After over a decade long of music and art, Antonio Lopes ’17 is still looking for fun and interesting ways to expand his knowledge of the arts. Lopes has been playing music since the age of 5 and has learned to play the piano, saxophone, and drums. He also has been drawing since he could remember.

“I started playing piano around 6 years old, I had a very good teacher whom I loved, but then one day she moved away and I was stuck with this german drill sergeant type guy as my teacher and I lost interest for awhile,” Antonio said. “I picked it up again during my junior year.”

Though piano was Antonio’s first instrument and saxophone his third, his true calling came to him in the form of drumming.

“When I was around eight I would bang on the tables quite frequently one day my old man was like, hey quit and in order to get me to stop drumming on the table he bought me a drum set of my very own,” Antonio said.

Antonio finds music to be his outlet. He use to have trouble expressing himself and couldn’t communicate very well. After playing music for so long he feels that he can show people his feelings and ideas through his music and art.

“I can’t talk well but I can express myself through music and art.” Antonio said.

Antonio’s other passion in life is his drawing. Drawing is his life, he is drawing constantly whether he should be or not. Antonio’s art style is constantly changing and he is currently trying out drawing with charcoal. Antonio hopes to go to art school so he can further his knowledge of different techniques and styles of not only drawing but with music as well.

“it’s a passion of my life,” Antonio said.