out was actually my lesson with Professor Schuchat,” he says. “He invited me to come take a lesson and basically gave me a taste of ��ɫ�ֿ� before I was here. And he planned that hour on a day where I was able to take a lesson and then go see a performance or a rehearsal from one of the ensembles. None of the other schools I visited gave me this much one-on-one attention. It's something that really stood out to me, especially when as a first-generation students we can be overwhelmed by the process.”

Perez-Viera grew up as a first-generation Mexican-American in suburban Chicago Heights, where he demonstrated an aptitude for music at a young age. He initially began on the trumpet, but when he ascended to first chair by sixth grade, he sought a bigger challenge. His middle school had just received a new tuba, and he was familiar with the instrument from banda music that originated from 19th century Mexican military bands. Banda music typically uses one or two sousaphones to maintain the baseline, and Helder understood this instrument could connect his family’s heritage with the broader music world.

“For my family, that was the connections,” he says. “They had no familiarity with any of the classical music or any of the classical repertoire that I was studying. But as soon as they saw I could play something that they could relate to, they were incredibly supportive.”

At ��ɫ�ֿ�, Perez-Viera earned a minor in Business in addition to his major in Tuba Performance, and the experience both prepared him for his career and how to “understand music as music and not just notes on a piece of paper.” The University’s downtown location allowed him to work under Chicago Sinfonietta CEO Blake-Anthony Johnson, perform during the Grant Park summer series and play the famous tuba part for Respighi’s “Pines of Rome” at Symphony Hall. In addition to receiving a first-class musical education, Helder was able to prepare for life after college with resources provided by the McNair Scholars and Honors programs. Created to assist low-income and first-generation ��ɫ�ֿ� students pursuing a research-based degree, the McNair Scholars program provided Helder with funds to research financially sustainable career paths for musicians in the 21st century.

“If you go to school for musical performance, there is an understanding that you’ll need to do freelancing throughout your career, and that requires you to be your own business-owner,” he says. “The funds from McNair allowed me to research and understand that modern musicians need to navigate spaces beyond the conservatory. Financial literacy and investment strategies are just as important as musical theory or mastering your instrument.”

Helder’s McNair experience compelled him to pursue his MBA at ��ɫ�ֿ� after earning a BA in Brass Performance, and he continues to perform the tuba with his own band while taking classes that prepare him for a future career in management, arts administration and entrepreneurship.

“I’m able to achieve all of this while living in a vibrant musical city like Chicago without a car, and I’m able to achieve this in an academic environment where there are so many first-generation students just like me,” he says. “I can’t think of a better place I’d like my early career to begin.”