Westwood Resident Peter de Reyna Practices His Art

Westwood resident and recent Berklee College of Music graduate Peter de Reyna has been a musician for most of his life. “I started playing music when I was in elementary and middle school, and hated it. Halfway through middle school, I discovered the bass. This was how I became who I am,” he says.

“I was well aware of Berklee, and I knew it was a great music school. I knew I wanted to go there,” he continues. By the time de Reyna was sixteen years old, he was playing gigs with bands in need of a bassist every weekend. He credits these gigs with introducing him to the working musician lifestyle.

Before he began classes at Berklee, he joined metal band Seven Spires. With music reminiscent of symphonic metal bands such as Lacuna Coil and Nightwish, Seven Spires was already in talks with record labels. At school, de Reyna studied Professional music with concentrations in Upright Bass Performance and Music Business.

“I was inspired by the diverse musicians I met at Berklee to work even harder as a musician,” he says. His professors included Bruce Gertz and the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Susan Hagen. De Reyna was among the performers chosen to perform at Berklee Commencement concert in 2019.

“[The concert] was the one experience at Berklee I found disorientating: there were the best bass players, best drummers, best dance team all sitting in the rehearsal room. It was an amazing capstone to my experience, with a big production level. Rehearsals were on very short notice--I had to veto life for the concert. It was great to meet Justin Timberlake and Missy Elliott. The concert was a life changing experience.”

At present, de Reyna is unexpectedly at home in Westwood, as both Seven Spires’ tour and a tour he was scheduled to go on with a 1980’s pop band have been cancelled due to COVID-19. He is using this time to practice between 10 and 12 hours a day, do remote sessions (such as making recordings for an album based out of Germany), and do online teaching.

De Reyna looks forward to returning to touring. He is a performer who wears many hats, from his work with Seven Spires to work with a jazz group, to multiple freelance bass gigs. He also directs the Westwood Ringers at the First Baptist Church and the New England Ringers.

More information about Peter de Reyna can be found on his website. Seven Spires’ site has much more information about the band. Their most recent album, “Emerald Seas,” was released in February 2020.