Practically from the time he was born, it was clear that Van was destined to be a musician. Even as a baby, he had a natural sense of music.

Van was born on June 19, 1989 in Albuquerque, NM. His first artistic role was as the lead part in a pre-school play, Peter Rabbit. He was amazing with crayons and paper.

In 1997, Van moved with his family to Glenwood Springs, Colorado.

Van got his first real instrument, a Yamaha Clavinova electronic piano in third grade. He quickly proved adept at playing songs with feeling. He began studying piano with the well-known instructor Annig Raley in 1998, who continued to work with Van until he graduated high school. As he grew older, he began collecting and learning new instruments.

Van has been writing original songs since fourth grade, and has gotten prolific in the past few years. He has written over 30 original songs in that time frame, and many of those songs are include on this web site.

While it seemed that music would be Van’s main life passion, he got a video camera for his birthday in 2004, and discovered that making films is just as exciting. He writes, shoots, edits, and produces his movies, and even plays in some. Much of this has been made possible by technology: a fast PC and Sony Vegas Video software. This site includes some of Van’s short films.

Van graduated from Glenwood Springs High School with the Class of 2007. He is now attending the University of Colorado in Boulder,  where he is in the Film Department.

Van has formed a new band called Ivory Drive since he moved to Boulder. Most of Van’s musical focus has shifted to the band, and you should visit the band’s web site, IvoryDrive.com to hear new songs and find out about the band.