My name is Finn Reese and I am fifteen years old and will be in tenth grade in the fall. I live in the Bay Area in California.

I have been drumming practically my entire life and have been taking drum lesson since preschool. I also play the piano and the vibraphone and steel drums. I participate in both the jazz ensemble and the steel drum band at my school. This year one of my original pieces was performed by the steel drum band. I also play in a rock band with two friends (I am the drummer and lead singer).

I have sung with Ragazzi Boys' Chorus since second grade. Two summers ago we traveled to Austria and Italy and we sang with the Vienna Boys’ Choir. This summer we will be touring Australia where we will sing at the Sydney Opera House. This year I attended the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College Program for Composition. I had classes all day Saturday and I took musicianship (I am in level five out of six levels of theory), a composition seminar, vibraphone lessons, and a private composition class with my private composition teacher, Michael Kaulkin.

In the past I studied composition and theory for three years with Justin Weiss (https://www.justinweissmusic.com/about). During the summer of 2020 I took an online film scoring course through Berklee College of Music which I really enjoyed. I took it for college credit and I received an A. I also attended the in-person Berklee College of Music Film, TV, and Game Scoring Program in Los Angeles in the summer of 2023.

I don’t have one distinct style that I always compose in. I’ve composed everything from choral pieces to pieces for steel drums and percussion, orchestral pieces, and jazz. I compose the best when I’m feeling inspired, when I get an idea while playing the piano, or if a good idea just pops into my head. In the future I hope to go to college for music.