Fourth year Schreyer Scholar finds harmony in marketing and music 

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Fourth-year Penn State Schreyer Scholar, vocal performance and marketing major Dominic DiFrancesco has always possessed a unique passion for music.  

After playing "Flounder" in his third-grade production of "The Little Mermaid," DiFrancesco said he was instantly hooked on the thrill of performing for a live audience. It was here that he discovered his talent for singing and his newfound desire to share this talent with those around him.  

Over time, singing has become much more than a hobby to DiFrancesco, it is his personal outlet for creativity, authentic self-expression, and building community, he said. Especially during his high school years, music acted as a mechanism for him to stand out in a challenging environment and defiantly stay true to his identity.  

“Music has been both a passion to work on and craft, as well as an escape for me. Being queer at an all-boys Catholic high school was not always the most welcoming environment, but, singing gave me an outlet to both express myself, but also differentiate myself,” DiFrancesco said.  

When searching for a college to further pursue his musical interests, Penn State was originally not at the top of DiFrancesco’s list. However, he said, this initial hesitation toward the University completely changed after stepping foot on the University Park campus.  

“I actually didn't want to go to Penn State because my brother goes here, and I did not want to just follow the same path as him. It wasn’t until I toured on campus that I had this weird feeling that I was walking around on ‘my campus,’” said DiFrancesco. “I felt such intimate connections when touring the Schreyer Honors College and the School of Music and saw so many opportunities for growth. It just felt very right.”  

With distinct interests in both the performing and business side of music, DiFrancesco wanted to find a way to pursue both passions as a Penn State student. To accomplish this, he chose to major in two very different fields: vocal performance and marketing.  

This combination of academic focuses has granted DiFrancesco an extremely well-rounded perspective of the music industry, allowing him to explore the branding aspects of music, as well as grow as a musical performer himself.  

“I was interested in doing a music business program at other schools, but Penn State doesn't have that program. However, I view that as a positive now. My current vocal performance and marketing majors differentiate me. I now understand the business side of being a musician,” DiFrancesco explained. “I got into marketing after I realized that there's just this beauty in storytelling, building a brand, and doing the work for the public-facing side of things. For me, the two majors fit quite naturally.”  

Pursuing dual majors in different academic fields can seem like a daunting task, but DiFrancesco said he credits the Schreyer Honors College for supporting him in his journey of completing his respective requirements.  

The honors option, for example, has been enriching throughout DiFrancesco’s undergraduate career, allowing him to create one-of-a-kind projects and dive deeper into topics that relate to his overlapping passions, he said.

“Schreyer has been this beautiful bridge between the Penn State School of Music and the Smeal College of Business, and has allowed me to see the investment of pursuing two majors. One example is when I honors optioned a course and created a consumer behavior project about Taylor Swift,” DiFrancesco said. “This type of project is something that wouldn't fit into a standard semester of learning, but I was able to work with Schreyer and my professor to get more out of the class.”  

Leadership, similar to learning the melody of a song, takes dedicated and repeated practice, he said. In understanding this, DiFrancesco is currently a member of the Presidential Leadership Academy (PLA) run by Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi and Dean of the Schreyer Honors College Patrick Mather. The academy has taught DiFrancesco tactics for effective and impactful leadership to apply in his on-campus involvements, he added. 

One example of this is seen through DiFrancesco’s role in "Movin’ On" as public relations director, a role that perfectly merges his expertise in both music and marketing. As director, he manages a team of students to run the organization's blog, social media, press relations and overall media outreach to promote Penn State’s on-campus concert.  

DiFrancesco’s implementation of the skills taught in PLA into this role has helped him identify his previous weaknesses and learn how to become the best leader he can be, he said.

“In PLA, we talked with Dean Mather about our personal ‘strengths and saboteurs,’ and I am a ‘stickler saboteur,’ where I like things done a certain way,” DiFrancesco explained. “We talked in that class about how to manage that, which I then applied to my role in Movin’ On. I was able to create an environment that my team members wanted to be a part of, and learned to trust people to do the job that I hired them to do.”  

DiFrancesco’s on-campus involvements have pushed him to grow as a marketing student, a leader, a musician and even a world traveler, he said. As a member of the Penn State Glee Club, DiFrancesco has had the unique opportunity to perform in concerts across the world, traveling to Portugal in 2023 and recently embarking on a trip to Eastern Europe in spring of 2025.  

These international trips have enriched DiFrancesco’s passion for singing, deepened his appreciation for the art of music, and enhanced his perspective on new cultures and customs, he said.

“I've gotten to go to Portugal, Prague, Vienna and Budapest with the Glee Club. It's so rewarding getting to bring the music that we worked so hard on abroad, and it's very moving to explore the history and culture of these countries,” DiFrancesco said. “I had moments where I realized that the songs we were singing are hundreds of years old, and we get to perform in spaces that countless musicians have sung in for 800 years. This global experience with the club felt like I was contributing to something bigger than myself.” 

Singing for public crowds in multiple foreign countries is no easy feat, said DiFrancesco, crediting the guidance of the Glee Club instructor, Christopher Kiver, for the club’s successful global performances. DiFrancesco highlighted how Kiver has been a vast source of inspiration, knowledge and motivation for him throughout his undergraduate experience in the School of Music.

Kiver said how rewarding it has been from his perspective to see DiFrancesco grow as a student and apply his technical musical skills throughout each performance with the Glee Club. He specifically highlighted DiFrancesco’s solo performance during the club’s recent European tour as a visual display of DiFrancesco’s persistent dedication and hard work as a vocal performer. 

“I have been fortunate enough to work with DiFrancesco since his first semester at University Park, both in the Glee Club and teaching him conducting. It’s been wonderful to watch him mature as a performer and also as a person,” Kiver said. “DiFrancesco is a talented singer, and I was delighted that he was able to sing a solo in the final concert of the Glee Club’s recent tour to Europe.” 

As DiFrancesco begins to work on his undergraduate honors thesis, the honors college’s resources and support have played a pivotal role in allowing him to push the boundaries of musical research. With the current working title of “Authenticity in the Age of AI: Consumer Perceptions of AI-Generated Music,” DiFrancesco described his gratitude for the freedom to conduct research in an area that challenges him academically while aligning with his personal passions.  

“My thesis examines how music consumers pursue AI-generated music compared to human-created compositions. Overall, this thesis will require me to do extensive studying into consumer behavior and marketing, as well as a lot of investment into music. So I've found a thesis topic that fully incorporates all of my interests,” DiFrancesco explained. “My experience with Schreyer has been incredible, as they have allowed me to uniquely dig deep into what I want to learn as a Penn State student.”  

He highlighted how his involvement on campus, global experiences, and thesis research have given him a unique and valuable insight into both industries of music and marketing. However, no matter where life takes DiFrancesco after graduating in the spring of 2026, he said, he is sure of one thing: music will always be a part of his life.