Malia Becker, 16, of Hilo has been accepted to and will attend the Singer-Song Writer Program at northern Michigan’s Interlochen Arts Academy, one of the world’s premier fine arts boarding high schools.
Malia Becker, 16, of Hilo has been accepted to and will attend the Singer-Song Writer Program at northern Michigan’s Interlochen Arts Academy, one of the world’s premier fine arts boarding high schools.
Becker, who often performs in front of the Hilo Farmers Market, plays ukulele, guitar, drums and bass. She is a former piano student of Anthony Maroudas of Hilo and the daughter of Catherine Becker.
“Music has the power to change the world and change lives, and that is what I intend to do with my music,” Becker said.
The academy audition required the submission of five original songs, one of which Becker performed on an old dulcimer she found at her grandfather’s house that was made out of a cigar box. Previously, Becker was a student at Hawaii Preparatory Academy and the Hawaii Academy of Arts and Sciences.
This year, Interlochen Arts Academy students will have the opportunity to collaborate with members of the New York Philharmonic. The academy attracts more than 500 young artists from 40 states and 15 countries. Together, they study music, theater, dance, visual arts, creative writing and motion picture arts in a college-like setting.
Interlochen Arts Academy was founded in 1962 to provide year-round training in the arts coupled with challenging and comprehensive college-preparatory academics.
For more information about the academy, visit Interlochen online at www.interlochen.org.