Things I Hope to Accomplish in My Career 01

At the end of my life, I want to look back and say...

1

I have left more love, and created more light, than what existed before me. My contributions to the world are not limited to choral direction; though music is my vehicle, my ultimate goal is to contribute to healing the brokenness that exists in the world.

2

I have empowered musicians to escape the “starving artist” mentality. Success in a creative field is not just for the privileged few; there is a world of opportunities not yet discovered, and ideas not yet tapped, that will lead to a new way of thinking, living, and being.

3

I have highlighted the voices of “underrepresented” groups to such a high degree that they are no longer considered underrepresented. We all get better when we uplift each other and use our choices to cast votes against oppression.

4

I have left a legacy that emboldens others to create a better world than I could have imagined or pursued building. In my own life currently, I can be, and be better, because of those who came before me. I aim to brighten that torch and pass it on to the next generation to create unimaginable possibilities.

These ideals are where I want to go. How will I get there? Stay tuned for the next 30 years and we will find out together.

Most Memorable Career Moments 02

A list that is ever-growing

An unforgettable solo debut

Fainting at The Kennedy Center

I have a bucket list with all of the venues I hope to someday perform in, and The Kennedy Center was the first one I got to cross off. However, my first solo performance proved to be more than just memorable, because I actually fainted on stage…and then proceeded to deliver the solo, even with a fever over 101. I don’t know what I was thinking, but it sure made for a great story. It’s a moment I’ll never forget!

ACDA, March 2020

My final performance before the pandemic

This experience was memorable for two reasons: #1, it crystallized my desire to become a choral director. And #2, when I stepped onto the stage to sing the Brahms Requiem with the Mobile Symphony Orchestra, I had no idea it would be my last live performance for months. The ACDA conference shut down right after our performance due to COVID-19, and this unexpectedly became my final performance of my undergraduate career.

Grammy Award Winner

NCC's first GRAMMY Award

As an associate conductor of the National Children’s Chorus, it was unforgettable to witness our students’ joy after winning a GRAMMY. We won Best Choral Performance in 2021, and the following year they did a “GRAMMY tour” taking the award to each of our chapter cities for the children to see their award. Watching the wonder in their eyes, and explaining to the younger ones what it meant to win a GRAMMY, was unforgettable.

Full story coming soon

Fun Facts 03

Things you might not know about me

Synesthesia

I hear colors in music

Everyone processes music differently. I have chromesthesia (a subset of synesthesia) which means that I hear in color. It deepens my experience of music and informs how I interpret sound as a musician, singer, and conductor. For most of my life I thought this was how everyone processed music, so it was strange to me the day I found out that it was unique!

Composition

Creating something from nothing

Writing music is as important to me as breathing. While I don’t envision myself ever being a prolific composer, the act of creating music from scratch gives me a deep sense of fulfillment (even if the only person who ever hears it is me). I write music on topics of hope, social justice, politics, and my Christian faith.

The Adventurer

My quest to visit all the National Parks

After visiting all of the National Seashores, my next ambition is to visit all the National Parks – an endeavor that may very well take the rest of my lifetime! I’ve planned months’ worth of trip itineraries to visit them all, and look forward to checking them all off, one by one by one.

MY CORE VALUES 04

Hover over each value to learn more

Authenticity

I show up as my most genuine self, expressing my thoughts and feelings without fear of how I’m being received. While I am deeply empathetic and don’t practice authenticity recklessly, this core value necessitates a nuance of candor that allows me to be unapologetically myself in a way that inspires others to be their true self, too.

Hope

In a world that constantly screams what is wrong, it is crucial for me to cling to an expectation that there is still good, and it will win. We all stand a chance. As someone who has battled severe depression, I have spent many hours contemplating hope vs faith vs joy. While all three are extremely important to me, hope is the thing I turn to when I cannot see a way forward.

Personal Growth

It is a constant pursuit to become the best version of me I can be. I find that I have this insatiable hunger to learn more about myself, the people around me, and the world at large. It took me a while to recognize this as a core value because it is so deeply ingrained, and I thought everyone certainly felt the same. It wasn’t until a season of stagnation that the absence of this value revealed its importance to me. I cannot lose this sense of wonder and discovery, otherwise I lose my sense of self.

Adventure

Having a spirit of adventure has guided every major life decision I’ve had to make. My core values are not things I’ve chosen, moreso they were revealed to me as I sought to understand myself. But if I had to choose a favorite part of me, it would be my spirit of adventure. I would choose it over and over again; it is what makes me an innovator, visionary thinker, a risk-taker, a dreamer. It makes me feel me feel alive; and isn’t that why we’re all here?

How do these transfer professionally?

Core values define a person at the very core of their being; therefore, you cannot have a set of personal values and professional values separately. You are one person, and you show up to all things as you. As a professional, adventure manifests as innovative programming and unorthodox rehearsal techniques. Authenticity presents as fiercely protecting a culture of vulnerability and safety to be who you are. Personal growth shows up in my approach to lead through learning, instead of just music-making alone. These values show up in countless ways, and that is the beauty of it; I don’t have to explain them to an ensemble I am leading. They show up in all that I do, because they are who I am.

The Kennedy Center

Interior of Rudolfinum Concert Hall. Equipment of the Orchestra in philharmonia, Prague, 20.11.2019.

Royal Irish Academy of Music

Pensacola Beach

Ann Arbor, MI

Moving here
soon!

OH, THE PLACES YOU'LL GO

Swipe left or right to see my adventures

A Peek Inside My Soul 05

My Compositions Explained

Below is the highlights reel listed on My Portfolio page for my original songs. What a “bite-sized” sample fails to do is explain any reasoning and heart behind the person who wrote it. While I could write a dissertation on the dozens of songs I’ve written, I’ll use the three in this video to pull back the curtain on why I brought these sonic ideas into the world.

If Hope Could Sing: Have you ever wondered how Hope would personify? During a particularly dark season of my life, I begged Hope to show me itself. “Please,” I pleaded. “Help me understand you. What are you? And how can I feel you?” My early adult life was plagued with a constant battle with hopelessness. This song was one attempt at understanding it.

The Caged Bird: Eager to write an “academic” or more classically-accepted work, I wrote this piece for my senior recital in 2020 to give voice to anyone who has felt marginalized. Maya Angelou has been an immense inspiration to me, and using her text healed wounds of oppression I couldn’t yet put into words.

Is It Well?: The week that George Floyd died, I was slated to sing the timeless hymn, It Is Well, in a church service. But after the events unfolded and I was outraged by the injustice, it didn’t sit right with my soul to try to comfort myself with the old hymn. Instead I turned it into a question, “IS it well?” with an underlying answer, no it is not.

Dear Hope: This open letter to Hope started out as creative play for me. I have written countless letters to people, emotions, figures, concepts, God, myself, all sorts of things. This particular conversation was an acknowledgement of its power, and even when I lack answers I think I need, I can surrender to Hope.

Creative Play 06

A dilemma that creatives often face in their professional lives is how to not lose their “spark” for what they do. In other words, not letting a job rob them of their passion for art. I have found that one of the many ways to maintain joy is through creative play. This approach allows me to relinquish the pursuit of excellence and instead, accentuate the imperfect, raw, honest parts of my creativity.

You can often find me improvising on viola and recording into GarageBand. I don’t know much about audio production, but I find so much joy in taking modern pop songs and transcribing them for viola (often as accompaniment to my singing).

I love nature, and I love singing. But there seemed to be a certain pressure when I added “sing in beautiful places” to my bucket list. When I added the element of imperfection, it kept this goal fun. I learned that inspired and silly are not mutually exclusive. Here is proof.

Web design is a thrilling outlet for me to play, using a more technical side of my brain. The creative challenge of fitting my ideas into blocks, templates, and codes is invigorating to me (though, if you are viewing this on a mobile device, just know that you are the source of much of my frustration and loss of sleep).

My Favorite Books 07

and what they taught me

The Third Door by Alex Banayan has informed how I think about success, what inspires me, and redefined what I thought was possible for my career. We all start somewhere, but that does not dictate where we end up going in life. This book helped me identify and dismantle many limiting beliefs I had about my life. All of the most successful people in the world who were interviewed in this book, took unconventional paths to get to where they are. I plan to do the same.

Creativity Inc. is written by the co-founder of Pixar, Ed Catmull. The way he describes the culture he built at Pixar is profoundly inspiring to me. Since reading this book, I’ve been on a mission to take the elements that made this company so successful and apply them to my own creative endeavors. The leadership principles expressed in this book have also given me insight for managing creative people, and how to make them feel safe to make mistakes.

Jon Acuff wrote Soundtracks to help overthinkers, but what I got out of it was a toolbox for reframing my negative thoughts. This book has empowered me to change my self-talk and dismantle many limiting beliefs that used to hold a grip on my mindset and greatly affect my mental health. The transformation has been miraculous. Since reading this book, I am no longer my own worst enemy.

Looking for more?

This page is in constant development. If there's something specific you want to know about me, reach out! There is also my standard word doc resumé, with traditional information like education, experience, and special skills, available upon request.