MSC Coffeehouse featured acoustic performances by the former second female Corps Commander and meteorology senior Cecille Sorio and petroleum engineering senior Ravi Lad at the Barnes & Noble cafe Wednesday evening.
The series gives student musicians a gateway to showcase their music through live performances on campus — a unique opportunity for college students, according to Samuel Norman, spatial sciences senior and Coffeehouse series executive.
“Town Hall started the Coffeehouse Series as a way to showcase student performers and give them an outlet to perform, practice and kind of get experience in front of crowds,” Norman said. “It gives them an outlet to refine their craft.”
The Coffeehouse series offers an acoustic, student-based twist that also coincides with the mission of Town Hall, Norman said.
“Town Hall’s whole goal is to bring music and entertainment to campus so we put on huge shows ranging from comedians to big name artists,” Norman said. “Coffeehouse was just our way to let Texas A&M students show entertainment to campus.”
Sorio, who sang and performed an acoustic violin set with her friend John on guitar, was booked by wildlife and fisheries junior Jacob McConathy. After seeing a video of Sorio performing, McConathy said he knew instantly that she would be a good fit for the Coffeehouse event.
“I saw Cecille’s contact info, and I knew she was the Corps Commander, so I figured I should check her out. There was a link to YouTube of some stuff that she had put online and it was amazing. It was just like ‘I gotta figure out if I can get this girl to play,’” McConathy said.
McConathy said Coffeehouse holds great value because it serves as an outlet for student performers to showcase their talents in intimate settings. The presence of live music on campus holds great importance, McConathy said.
“We host student performers that do like small acoustic shows and so it’s really kind of intimate, and that’s what I was wanting where you get that kind of intimate interaction between the performer and the audience,” McConathy said.
McConathy said that music connects people, and that Coffeehouse evenings are a great way to forge those kinds of connections on campus.
“It lets us connect with other students who are also musicians and be exposed to a wide array of different styles and different people,” McConathy said. “We get to see how music influences our lives and how we get to be affected by their presentation of the music.”

Communications sophomore Krystalynn Gier also works to coordinate Coffeehouse events. Gier said she has a passion for live music as an outlet for students.
“I love live music. Having live music on campus is really important for me because I feel like it’s a great outlet, especially since Coffeehouse specializes in getting student performers,” Gier said.
Gier has also performed at Coffeehouse events and said she wants to share the feeling of performing live on campus with other students through MSC Town Hall.
“A few weeks ago I actually performed and it was my first time ever, like performing like that by myself with my guitar just in front of so many different people and it’s just a whole other feeling. To be able to give that opportunity to other students to be able to experience it is important to me,” Gier said.