Gustav Mahler

Every Saturday morning, my family and I would do a one-hour chore rotation. It was on those sunny and free mornings, that music stirred my heart for the first time. It seemed as if every Saturday, Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" would be one of the first songs that came over the speakers, and it effected joy and a strange sort of longing in me that began my appreciation of and relationship with music. Songs like these that played on Saturday morning clean up are such a nostalgic and formative element of me and my musical

When I first started to explore music on my own, form my own playlists and discover artists apart from the influences of my parents, Queen was one of the first bands that made the cut. In fact the first song on my playlist to this day is "Under Pressure." Queen was the first band that brought me into the world of rock, and represents the beginning of my exploration of a variety of genres of music. It is the connection between my childhood stirrings and my still developing love of music.

I play the violin, viola, and piano. As I was learning the violin/viola in orchestra, Dvorak had a great influence. Much of his music made me excited to learn more and to play my instrument. Some of his compositions brought me immense pleasure to play, and others were too technical for my abilities at the time but made me want to practice more so I could play them. Dvorak's folksy music made it a joy to learn, listen to, analyze and aspire to play, fueling many aspects of my musical journey.

My Christian faith is very important to me and forms a lot of who I am. Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote my favorite hymn "Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence," and many other tunes that play in my mind to keep me going through the days, weeks and years.