About Me

It started on a cold spring day in 2015. I was lying down, staring into the abyss of my mind, rain beading on the window. I sat up, took in the world around me - birds chirping, leaves rustling in the wind - and picked up the guitar my father had gifted me. The notes were simple, but the feeling was profound. I didn't fully know why I was playing, only that I needed to.

That afternoon became the start of a journey that changed me. I had already been in my high school band on trombone, but this was the moment music stopped being something I participated in and became something I had to create.

I began composing in earnest and brought my work to my band teacher, Mr. Z. “Impressed” doesn't quite cover his reaction. He told me this was more than talent; it was a gift. That night I started my first full-band arrangement of a popular song using MuseScore. Laying out notes and voicings, then hearing the piece come to life, was unlike anything I had felt before - accomplishment, expression, and freedom.

When I brought the finished score to Mr. Z. a few days later, I could see in his eyes that this would be one of the songs the band performed at the end-of-year concert. We copied parts for the whole band and began rehearsing.

Around the same time, I picked up other brass instruments - trumpet and tuba - and in short order was not only playing them confidently, but helping others learn them as well. Outside of school I kept composing and arranging for the joy of it, and wrote a few more pieces for the band. Another arrangement was selected for the next school concert.

On concert night I was nervous, but the band was ready. The performance was a success, and afterward I was awarded the band's highest honor: I was elected President - the first student to hold that role as a junior in the program's history.

Senior year, I was elected President again and asked to serve as Student Assistant Teacher for the school's newly created Guitar Ensemble. It was an opportunity I couldn't pass up - I have always enjoyed making difficult concepts easier for others, and helping students express themselves through music felt like a natural extension of what I was already doing.

In that role I helped students learn repertoire, refine their technique, work through assignments, and assisted with grading tests and performances. That experience - alongside leading the band and writing music the ensemble could actually perform - shaped the way I still think about music today: as something meant to be shared, taught, and felt.

After high school, I knew where I wanted to go; but not how to get there. Unable to afford college upfront, I worked several jobs - a grocery store, a fast food restaurant, and a retail warehouse - and put nearly every dollar back into my music: equipment, software, hardware, and licenses.

After a few years, I saved enough to attend Full Sail University, a private university in Orlando, Florida. By then I already had years of theory, countless hours of playing, and my own production work in REAPER. When the semester arrived, I was ready to dive in headfirst.

Much of my time at Full Sail went toward building on that foundation - learning how to break into the industry, where to look, how to network, market myself, and get my music heard - while continuing to write and produce, solidifying the skills I had already been developing on my own.

I graduated in 2023 with a Certificate in Music Production and Engineering. While there I worked on short songs and short films, using Full Sail as a way to get my foot in the door and build my portfolio. After graduation I landed freelance work, including an ongoing project for a small video game modding group, where I am currently writing music across genres and styles to fit the game's aesthetic and tone.

I have always been influenced by a wide range of music, from classical to rock to electronic. I find inspiration in film composers like John Williams and Hans Zimmer, and video game composers like Jesper Kyd and Mick Gordon. I have deep respect for their work, but I am not trying to emulate them - I have my own style and voice, and I am proud to be a composer in my own right. Sixteen years in, I am still learning and growing, and I am excited to see where the journey goes next.

I have always been a fan of the tools I use to create music. My go-to DAW is REAPER, though I also work in Logic Pro and Pro Tools.

Beyond the DAW, my workflow includes Splice Instrument; Native Instruments tools like Kontakt and the Komplete Audio 10 suite; Izotope plugins including RX Noise Reduction and RX 7 Advanced; and Valhalla DSP reverbs and delays. For laying out guitar and bass tracks before recording, I use Odin Deluxe and Kraken Hybrid Bass, along with REAPER's own plugins like ReaSurround, ReaPitch, and the built-in limiters. These tools - and others I am always adding - are essential to my workflow, and they let me create the music I want to create.