By Isaac Cooper

Scholar by day and maestro by nature.  Senior Evan Peting is active in various fronts of the arts at Reynolds and a serious academic.  Peting plays the violin and harp for the RJR Orchestra, french horn for the RJR concert band and marching band.  In the marching band, he serves a second role by playing pit, supporting the band with his musical versatility.

   “I love it [marching band] a lot.  I find it to be a great bonding experience with other musicians.  It’s something I have never experienced before, and I would like to continue it if I could,” Peting said.

   Peting does more than play music; he composes original works of music as well.  Peting’s approach to composition focuses on the sonic direction of the piece, rather than the traditional flow of music.  By taking this approach, he explores an unorthodox and unexplored territory of composition, each time honing his skill to produce more precise, authentic music.

   “I define them as interesting because I don’t try to follow typical chord progressions,” Peting said.  “I just try to go for the sounds… I am very inspired by the late romantic/early modern composers such as [Claude] Debussy and [Igor] Stravinsky.”

   In addition to his activities in music, Peting enjoys studying European history.  His acumen on the subject is noticeable by all in his class, including Career Center AP European History teacher Leigh Munley.

   “He always looks like he knows exactly what I am going to say next,” Munley said.  “He’s a great student… he knows his history… [also] I’m always wondering which of his instruments I am going to trip over as I walk by his desk because there are always 15 [instruments] scattered about him.”

   But Peting is more than his studies and his music– he is a man with opinions.  If given the choice between receiving 100 duck sized horses and 1 horse sized ducks, he would pick the former.  His favorite pop tart flavor is blueberry and please do not forget, Peting will not choose between Coke or Pepsi.

   “[I would choose 100] duck sized horses because they make up a greater volume and I could just swarm somebody with a bunch of horses that are the size of ducks,” Peting said.  “Both coke and pepsi taste the same to me and I don’t like either of them… [my favorite pop tart flavors are] either blueberry or strawberry because those are the only two flavors I have tried.”

   Peting can be seen having fun with the marching band, shredding the violin in the orchestra, crafting a melody on the harp, creating new and inventive music, or carrying multiple instruments with him, in addition to disliking Coke and Pepsi.