Marco Reyes

For this edition of Senior Spotlight, we sat down with soon-to-be graduating senior, Marco Reyes.

When did you first get involved with WYSO Music Makers? What inspired you to take up music?

I first got involved with Music Makers at age 5. And because I was so young, it was really my mom trying to help me find my interests.

What have you enjoyed most about being in WYSO? 

Definitely the people. The WYSO staff is wonderful, and the environment is lively. Growing up with WYSO, I never quite pushed myself to get more involved. But last year, I joined Creative Ensemble and it completely opened my eyes. If I could go back and do anything differently in those early years, it would be to connect with those musicians a lot sooner.

When did you start writing your own compositions? What inspired you to start composing?

The story about how I got into composing is actually quite interesting. During the early years, my piano instructor, Paul Hastil, introduced me to basic musical concepts and reading music. The first half of my piano career was simply focused on the fundamentals. But at a certain point, my piano teacher saw my potential, so he decided to introduce me to jazz improvisation.

Throughout the years of learning improvisation, I started to understand the different techniques that would allow for me to express myself through music. With this new area of study, I ultimately lost my reading ability – but I gained the ability to play by ear and replicate a specific sound I was looking for.

In my sophomore and junior years of high school, I began to take a much stronger interest in music, which led me to play pieces by ear. This also led me to ask friends and family to suggest songs for me to play, which I would then convert into full pieces using the main melodic structure and adding improvisational phrases. What really solidified things for me was when I once combined four different songs into one big piece of music by using their specific, unique features. This was when I realized that what I was doing was more like composing than just playing piano.

At the time, I knew that I’d been improving as a musician; but as someone who mostly plays by ear and memorization, I had developed a case of imposter syndrome. It wasn’t until I went to the UW Summer Music Clinic – and joined the Music Makers Creative Ensemble – that I began to receive praise by other musicians. Which led me to think that maybe this isn’t luck – maybe my playing had started to become a real skill.

Around junior year of high school, I listened to every genre of music imaginable, which gave me inspiration and the ability to learn from other artists even if their sound was outside of my typical liking. I wrote my first two pieces around that time, with the intention of continuously adding new concepts as I learned them. One was inspired by what I perceived as an adventurous love story, and the other was a pop song that my teacher and I had improvised over but that I altered into a classical waltz.

(I should also say: I regained my ability to read music this year when taking AP Music Theory. But that didn’t help me as much as I thought it would when it came to creating original pieces.)

With all that said, I’d say I officially started taking composing seriously this year when I created nine different pieces, and my inspiration was capturing a picture or a theme that could relate and connect with people.

Okay, Marco, you’re a graduating senior. So, here’s the question I’m sure you’re SUPER tired of hearing: What are you planning to do after graduation?

My college plans will be to attend MATC in the UW-Madison Transfer Program to study Kinesiology and Music Composition or Music Education.

How has your world changed because of music?

Growing up, I struggled to be open emotionally and music has helped me express myself during the highs and lows of life. It’s something that carries creative/artistic value, and music is something that everyone can connect with, which is why I love it. Music brings people together, whether in joy or sadness.

Are you working on any new compositions now? What inspired them?

Currently, I’m working on my biggest project yet: a piece that tells the story of my own life experience and is inspired by Rachmaninoff concertos and the Romantic Era of classical music. I hope to write this as my first ever concerto.

I have a few other, smaller pieces based on different themes. Most of my pieces are inspired by Romantic and other classical piano pieces.

What do you know now that you wish you’d known when you started studying music?

Don’t be afraid when it comes to making a mistake. Music should be fun and expressive.

I would also say that experimenting will only help you learn. Something that my piano teacher would always say while I composed was, “Pretend you’re a scientist. Put on your lab coat and experiment.”

Congratulations, Marco! Best of luck from everyone here at WYSO. And congratulations to all of our WYSO graduating seniors!

Don’t miss Marco Reyes at the Music Makers Spring Concert on Sunday, May 19th at 3:00pm at the WYSO Center for Music.