Spotlight on Diane Andrieux

Ever since she was little, Diane Andrieux has loved to sing and write music.

“I started singing in church when I was nine years old,” said Andrieux, one of the winners of Patel Conservatory's recent Tampa’s Got Talent competition.

Andrieux, 26, originally from Miami, has been involved with choirs ever since. She graduated with a degree in music education from the University of South Florida, where she sang with choirs throughout her years of undergraduate study.

She joined a study abroad program through a master choir at USF which brought her to Austria.

“We performed with master choirs from other cultures, so that was a great experience,” said Andrieux, who currently works as a financial aid adviser at Everest University in Tampa.

She heard about the Patel Conservatory and the Tampa’s Got Talent Competition through a voice teacher at USF years ago, but, busy with studying, never got around to looking into it... that is, until this past summer.

“My cousin emailed me about the competition, and I thought, ‘Let me try it,’” said Andrieux. “The judges were very welcoming...I liked the feedback that I got.”

Andrieux’s performance of Summertime from Porgy and Bess won her a scholarship for Patel Conservatory’s Musical Theater Cabaret class.

Surprised to discover that she was the only winner in the adult category, Andrieux is excited to explore various styles of vocal performance. From Broadway to opera to hip-hop and R & B, she enjoys performing a wide range of music. She plays some piano and writes her own music and would ultimately love to be a solo artist, or even compose for film and video production.

“Even though I studied music, there’s always more you can learn as an artist,” she said, “The sky’s the limit.”