New Ground for Guitar Hero

It has been the privilege of a lifetime to be a part of Berklee's International Study Abroad Program this semester in Athens, Greece. Attending the Phillippos Nakas Conservatory with Dan Atwood, Neil Bernardo, Doneil Curwen, Karen Fraggos, Max Fronek, Sofia Gonzalez, Crystal Joyce, Ricky Joyce, Glenn Korzin, Matt Lee, Rich Lewis, Steve Ornest, Anne Paik, Dominick Petrellese, Eric Plust, and Sheldon Thwaites has been an exciting adventure and has forged permanent friendships. Not only have we had the chance to study in a foreign country, we have broadened the scope of our musical world, knowledge, and understanding by learning with people from a new culture. We have all grown from this experience. We are such a diverse group of musicians and this has given us interesting new experiences and challenges. These new relationships have helped to spur our creativity.

On that note, I have taken the opportunity to study flamenco guitar. With a solid foundation playing styles such as rock and jazz, I knew that Greece would provide a prime climate to explore another aspect of the instrument. As a film scoring major, I can sense that some of this new knowledge will be incorporated into my writing.

As a group, we have traveled to parts of Greece including some of the islands and Santorini. We have also taken the opportunity to visit other places in Europe. Being in the European Union makes it easier for us to get around. All of these experiences will help us develop new skills and gain new perspectives on different cultures. We have spent a lot of time together dissecting what we have seen and how it relates to us personally and to what we are doing. It has been fascinating.

I will never forget these couple of months in Athens and I intend to enjoy every second. The opportunity to meet people from all over the world, who share my interests and goals, has been phenomenal.