The commercial music major at Fresno City College is seldom ever talked about, a pathway that gets tucked behind some of the other musical avenues like the piano, guitar, instrumental or vocal majors. And yet, it’s the only music major that offers an associate degree in science.

The program teaches the production side of music, and instills practical knowledge about the current state of the contemporary music industry. Chris Brady is an Emmy award-winning artist, and he is the only professor in the entire pathway. 

“It keeps me busy,” Brady said. “The program itself is relatively young, and that pathway itself is relatively young throughout the nation. I mean, it’s still kind of growing, and is not as ingrained as some of the other aspects of the music program.”

But for Julian Michael Mendoza, this is more than just a major. The advanced audio engineering class has inspired him to take his passion for music to the next level.

“[Audio engineering] taught me everything. I mean, I came in here a couple years ago not really knowing anything about production or engineering, and professor Brady has been a huge help,” Mendoza said. “He’s kind of the reason I’m standing here today.” 

For Mendoza’s final project, he was instructed to record and mix something using some of the more advanced techniques learned throughout the semester. However, it wasn’t required that the students actually write their music.

“He totally went the extra mile in terms of creating his own material, and also the production side and all the logistics of incorporating the choir,” Brady said.

Mendoza was feeling antsy on the morning of May 8. With microphone stands in hand and a pair of headphones around his neck, he waited as singers from Music-80 and Music-81 (Intermediate/Advanced voice) filed out of the recital hall in the Music/Speech Building.

Some singers stuck around, and others came from outside to line the seats of the recital hall. By 12:30 p.m., there were 14 FCC choir singers ready to lend their talents to Mendoza.

Jennifer Heder is the music instructor at FCC who helped Mendoza put the singers together, and his request was one-of-a-kind. 

“I haven’t heard of something like this done since I have been working at Fresno City College,” Heder said. “I always love it when students are able to participate in projects like this that will help them prepare for the real world of being a 21st century musician.”

“The Julian Michael EP” (extended play) has been building for over a year, but there was a missing piece of the puzzle. Mendoza knew that he needed some extra help for his debut project, another layer to transcend his music.

“I don’t really have the technicality and the experience of a vocalist,” Mendoza said. “I feel like sometimes I’m playing checkers, and they’re playing chess, so we’ll see how it goes today.”

Once Mendoza and a few other commercial music students set up their equipment, the singers were on their feet. For a first-time conductor, Mendoza had no problem keeping things casual. After some vocal warm-ups, the singers recorded backing vocals for the EP’s intro track, “Never Know.”

Singers were harmonizing to lyrics projected onto a screen in front of them, Kyle Jefferies – another commercial music student – was recording and bobbing along to the melody, and Mendoza led the group from behind the piano that came with the room.

Mendoza cited Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” as one of the song’s tonal influences, and the same kinetic energy could be felt. The song evolved from a calm and trancelike flowstate led by simple yet striking piano chord progression, into a frenzied and fast-paced downpour of vocal flourishes, a crescendo akin to some of Michael Jackson’s most exciting; “They Don’t Care About Us” comes to mind.

The singers were encouraged to get creative, to doo-wop and test the boundaries of the harmony. With each note, Mendoza beamed with excitement, and the enthusiasm was infectious. 

“The environment, the voices resonating, that’s what gets me into choir,” Elias Adame, one of the choir singers said. “He has vision, and that’s why I wanted to help him.”

The six-track EP will be released this summer on all music streaming platforms, according to Mendoza.

City Sounds, the only commercial music showcase of the spring semester, will take place in the FCC theatre on May 16 at 7:30 p.m.