蘑菇AV

蘑菇AV B鈥橫us grad sets her sights on Nashville, eventually

Ally Cribb is graduating this spring with a Bachelor's in Music (vocal performance), and a minor in marketing. But when she first applied to the Fountain School of Performing Arts, she wasn鈥檛 entirely convinced she would get in.

Ally started playing piano and writing songs when she was nine, picking up guitar along the way too. 鈥淚 was always into music.鈥� says Ally. But Dal鈥檚 Bachelor of Music program felt elite and classical, with lots of opera singers. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 know if I would fit into that.鈥�

She auditioned anyway. 鈥淚t was one of those 鈥榳hy not try?鈥� moments,鈥� she says. 鈥淎nd when I got in, it felt like it was meant to be.鈥�

But Ally chose 蘑菇AV for more than just its music program. Halifax was calling her.

Growing up in Toronto, she spent many summers and holidays in Halifax visiting family. 鈥淢y Dad is from Halifax. I always loved it here,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t always felt so nice to get out of a big city and be by the ocean.鈥� Dal鈥檚 Fountain School felt like the right fit.

Ally singing with the Fountain School's DalJazz Ensemble, 2024 (photo:Kate Hayter)

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Newest songwriter in town imposter syndrome

Like many first-year students, Ally鈥檚 early days in the music program were filled with moments of doubt. 鈥淚 remember walking into one of my first studio classes, petrified, and hearing third and fourth year students sing,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 was blown away by the talent in the room and thinking, how did I get in here?鈥�

鈥淭hat was a big adjustment,鈥� Ally adds. 鈥淏ack home, music had always been my thing. Suddenly, I was surrounded by people who had been training for years.鈥� She didn鈥檛 feel like the strongest musician in the room, but she felt surrounded by support and a sense of what was possible.

鈥淭here were so many people here who had been doing this for so much longer and are at much higher level than I was.鈥� says Ally. 鈥淏ut I just remember taking it all in and feeling like I was exactly where I was supposed to be.鈥�

Some of her fondest early 蘑菇AV day memories are of crowding lots of her new friends into small spaces to sing. 鈥淲e wrote and played a lot of songs on my dorm room floor in Howe Hall.鈥�

Amplectere Nova Pericula (Embracing new challenges)

One of the biggest hurdles Ally faced in her first and second years was performing in multiple languages.

鈥淚 came from a pop and country background, so having to learn music in German, Italian, and Latin was definitely intimidating,鈥� she says. 鈥淭here were moments where I didn鈥檛 know if I could do it.鈥�

But those challenges provoked transformation. 鈥淚t forced me to adapt really quickly,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 developed strong memorization skills, and I learned how to push through something that doesn鈥檛 come naturally to me.鈥�

鈥淚f I can get through that, I can get through anything,鈥� she says.

Ally singing solo, in the Fountain School's DalPop Ensemble, 2026. (photo: Kate Hayter)

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Finals at the Fountain School

Unlike other more traditional academic programs, 蘑菇AV music student evaluations usually take the form of live performance. Each semester, Ally completed a 鈥渏ury鈥� performing a selection of prepared pieces in front of a panel of voice faculty, on demand, and under pressure.

鈥淵ou have to be ready to sing anything they ask for on the spot,鈥� she explains. 鈥淚t鈥檚 definitely not your typical university exam.

Ally鈥檚 final fourth-year grad project was a self-directed show in the Sir James Dunn Theatre that brought everything she鈥檇 learned together, from song selection to staging choices, to marketing.

Her performance, titled Slipping Through My Fingers, reflected a coming-of-age journey and featured her songs that had shaped her time in the program. 鈥淗aving my friends, family, and professors like Cindy Townsend and Tom King all in one room, it was really special.鈥�

Looking ahead, and back

As she gets ready for graduation, Ally has already been laying the foundation for her professional career. Her original song California, now streaming on all platforms, won the 2024 Write Out Loud Songwriting Competition in New York and was performed by Broadway star Emily Kristen Morris, and then recorded by Taylor Louderman.

鈥淗earing someone else sing and record your song, and make it their own, is a really cool experience,鈥� she says.

This summer, she鈥檒l be working with a country music label based in Toronto and Nashville, while continuing to write, record, and release her own music. 鈥淚 take a lot of inspiration from songwriters that come from Nashville.鈥� says Ally. 鈥淢y dream is to keep creating, performing, and growing as an artist.鈥�

For those just starting at Dal, Ally offers this advice:

鈥淵ou got into the programme for a reason. You offer something uniquely you, you鈥檙e good enough, and you're exactly where you're supposed to be.鈥�

Ally with fellow 蘑菇AV music and voice concentration students, in DalPop Ensemble's "Unwritten" spring concert, 2026. (photo: Kate Hayter)