Though 17-year old flutist Israel Perez only recently started taking private lessons, he has already won the Salem Youth Symphony Concerto Competition and was one of 5 finalists nationwide in the US Marine Corps Concerto Competition. Israel is incredibly self-driven; as one of 9 siblings he the first in his family to go to college. In the fall he will attend Harvard, and though he hopes to become a dentist Israel will continue to play the flute.