Since the first time my Project Lead the Way teacher, Mr. Van Loo, taught me how to use a 3D printer, in fifth grade, I have been using them to create things from my imagination and use them to prototype for my engineering projects. During the pandemic, I was gifted a 3D printer and was extremely anxious while waiting for my printer to arrive to my home. At one point, when I found out that my printer was back-ordered, it angered me. I was so frustrated that it would take several weeks for me to get my order. Eventually, I decided that, while I waited, I would bring the table up from the basement and clean the area where I planned to put my printer.  Finally! My printer arrived. I was thrilled and jittery as the Fed-ex driver appeared outside of my house with a huge black box. After waiting an hour, I brought the printer into the house, opened the box, and sanitized all of the pieces to my new 3D printer. My mind was racing thinking of all of the different creations that could come of this small 8x8x8” cube. The possibilities were endless.  It took about two hours of looking at the manual and pictures of the printer in order for me to put it together. Right away, after I finished constructing the intricate, complex machine, I turned it on. It beeped. Then, the fan turned on along with the screen. I shrieked with excitement as it had been a long-term goal to buy a printer. It was actually in my home! This was definitely a goal worth reaching.  While the printer started its calibration process, I thought, “What should be the first thing I print?” Before ordering the printer, I watched many videos on 3D printers and noticed the consistency of these little boats being printed. “Why are 3D printer enthusiasts always printing these boats?” I did a little research and found that the boats were called “Benchy” which are used to test a 3D printer's ability to print overhangs, slanted holes, first layer details, and numerous other things. So, I quickly went online and found a 3D model of a Benchy and printed it. I was extremely pleased with the results. This is the best purchase I have ever made! I used my ingenuity to find problems around my house and fix them. Immediately, I found a problem in the bathroom: there wasn't a soap dish! I got on the job as soon as possible, making multiple iterations of my version of a soap dish. I finally settled on my design and decided to ship it to my grandparents as a gift for Christmas. It felt incredible to show my take on a soap dish with them. I continue to work on projects from time to time. I've found that I enjoy showing the people I love that the items of their imagination can be created, in real life, using art that is 3D printing.

I began my musical journey in first grade on the violin. I then moved from the violin to the piano to the guitar. The guitar proved too difficult for me at the age of 9, so I took a break from instruments, until fifth grade, when I started playing the trumpet. I played the trumpet in the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade bands. With a group of three, I went to Solo and Ensemble in eighth grade and received a second-place medal in Livonia. In the 6th grade, I received the Kiwanis Scholarship to fund summer music camps. I chose to attend the Ann Arbor music store's jazz camp. When I went to ninth grade, I joined Community High School’s jazz program as a Jazz I student. During my freshman and sophomore years, I played the trumpet. Eventually, I received a drum kit as a gift for Christmas and took a serious liking to and interest in it. So, I started taking lessons with Professor Sean Dobbins. Now I play the upright bass for a Community High band combo and the Huron High School Rhythm Rats Jazz Orchestra. With Huron’s orchestra this year, I won the Best Musicianship award, best rhythm section, and best overall band at the Michigan State University Jazz Spectacular. I have decided to attend Michigan State University and study Jazz bass with Professor Rodney Whitaker. My favorite bassists to listen to and study are Sam Jones and Paul Chambers. They influence my playing a lot. I transcribe a lot of their bass lines it shows in my bass lines. Some of my favorite songs are Pensitiva, Hi-Fly, Crisis, Sweet ’N’ Sour (Take 4), and Ugetsu, just to name a few. Jazz music inspires me and makes me passionate to do and learn more. Living through the last four years of jazz has been the most fun and the most challenging thing I have done. It inspired me to learn more about instruments and what their roles are in the band. In the future, I plan to share my skills with my college peers, in and outside of college, while learning from them, knowing that we share different educational and familial backgrounds and can benefit from one another’s experiences. I plan to attend a New York City music school to learn, play at jam sessions, and become a session musician. My long-term goal in life is to be an educator as a professor and become private lessons teacher for younger students.

I began my musical journey in first grade on the violin. I then moved from the violin to the piano to the guitar. The guitar proved too difficult for me at the age of 9, so I took a break from instruments, until fifth grade, when I started playing the trumpet. I played the trumpet in the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade bands. With a group of three, I went to Solo and Ensemble in eighth grade and received a second-place medal in Livonia. In the 6th grade, I received the Kiwanis Scholarship to fund summer music camps. I chose to attend the Ann Arbor music store's jazz camp. When I went to ninth grade, I joined Community High School’s jazz program as a Jazz I student. During my freshman and sophomore years, I played the trumpet. Eventually, I received a drum kit as a gift for Christmas and took a serious liking to and interest in it. So, I started taking lessons with Professor Sean Dobbins. Now I play the upright bass for a Community High band combo and the Huron High School Rhythm Rats Jazz Orchestra. With Huron’s orchestra this year, I won the Best Musicianship award, best rhythm section, and best overall band at the Michigan State University Jazz Spectacular. I have decided to attend Michigan State University and study Jazz bass with Professor Rodney Whitaker. My favorite bassists to listen to and study are Sam Jones and Paul Chambers. They influence my playing a lot. I transcribe a lot of their bass lines it shows in my bass lines. Some of my favorite songs are Pensitiva, Hi-Fly, Crisis, Sweet ’N’ Sour (Take 4), and Ugetsu, just to name a few. Jazz music inspires me and makes me passionate to do and learn more. Living through the last four years of jazz has been the most fun and the most challenging thing I have done. It inspired me to learn more about instruments and what their roles are in the band. In the future, I plan to share my skills with my college peers, in and outside of college, while learning from them, knowing that we share different educational and familial backgrounds and can benefit from one another’s experiences. I plan to attend a New York City music school to learn, play at jam sessions, and become a session musician. My long-term goal in life is to be an educator as a professor and become private lessons teacher for younger students.

My musical journey began during summer visits to Pennsylvania to see my grandparents when I was a toddler. I remember seeing my grandfather’s bass and having a deep curiosity about how it sounded and what it felt like to play it. Then finally, after Sixteen years, my grandfather taught me Bill Wither’s “Lovely Day”. Between the summer visits and the day I had my first bass lesson, I learned music through private instruction and during music classes in Ann Arbor Public Schools, making a transition from piano and violin to trumpet to drums and bass. My largest motivation is to continue the legacy established by my grandfather, formally a vocalist and instrumentalist during the 60s and 70s in New York. I am internally driven to become the best musician I can be and to develop a stronger sense of myself through my instrument. During my four years in high school, I had many roles: trumpeter, drummer, bassist, and band leader. This program has small combos which allows me to learn my role in the rhythm section. As a member of this rigorous program that teaches students about technique, style, history, theory, and improvisation, I have taken Jazz I to Jazz IV level courses where I have learned to play the drums and bass. I have learned by performing at The Ark and the Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre in Ann Arbor. My leadership and ability to learn quickly led to an invitation from Huron High School’s jazz band director to play bass and help teach less experienced students. Now, as a more seasoned drummer and bassist, I shared techniques with younger drummers to help them maintain the tempo and a consistently professional sound. These are lessons I received from my drum teacher, Professor Sean Dobbins, and from my Community Jazz teacher, Jack Wagner. Additionally, as a bassist, I have learned how to work collaboratively with others, forming a tight bond with my quartet and making new, lifelong friends. I plan to become a touring bassist, a professor, and a private lesson teacher. Reciprocating the knowledge that has been kindly bestowed on me by teaching private lessons to beginner bassists is important to me. I will start by obtaining my bachelor's and master's degrees in music. Along the way, I plan to gig at clubs around the country and aspire to perform at Dizzy’s Club while learning from jazz masters. My ultimate desire is to be a music educator and mentor, sharing my musical journey of exploring different instruments and not giving up when an instrument just does not fit me well. I want to show younger generations that instruments are an extension of ourselves. I also find it important that young musicians build a strong sense of confidence and a feeling of belonging. I want to be able to teach young musicians the importance of self-care, and burnout and to foster a community in which people learn and grow from each other.

I began my musical journey in first grade on the violin. I then moved from the violin to the piano to the guitar. The guitar proved too difficult for me at the age of 9, so I took a break from instruments, until fifth grade, when I started playing the trumpet. I played the trumpet in the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade bands. With a group of three, I went to Solo and Ensemble in eighth grade and received a second-place medal in Livonia. In the 6th grade, I received the Kiwanis Scholarship to fund summer music camps. I chose to attend the Ann Arbor music store's jazz camp. When I went to ninth grade, I joined Community High School’s jazz program as a Jazz I student. During my freshman and sophomore years, I played the trumpet. Eventually, I received a drum kit as a gift for Christmas and took a serious liking to and interest in it. So, I started taking lessons with Professor Sean Dobbins. Now I play the upright bass for a Community High band combo and the Huron High School Rhythm Rats Jazz Orchestra. With Huron’s orchestra this year, I won the Best Musicianship award, best rhythm section, and best overall band at the Michigan State University Jazz Spectacular. I have decided to attend Michigan State University and study Jazz bass with Professor Rodney Whitaker. My favorite bassists to listen to and study are Sam Jones and Paul Chambers. They influence my playing a lot. I transcribe a lot of their bass lines it shows in my bass lines. Some of my favorite songs are Pensitiva, Hi-Fly, Crisis, Sweet ’N’ Sour (Take 4), and Ugetsu, just to name a few. Jazz music inspires me and makes me passionate to do and learn more. Living through the last four years of jazz has been the most fun and the most challenging thing I have done. It inspired me to learn more about instruments and what their roles are in the band. In the future, I plan to share my skills with my college peers, in and outside of college, while learning from them, knowing that we share different educational and familial backgrounds and can benefit from one another’s experiences. I plan to attend a New York City music school to learn, play at jam sessions, and become a session musician. My long-term goal in life is to be an educator as a professor and become private lessons teacher for younger students.