Gavin John

A 2023 graduate of Strath Haven High School in Wallingford, PA, Gavin John is spending a gap year working as a research technician in a computational biology lab at Washington University Medical Center.

This is his first year playing with the St. Louis Youth Symphony Orchestra. He began horn lessons in elementary school under Thomas Jöstlein, with whom he bonded over horn trivia and a still-ongoing quest to find the worst horn studies ever written! He was a three-time Pennsylvania All-State Orchestra selection (most recently as first horn) and section leader of the Delaware County Youth Orchestra.

When he’s not writing code or playing the horn, Gavin can be found running around Forest Park, reading books on science, and sampling St. Louis’s restaurants. He would like to thank his high school music teacher Nicholas Pignataro, DCYO conductor Andrew Hauze, his parents and sister, and especially Thomas Jöstlein for always inspiring him and making him laugh.