Introducing Alec

I’m delighted to introduce a new member of our team to blog readers. Prospective students, current applicants, and visitors to Fletcher will likely find Alec the first person they meet or talk to at Fletcher. Welcome, Alec!

Hello! I’m Alec Toku Whiting, the new Staff Assistant for The Fletcher School’s office of Admissions and Financial Aid. I grew up in Yokohama, Japan and moved to Boston in 2015 to pursue studies in composition and improvisation at New England Conservatory of Music. I am a koto player, multi-instrumentalist, and composer, specializing in experimental music. During my studies at NEC I worked at the admissions department for a number of years and am excited to bring my skills to Fletcher. It has been a while since I have been on a college campus and I am enjoying familiarizing myself with Fletcher and the larger Tufts community.

I began studying the koto at the age of 8, playing primarily modern music for the instrument at ensembles in school. When I got a little older I joined a couple rock bands in a variety of roles and started writing my own music. Eventually my budding compositional skills and my love of avant-garde koto music began to collide in weird and wonderful ways. At conservatory I focused on writing chamber music and became interested in computer assisted composition. I now play improvised music on the koto and on electronic instruments, and am pursuing studies in computer programming for both musical and general purposes.

With family and friends all over the world it is great to be part of such a global community. I’m looking forward to meeting everyone that makes up the Fletcher School and learning more about the international relations field. Stop by and say hi if you’d like! Talk to me about noise, movies, computers, Number Girl, Iannis Xenakis, or really anything you’d like. See you around!