As the opening bars to the national anthem start, the lyrics Millicent Scarlett has sung countless times run through her head as she approaches the podium, looking headfirst at a familiar sight: the National Mall filled with thousands of graduates.
Scarlett, an adjunct voice professor and facilitator in the Corcoran School of the Arts & Design’s music program, will sing the national anthem at GW’s annual commencement ceremony on the National Mall May 17 after performing at graduation and other GW events for over 20 years. Scarlett has taught at GW for almost 28 years, starting her yearly performance of the national tune at GW at the GW Law graduation and the University Commencement ceremony on the Mall in 2003.
Scarlett said she takes “great pride” in singing the national anthem traditionally, with a clear and classic rendition of a song she said is one of the hardest pieces to sing because of its wide vocal range, forcing her to concentrate on each and every note.
“I think with how so many people ‘jazz up’ the anthem, I believe that people are surprised by how my version really doesn’t have that,” she said in a message. “I don’t do runs and all that. I am interested in people hearing the words.”
On the day of commencement, Scarlett said her main focus is remembering the words to the anthem until she walks on stage. As she sits backstage in her regalia signifying her music degrees, even after 20 years, she said she still gets butterflies, but once she stands at the podium, it’s “go time.”
Scarlett said she enjoys chatting with faculty members backstage who she doesn’t regularly see around campus, like University President Ellen Granberg and each year’s keynote speakers, highlighting some of her favorites like former First Lady Michelle Obama and the late jazz pianist and composer Dave Brubeck, both speakers from 2010. Scarlett said she had always admired Dave Brubeck as a musician and recalled a photo of her and Obama acknowledging each other on stage.
“It’s not every day you get to meet a first lady, it’s not every day you get to meet the famous chef or the news anchor,” she said.
Despite the hype surrounding famous keynote speakers at the ceremony, Scarlett said her favorite parts of the event are the student speakers.
In dress rehearsal on the day of the ceremony, Scarlett said she can hear her voice amplified throughout the National Mall before the official ceremony. In front of the Washington Monument, near the National Museum of African American History and Culture, her voice travels far, and passersby can hear her rehearse the tune from blocks away.
“All the time, people who are walking along and working there stop,” Scarlett said. “And that’s pretty cool.”
Scarlett said she could not sing in person for the Class of 2020’s virtual graduation ceremony due to the COVID-19 pandemic and instead recorded a video of the song at her in-home studio with filming equipment GW provided. In past ceremonies, she said organizers have had to troubleshoot bad weather, occasional microphone issues and protests among graduates in the more recent years.
“They think about all these things, and they plan for it to be as safe as possible for everybody involved,” Scarlett said. “And you see it backstage and on stage. I’ve always been actually really impressed that with a mass amount of people, everyone leaves with a smile on their face.”
Scarlett said the ceremony is sometimes the first time her voice students hear her sing outside of a voice studio, and the opportunity makes them see her in a “different light” as a performer.
“I’m one of the teachers that gets to see these students one on one every semester for eight semesters,” Scarlett said. “They are very, very dear to me, and so when they graduate, I celebrate that, and I’m just happy that I get to be the one that gets to be a pretty decent part of that.”
The prestige of the National Mall is not unfamiliar terrain to Scarlett. After completing her undergraduate degree at Brandon University in Canada, she said she performed on stages in Italy, Austria, Germany and France. She said these experiences led her to win accolades including the Luciano Pavarotti International Competition and national semifinalist at the Metropolitan Opera for her vocal performance.
In the DMV area, Scarlett said she has sung at venues including the National Cathedral, the Kennedy Center and the Music Center at Strathmore throughout her music career. She said singing the national anthem at GW has gotten her invitations to perform at the National Archives for their 4th of July program and an event for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
“Singing the national anthem at GW has actually opened a lot of doors for me in places where I never thought I would have ever sung,” Scarlett said.
Scarlett will also sing at the Columbian College of Arts & Sciences Doctoral Hooding and master’s ceremonies, as well as the Business School’s graduate and undergraduate ceremonies this year. In the past, she’s sung for both the law and nursing schools as well.
“I’ve sung the national anthem in very different places for very different people, but I still do it for the GW community,” Scarlett said. “That’s where it started. That’s where I work.”
