Music was a passion that could not be unrecognized. Se Young Ko has always admired the enthusiasm and the emotions any musicians brought on stage. He knew that he wanted this for himself as well; somebody that can inspire and affect the emotional state of others.

Looking at the gospel choir sing hymns while the rest of the band accompanied the music was Se Young’s Sundays at church. This was the very first moment he found interest in music. He started to learn the piano and violin at the age of 6 and started to grow his passion for music. Playing the music of Chopin, Beethoven, and many others, Se Young took great interest in classical music. Se Young was the concertmaster of the two high schools he attended all 4 years and have also been part of the all state orchestra of RI, the Rhode Island Philharmonic Youth Orchestra and attended the Asia Pacific Activity Conference orchestra in Beijing.

But it was in his sophomore year of high school when Se Young played jazz for the first time with his friends. He knew there was something very special about Jazz. Jazz became a new motivation for Se Young and ever since was his goal to master this genre. Soon after Se Young applied to Berklee College of Music to study more of this genre to be with other jazz musicians. Se Young was accepted into Berklee and started his studies in the fall of 2014.

Se Young is currently a seventh semester in Berklee. He has performed with multiple small jazz ensembles, the Berklee Contemporary Symphony Orchestra, and a jazz/funk/hiphop band he is part of named “Sangama”. Se Young declared his major as CompositionWriting&Production and Performance in the spring of 2014. Se Young has grown not only as a musician but also as person. He has been meeting and collaborating, part taking in different sessions, and also learning from his peer musicians. Slowly through the process, Se Young has realized that he wants to be a musician of performance and production that inspires others.

Se Young is planned to graduate in the spring of 2020 and to become a composer and performer. It is his dream to share his music and make a statement in history. Ultimately to be a great musician and an inspiring human being.