Peter Bullard is 10 and in fifth grade at Francis Parker School in San Diego. His favorite subjects are social studies and science. Peter has studied piano for 4 years and is beginning his third year studying organ. He has one brother and enjoys mountain biking and designing and building his own creations using Lego.

Katlyn Graves is 8 years old and is in 3rd Grade at St. Paul's Lutheran School in Pacific Beach. She has studied piano for one and a half years and the organ for just under one year. Katlyn enjoys swimming, biking, going to baseball games and playing with her dog, Hazel. Katlyn has dreams of becoming a Marine Biologist or a Paleontologist.

Dr. John Mark Harris holds degrees in performance from the University of California at San Diego (D.M.A., Contemporary Music Performance), the New England Conservatory (M.M., piano), and the University of South Florida (B.M.) He has resided in San Diego since 1997, and is the organist at Foothills United Methodist Church in La Mesa. Past positions include Holy Trinity Parish in Ocean Beach, and Mission Hills United Church of Christ. He teaches music at San Diego City College and Cuyamaca College, and has a studio of private students of all ages from around the area.

Jill Cassaboom is a 17-year-old senior at High Tech High International in San Diego. She has taken piano for 12 years and pipe organ for 3 years. She attended the 2006 and 2009 POEs in San Diego. When Jill isn't practicing, she loves to read and is an active member of her church youth group and choir. She hopes to study pipe organ at UCLA in the fall of 2010.

Neil Rens is 15 and is a sophomore at Saint Augustine High School. He has studied piano for 9 years and has just started playing the organ. He is unsure of what he wants to major in but is interested in sciences and computers. Neil has two sisters and lives in San Diego. He loves tennis, reading, golfing, and swimming.

Rebecca Wade is 14 and is a freshman at Serra High School. She has studied piano for 8 years, and organ for 3 years. Rebecca has one brother and three sisters and lives in San Diego. She loves reading, writing, and softball. Rebecca is on the praise team at church, and was a substitute organist/pianist for the church when her mom (the organist), broke her arm.

Sam Buse is in the 8th grade at St. Martin of Tours Academy in La Mesa. He plans to attend high school at Saint Augustine High School in San Diego. In addition to piano and organ Sam enjoys hiking, swimming, photography and playing the trumpet.

Nicholas Halbert is a freshman at La Jolla High School. He is a Head Chorister in the St. Paul's Cathedral Boy's Choir and studies organ under its director, Martin Green. He has studied organ for two years and the piano for five years.

Amy Aldrich is 15 and is a sophomore at Coronado High School. She plays clarinet in the Coronado School of the Arts, a pre-professional art conservatory for high school students. She has spent her last two years playing bass clarinet in the San Diego Youth Symphony. She has played clarinet for 6 years and piano for 4. She hopes learning pipe organ broadens her music studies. She would like to study music history in college. When she isn't studying music, Amy enjoys just relaxing with her dogs Angel and Duke at her home in San Diego.

Jessica Ryan turned 15 last month and will be a sophomore at Mission Bay High School in Pacific Beach. She has studied piano for ten years and organ for five years with Leslie Wolf Robb. She loves to play soccer, walk her big dog, Johnny Thunder, and play card games. Jessica has one brother and one sister, whose wedding she played at in May. Jessica likes taking bike rides and going for a treat afterwards. Earlier this year she went on a Mexico Mission Trip in Tijuana with her dad and members of her church and helped build a house.

Jeanine Walter will be a senior at University City High School this fall. She has been studying music with Leslie Wolf Robb since elementary school. Besides playing piano and organ, she loves to sing, and is in the San Diego Children's Choir. She is in the worship band at her youth group, plays varsity volleyball for school, loves going to the beach, and reads in every spare moment of her time.

Nathaniel Larsen, 14, is a freshman at Serra High School. He's been studying piano under Connie Almond since he was 5. Although he has had organ players in his family tree, our POE was his first experience on the organ. Nathan also plays electric guitar and cello. This year he passed the 6th level of the Certificate of Merit program. He likes karate, acting, surfing and hanging out with his friends. He loves his two cats, Savanna and Forrest, and his new foster dog, Clea, a cute cocker spaniel.

Johanna Burgess is 18 years old and just graduated from Chula Vista High School, where she was involved in the music program. She will attend Southwestern College for a year and then transfer to Reed College to major in classics. She accompanies the praise band at Chula Vista Presbyterian Church. She also sings in choir and plays violin and handbells. Johanna enjoys sewing, making prayer quilts, and spending time with her two cats.

Marlen Bernd is 16 and will be attending Ramona High School this fall as a junior. He has studied piano for 11 years, and organ for 2 years. In college he plans to study chemistry with plans to become a pharmacist, and hopes to attend the University of California at San Diego. Marlen has one sister and lives in Ramona, Ca. He enjoys biking, swimming, water polo, and playing in his band, Negative Zero.

Matthew Edwards is 14 years old, and is a freshman at Southwest High School in El Centro, CA. He began piano lessons at the age of 7 and, in January 2008, he began taking organ lessons under Dr. Hope Davis. He also plays the string bass in the school orchestra, and has been in school chorus, both as singer and accompanist. Matthew maintains a 4.0 grade average in school. At home, his favorite activities have included building models, playing board games with his family, and playing on the computer. Matthew lives with his parents, his brother, and 3 cats.

Renee Gehlbach is 17 years old and is a senior at Horizon High School. She has studied piano for 5 years, and organ for 3 years. She aspires to be a music major in college.

Perren Yang, 17, is a senior at Canyon Crest Academy in San Diego. He has studied piano for 8 years with Irina Tchetchko. He hopes to attend college as a science major, with a simultaneous major or minor in music. Aside from piano playing, Perren enjoys folding modular origami, listening to exciting music, doing math, practicing karate, and playing the clarinet in the school band.

French-born guitarist, pianist, organist, and composer, Thomas Mellan, 14, picked up his first guitar at age 6, and eight years later is working at mastering the pipe organ. Thomas' first compositions date from 2007 and were written for the guitar. In September 2008, he conducted the Encinitas Guitar Orchestra in a performance of his "Fugue for 4 Guitars in E major". In addition to the guitar, Thomas has written music in styles ranging from medieval to contemporary for both symphonic and chamber ensembles. Thomas' improvisations on blues and jazz (guitar), Eastern scales (guitar, organ), and medieval modes (piano, organ) have inspired him on his composition journey. In February 2009, Thomas' String Quartet No. 2 T14 was awarded the prize of "Emerging Composer" in New York Art Ensemble's young composer competition. Thomas has recently entered his "Toccata and Interruptions T19" in the National Association of Composers, USA - San Francisco Bay Area's composer competition. Thomas' strongest contemporary influences are Olivier Messiaen, Charles Tournemire, and his teachers Dana Reason Myers, Katalin Lukacs and Richard Snow. His goal is to study at the Conservatoire Superieur National de Musique of Paris, and to be be part of the great French tradition by being organist of the grand orgue at Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. In his free time, Thomas enjoys bird-watching, practicing tai chi sword, and playing soccer.