Houston native Traey Hatch, who served as assistant conductor on the Here I am sessions, grew up around music because his father Bernie was a working musician; he himself played oboe in his high school band. When it came time for college, however, Traey earned a psychology degree at the University of Texas in Austin, pursuing music outside of school as a hobby. “I got into it through electronic music and DJ’ing,” says Hatch, “and was spending so much time on music that I decided to study more formally.”
Traey picked up some piano before enrolling at the Berklee College of Music, where he studied film scoring and composition. Now 29, he works as a producer, engineer, and video editor at Tierra Studios, and is an aspiring film composer.

The experience of working with his father on Here I am – from concept through recording – was a rewarding one. “I did part and score preparation,” says Traey, “and the session itself gave me a great feeling of accomplishment. It was nice to see my dad’s music performed on that scale.”