Only a small percentage of US high school students enroll in music courses (Elpus & Abril, 2011; 2019), especially those students who are native Spanish speakers (Lorah et al., 2014). An even smaller percentage pursue music after high school graduation (Elpus, 2022). Most US high school music courses are large ensemble classes such as wind band, orchestra, or choir (Abril & Gault, 2008; Culp & Clauhs, 2020), which many have cited as elitist (Mantie & Tucker, 2012), and overly competitive (Powell, 2023), with a focus on Eurocentric elite culture that marginalizes a majority of students (Hess, 2018). High school music thus often fails to develop students’ relationships with and education in and through music (Bradley, 2012). That has led to sustained critique of ensembles and school music more broadly in the United States (Regelski, 2006), and provides rich opportunities for music teachers to work within the established large ensemble paradigm to encourage students to participate in lifelong music engagement. This presentation discusses four young adults from varied ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds who attended the same college preparatory school and chose to pursue music post-graduation because of their participation in a select high school vocal ensemble class. These young adults, now aged 20 to 23, are respectively pursuing a masters in opera studies, a double major in voice and anthropology, a commercial music degree with an emphasis in country music, and music composition (fusing Hispanic and American musical styles) and arts management. The researcher conducted a qualitative case study addressing the research question: what factors of vocal students’ high school music experiences contributed to their decisions to pursue music after high school graduation? She conducted in-depth interviews and analyzed them using deductive and inductive methods. The results indicated that non-judgmental teaching, exposure to diverse musics, personalized instruction, and strong connections with their teacher enabled the students to develop meaningful relationships with music in helping shape and define their identities. These personal and intimate connections with music were strong factors in their decisions to pursue music after high school. The presenter discusses the aspects of her teaching approach that especially resonated with these participants.The findings suggest that ensemble study can hold a cherished and relevant position in young people’s lives, and that adapting ensembles to foster meaningful and authentic connections with and through music is a key component to encouraging young people to pursue music into adulthood.