This past Saturday, students were given a taste of the musical stylings of Brian Bergeron, 24, and Ryan Schmidt, 20, courtesy of Live at the U. Though the two are separate singer-songwriters, their sounds, while equally individual, make them a compatible pair to share the stage. Bergeron's voice falls close to that of Howie Day and Schmidt is nearer to a Justin Nozuka, but the easy rapport that the two share lends itself to their performances, making for melodically seamless transitions from one set to the next.

New Hampshire-bred Schmidt, who describes his sound as "acoustic indie pop," was first up and dazzled the crowd with his soulful voice and romantic lullabies, including the original "I'm Not What I Used to Be." Perhaps the highlights of his set, though, were his rousing renditions of Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" and O-Town's "All or Nothing." Schmidt, who began picking up instruments at age seven, beginning with an alto saxophone, played in a few jazz bands before he says he realized "guitars were cooler and girls liked [them] better than marching bands."

Massachusetts-born Bergeron, who was performing for his third time at UConn, had a slightly different start in music. He says he did not grow up with music, making it "kind of a mystery," but did eventually take to the guitar in sixth grade. "It was more of an interest to me than being cool," he says. As his love for the guitar grew, so did his fondness for artists like Ryan Adams and Damien Rice, influences that certainly came through in his mellow, self-described "folk rock" set (during which he matched Schmidt's covers with one of his own, '80s hit "867-5309/Jenny").
The pair have grown to be easygoing friends through their shared journey with music so far, but the future may hold vastly different things for them. While Schmidt sees himself staying with music and "traveling and touring," Bergeron isn't so sure. "It might be with music; it might not," he said. "I've become really interested with energy sustainability and finding ways to better the environment." He adds simply, "Success to me is making a living."