{ Origins }

"These pieces that are born out of an intensity of experience, or a lack of stability and all that entails. I think it's not necessarily bad for art, right? It's bad for us. But that's it."

– Sean Shepherd

"The idea that you can, without force, guide a room of people towards a certain direction. This is now what I spend a career trying to learn."

– Edward Gardner

"You read about people finding their roots, finding their second home. There's no explanation for it, but I felt like Cuba was my place. Cuban music gets under my skin and into my veins like no other music."

– Sarah Willis

"I try and make one statement during a performance and that's not so easy because there’ll always be different things in the piece you’d like to highlight, but if I can make one very clear statement that’s more likely to stay with an audience."

– Inmo Yang

"In a more abstract way, I do feel like every instrument is its own sonic world. I have very vivid associations with colors. I’m not synesthetic, but I do color code my sessions when I’m composing."

– Angélica Negrón

"As a 10-year-old, knowing what it takes to be great at something is a very, very valuable lesson, even though it came at a pretty high cost."

– Teddy Abrams

"Growing up, you learn ways of expressing yourself and for me, music became a natural outlet both artistically and emotionally."

"When I make music it's not so much about being a small part of a big whole – I know musicians love to contribute to that enormous orchestral sound – but for me I like being able to interpret it and add my own things."