Edgar Sanfeliz-Botta
Degree: Bachelor of Music
College/School: College of Communication, Architecture + The Arts
Humming “Once Upon a Dream” from Disney’s “Sleeping Beauty,” Edgar Sanfeliz-Botta took a short break between orders at the busy McDonald’s drive thru on Sunset Drive. Meanwhile, Roberta David, at the time a professional choral director, was waiting in the long line leading up to the window, when she heard a male voice with an impressive vocal range.
She immediately recognized the quality of Edgar’s voice and when she arrived at the drive-thru window, she was surprised to learn that Edgar was not only a countertenor — one of the rarest male voice types — with a music degree from Cuba, but also a talented organist. Familiar with FIU’s excellent music program, she encouraged him to audition.
A few months later, Edgar was accepted into FIU’s School of Music where he distinguished himself with his talents as a countertenor and his ability to play the beautiful 4,226-pipe Shantz organ purchased for the Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center Concert Hall by Dr. Herbert Wertheim himself.
Edgar now works professionally as a singer, organist and elementary school music teacher at Conchita Espinosa Academy. Under his direction, some of his third and fourth grade students had the opportunity to perform in the FIU Opera Theater production of “Venus and Adonis” in the spring of 2016.
After graduation, Edgar plans to pursue his doctorate in music at the prestigious Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University.