One of the most most angelic voices on campus belongs to the unforgettable Anson Jones ’17. There’s no doubt you’ve seen her perform, whether in chapel, on stage, at Open Mic, or in the music wing serenading the halls with various songs using her “voice that sounds like butter melting across a hot skillet,” as Charlie Hawkings ’17 so eloquently puts it. Ever since her first year at Groton, Anson has been sharing her talents and groovy tunes with us, but her fruitful music career began so early as the first grade.

At the beginning of elementary school, Anson started to learn the piano. Later, she took clarinet lessons for two years and “was really bad at it,” or so she says. She also took on guitar for a while and enrolled in singing lessons in the fifth grade. “Music is my ultimate form of destressing,” Anson said. She especially enjoys listening to Pink Floyd, David Bowie, and jazz singers Sarah Vaughan and Etta James. “The Wallaby” by Pink Floyd is one of her favorite albums of all time.

Ever since she received her first mixtape from her father, Anson has been encapsulated by jazz, which she began to learn at the age of eight and is now a major part of her musical endeavors. Anson has performed at various jazz clubs and restaurants while participating in her friends’ gigs or on open stages. “My favorite thing about jazz is that it’s got a very different feel. I like the swing, and I like the music theory that goes into it,” she explains.

Anson has done much for the music program at Groton and vice versa. Anson was a member of the choir and chamber choir from Third to Fifth Form, where she normally sang as a soprano. She currently takes voice lessons with Ms. Lanier, saying, “It’s really nice to have a set time dedicated to classical music, which I don’t normally do a lot of.” Before coming to Groton, she sang a cappella in middle school, which inspired her to join and later head the Grotones.

A regular Open Mic and postlude performer, her lovely voice is a staple in the Groton community. She remembers her first ever Open Mic, when she sang “You Can’t Feel Me Now” by Bonnie Raitt, as her favorite performance because “it was so overwhelming!” This fall, Anson has been working on her Jazz FSA for both voice and piano, which  started last fall. Mentored by Ms. Lanier, she has been working on improvisation, transcription, singing, and technique in the songs, “Never Will I Marry,” “Autumn in New York,” and “Lullaby of Birdland.”

What many don’t know is that Anson participates in all fields of art, from visual  to poetry and dance. She danced in middle school, and although she has only taken Third Form Visual Studies at Groton, she loves to paint and sketch. “I like to go out into the city in New York and just draw whatever’s there,” she says.

In addition, Anson enjoys writing poetry, and is taking Mr. Capen’s poetry elective this fall. She also writes some of her own songs, although she mostly prefers to keep them private. “I think it’s good to do a bunch of different types of art because they can inform each other; you can learn things from visual art and use that knowledge toward poetry and dance,” she said. Despite her heavy involvement in the arts, she has no idea whether or not she will pursue a musical career.

If you have not yet been blessed by the sound of Anson’s ethereal voice, be sure to attend her Fall FSA recital or the next Open Mic. Can’t wait that long? Check out her feature in Langa Chinyoka ’17 and Abby Power ‘17’s song “Forgiveness” on SoundCloud.

https://soundcloud.com/prettyuglykid/satte-forgiveness-ft-anson-jones-demo – you can thank me later.