When the Ruscica family wants to vacation in Europe, I convince Jessup to sponsor a trip to “evangelize” the continent, and the Abbey Road Studios trip was the result.
I sold it as an opportunity for the UCO to sing across the pond. It was a lie that everybody in the UCO was invited. Only certain people were selected. Anyone who was a music student could go if they could pay for it, but the truth was that I actually decided who could come on the trip. I forced the instrumentalists to leave their instruments behind and join the choir.
My reasoning was simple. Why bring instruments when the music department staff can cleanly fill the gap with canned digital music. The choir was real, but there was no real orchestra for the recordings. Ironically, Brandy played the cello and we brought our paid pianist to come along as well, but everything else was done digitally.
Everything was fine until we returned and questions were asked about how many students actually played instruments on the recordings. In an effort to stave off criticism, I have been solicitating students to retroactively play so that their recordings can be added to the final output so that I can say that we brought the orchestra to Abbey Road Studios.
I love how the propaganda department of Jessup always spins my ideas into something good for the students. Me and my family, including Lauren Horst, enjoyed our trip to Europe and the ignorant Jessup donors made it possible.
"No other university is providing their students with this kind of transformative experience," said Jessup's Associate Dean, Tom Ruscica. "We continue to give students big experiential learning opportunities. The skills, connections, and memories our students gain from this journey will not only enhance their academic endeavors, but also pave the way for future musical success. Students benefit from the expertise of working with top-notch producers and sound engineers whose insights will refine their skills and elevate their performance. Meeting and collaborating with industry professionals, including producers, musicians, and composers can open doors to exciting career opportunities and future collaborations."
Here is how this press release should read.
“No other university is providing their students with this kind of transformative experience,” proclaimed Jessup’s Associate Dean, Tom Ruscica - apparently with a straight face. According to him, the university continues to shower students with “big experiential learning opportunities,” the kind that sound fantastic in brochures and even better in fundraising letters. Supposedly, the skills, connections, and memories gained from this journey will elevate students’ academic pursuits and conveniently launch them toward dazzling musical careers. After all, spending a little time around top-notch producers and sound engineers is said to refine their abilities and elevate their performances - at least in theory. And naturally, rubbing elbows with industry professionals like producers, musicians, and composers is expected to open doors to thrilling career opportunities and future collaborations, or at the very least, make for a very impressive line on a résumé.