The novelist Graham Greene writes, "There is always one moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in." For me, that moment came when I was ten years old. My parents decided that our family would begin attending a larger church in downtown Atlanta. I'll never forget when on our first Sunday, the music minister approached the podium to conduct the choir and orchestra for the opening piece. He delivered the downbeat and out came this incredible sonic force from the voices and instruments. I had never heard anything like this from a live performance in my life. I was especially mesmerized as the conductor passionately unraveled luscious sounds from the group of people with the graceful gestures of his baton. I was instantly hooked! I knew right then and there I wanted to spend the rest of my life shaping and interpreting sound - as voices and hearts unite in song.