About Ben Blystone

Mr. Blystone comes from a musical family.  In 6th grade he learned his first instrument, the trombone, when he joined band and was very successful at it through public school. However, his musical life truly changed when he got his first computer sound card (very new back then!) in middle school and learned how to write music on the computer with MIDI synthesizers and sequencers. He pursued a composition degree at UTEP and learned there he also had a talent for singing.

After graduation Mr. Blystone performed in many professional ensembles, both for voice and trombone, while teaching music in the public schools. He continued to study voice privately and got a graduate assistantship to West Texas A&M University School of Music where he worked on his masters degree. After graduating he moved to Des Moines, Iowa to teach with a mentor.

While in Iowa he continued to teach in the public schools but also discovered Japanese Taiko (Really big Japanese Drums). Mr. Blystone learned taiko and shinobue (Japanese Bamboo Flute) and became the artistic director of Soten Taiko, a community Taiko group. Mr. Blystone currently lives in Colorado Springs with his wife Mary Jane, and two dogs Brandon and Moo.