As a comatose person relies on life support, such a role does faith have in my life. God, in His astounding love, created me. By His grace I am in Christ, conscripted into the service of His kingdom. I do not deserve the graces He's given me, but I hope to honor and serve Him in everything, especially right now in education. I grew up in a loving Christian household, where they taught me the truth of Christ, and I was baptized at the age of 12. But not long afterward, I came across major faith struggles, which came to a head when I was 19, as a student at WWU. At that time, there was a fork on the road, and faith led me on the straight and narrow path. By faith, I mean God who gave me faith. The right decision at that time was to drop out. Life has had its fair share of difficulties since then, but God has led me through each trial. One of the issues the Lord is leading me through is going back to school after a long break. I have been working various jobs for the past 5-6 years, but I keep coming back to music. I believe that God has made me to make music. I want to compose music and perhaps to be the minister of music at church. He might even lead me to seminary. But all I know, as a fallible human being, is what's right in front of me. All I can do is take the next step in faith and trust that the Most High, who knows all things and to Whom belongs all power, will be able to rectify any mistake I make. If I make a catastrophic error, He will use it for a great purpose without my knowledge. I've seen this too many times in my life and the lives others I know to believe otherwise. Had I not received faith, I truly do not know where I would be today - I shudder at the thought. But thanks be to God, Who guides me through this somewhat dark and murky life to whatever heights or depths He would have me reach for Him, and He is there. Not only does He guide me, but He protects me. If I err in going back to school, He will use it and protect me from anything that He would not have me go through, all for His glory and my good.

Euphonium: Greek for "pleasant sounding thing." If you want to hear a pleasing sound, look no further than this unique musical instrument, which has been in my life for 13 years. It is just like a BBb tuba, except one octave higher. I discovered it in middle school, and, while I was primarily a trombone player then and still play trombone to this day, there's a spark in the euphonium that warms my soul every time I play it. I've been a musician for most of my life now, having started in September of 2011. I play the trombone, euphonium, tuba, and flute; in addition to that, I am taking piano lessons - Music is how I breathe. In 2014, I made it to the WMEA All-State middle school concert band for the trombone. In 2018, I made it to the WMEA All-State wind ensemble for the euphonium. That same year, I competed in the euphonium solo category for solo and ensemble, and when I competed at the state level, I had two 'superiors' and one 'excellent.' Especially that year, I saw the value of devoting oneself to practice. As an artist, it is a great joy not only to play music, but also to write it. I started composing in high school; there will be the occasional hiatus, but as surely as I breathe music, I return to music composition. I can't escape music, so as a student at SVC, my goal is to fully embrace it. After completing my degree, there are multiple possible paths ahead: 1.) Music composition. Though it is quite arduous work sometimes, the result is a piece of art that can make someone's day or help them through difficult times. If my music will help one person, it would be worth it to pursue this path. 2.) Music minister. I believe that what one believes is most important in their life. Without my faith, music would be nothing more than pleasant sounds. But I believe that music is inherently spiritual. Music ministry requires that my own importance be minimized. It requires the humility to be forgotten for the sake of the cause. 3.) A hybrid of both. Most people who do either of these jobs do not expect to be well paid, meaning that they will have other jobs in in order to make ends meet. One or the other is not enough to feed a family in most cases, but both together is a reasonable and tangible goal. I will certainly learn much from my music degree; the skills I learn at school will also be helpful insofar as I can use them to volunteer in the local music community. However things turn out for me, a music degree will be most helpful for me in my future endeavors.

Many of the fine arts are inherently collaborative, but especially music. Even a solo piano performer did not create the pamphlet or do all the marketing or all of anything. In most cases, he did not write the music! If there is any soloist who tries to lift all the weights and do every aspect of his performance, he will not go far in his career. Not only will he be seen as full of himself, but he is full of himself. Collaboration is paramount in the musical world. It means being a high quality musician who acts with integrity. If one takes the quality out, the ensemble will suffer and the music will not reach the heights it's intended for. If one takes out the integrity, scandal is around the corner. Musicians will not want to associate with the one who lacks integrity. To be a musician is to be quality-driven and collaborative; do not ever separate the two. Among my favorite memories in high school was playing in my brass quintet as the trombonist. We were teenagers who liked social interaction, but we were serious about the music too. We were good friends through the quintet, and I have fond memories of playing "Grand Valley Fanfare" by Eric Ewazen. We very nearly made it to state with that piece! As collaborators, we had our fair share of gigs that went poorly and gigs that went well, but we stayed together like peas in a pod. I miss these memories, and, even more, I miss these friends to this day. I will never forget high school brass quintet. Collaboration has continued to be an essential element of my musical life since high school. I volunteer as a coach for the Fidalgo Youth Symphony, and teaching young students how to be good musicians teaches one about collaboration! Some students are more headstrong, and others are distracting. There is no end to the number of personalities you will encounter, and you must learn how to work with any kind of personality to bring out the musician in them. Not only that, but the musician has to be willing to accept and apply the instructions they received. Music with students is especially collaborative. Most recently, I have joined a different brass quintet, "Brass Menagerie." We are still getting used to each other, but we had the opportunity to play a Memorial Day tribute. The audience is another collaborator in the music world, and the audience for this performance collaborated with great applause!

Music is the soul of sound. Take away the soul from sound, and music no longer exists. Not only have people expressed themselves through music, but they have created worlds of beauty and wonder. It is no surprise, then, to know and expect that music has had a profound impact on the lives of countless people, myself included. I do not know where I would be had I not joined the 6th grade band on a whim. I thought it would be fun; fun does not nearly describe how meaningful music has been in my life from that point onward. Starting on the trombone, I continued by learning the euphonium. In high school, I kept up with the "collection" and started playing flute and tuba. The more the merrier when it comes to learning musical instruments! And since high school, I have been a composer, primarily for what is commonly described as "classical music." At this point, I can't see myself not including music composition as a major part of my life. When I was going through tough times, music was a great help (and still is). I especially think of the music of Antonin Dvorak. I know his 8th symphony by heart, and all of his works show care and depth. He was also a man of integrity, which cannot be said of many great composers. I commend to you his 7-9 symphonies, his Serenade for Winds, and his Serenade for Strings, among others. His music was just enough weight to my ballast to keep me from capsizing. Music has a special power when married to poetry, which is why I enjoy sacred music. There is a living composer, named Marco Frisini; His "Anima Christi" speaks with special potency to me. The words are from a centuries' old hymn. I've only recently discovered this composer, and I am grateful that he is in my life now. As a composer, I admire other composers, as can be observed above. Not only can you peer into the mind of an artist by observing his art, but his soul. I know something of the souls of Dvorak and Frisini because of their music. At school, I will learn how to show my soul to others by means of music. I know no other way; may it truly be a blessing to others. There can only be one word to describe music: ineffable. Attached is "O Domine Jesu Christe" by Tomas Luis de Victoria, arranged by me. Also Attached is "Sanctus," an old hymn that I have written music for.

I personally believe that music is a force for good. It is a gift to the world and healthy for the soul. As a composer, I intend to contribute 3 things to the musical world: 1.) Beauty. If the world had no mountains or seas or meadows, but only gray everywhere, that would be depressing. If we only heard motorcycles and car engines, but no music or poetry, life would be drab. Beauty provides color and depth in the lives of many; I aim for my music to be part of this vibrancy. 2.) Stability. When I was going through difficult times in my life, the music of Dvorak inspired me. It was a respite. To this day, his 8th symphony is among my favorite, not to mention his Symphony "From the New World," his other symphonies, or Slavonic Dances, among others. If my music can help one person through hard times, it will have been worth writing. 3.) Culture. I am a lover of culture, and there are few bonds between people such as music. When people speak of their favorite music, or play it in an ensemble, the experience glues them together. This glue bonds people across different times.

When I picked the trombone in the 6th grade, I had no idea that I would still be playing 15 years later. I don't know what I was thinking, but it has been one of the greatest blessings in my life. Time and time again, I keep coming back to music. That is no accident, and I fully intend to bless others with my trombone and euphonium for the rest of my life insofar as it is in my control. There are a few obstacles in way of my schooling. The biggest, and most significant, is funding. Even though I'm enrolled in Skagit Valley College, much cheaper a school than most universities, the cost is more than I can afford based on my income. Additionally, my goal is to avoid all debt if possible. I do not want to set myself up for financial difficulties later on in life merely because I filed a FAFSA and incurred debt. My best option, I believe, is to be frugal, and to ask for scholarships and grants. In my future as a professional musician, I see two distinct paths that possibly could cross over. The first path is as a minister of music in the church. I believe that God is the author of music and He is honored by music. As it is written in the book of Psalms: "Praise Him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp!" And I would personally add: "Praise him with trombones and euphoniums and all manner of brass instruments!" I would be blessed with the privilege of leading the musical worship of a church. The other path that I foresee potentially is as a composer. I have had a strong propensity toward musical composition since about 2016. I listened to the music of Brian Balmages, a concert band composer, and was inspired to write music myself. My compositions have been sporadic over the years, but I keep returning to this mysterious art. There must be a reason why. There's nothing that I see that stops me from doing both music ministry and music composition, and, in fact, I have been in both worlds. I play euphonium at my church and, occasionally, I write something that ends up getting played! If I keep working at my musical skills and networking, I believe that I will be a minister of music, or a composer, or both. Thank you for considering!