Artist Propulsion Lab

For the final episode from the Artist Propulsion Lab class of 2023, cellist Zlatomir Fung wrote a new Christmas audio drama, The Elves and the Cello Maker , based on the Brothers' Grimm fairytale, "The Elves and the Shoemaker," for which he also composed the music. He updated the original fairytale to focus on a young cellist in New York, her cello maker father, and two of Santa's elves, as she pr...

For her time with the Artist Propulsion Lab, mezzo Briana Hunter wanted to focus on highlighting Black women. As part of that, she commissioned a new song cycle At Ease, by composer Jasmine Barnes . At Ease sets three poems by poet Rio Cortez from her collection Golden Ax, "Black Annie Hall," "Black Mary Wilkie," and "Black Lead in a Nancy Meyers Film," focusing on Black women at leisure. In this...

In this audio essay, violinist Alexi Kenney reflects on the music of two composers who had vastly different musical careers, but were also almost exact contemporaries and both lived in New York City: Samuel Barber and John Cage.  Special thanks to the New York Public Radio archives for audio of interviews with Samuel Barber and John Cage, and to the Bellingham Festival Orchestra. Music: John Cage:...

For her Artist Propulsion Lab residency, composer Shelley Washington wanted to pull back the curtain on composers’ lives and work. As part of that, she composed a new work for the ~Nois saxophone quartet and recorded voice memos documenting her process. The piece, Eternal Present , is about Shelley’s experiences of time-blindness, and premiered on New Sounds in September. In this podcast, Shelley...

While mezzo Briana Hunter has had many meaningful conversations behind closed doors about important issues in opera today, like power dynamics and the use of Blackface, she has also been frustrated with how these conversations frequently play out online. Often these differences are generational. As part of her residency with the Artist Propulsion Lab, she convenes singers from four different gener...

The Artist Propulsion Lab podcast is back with the class of 2023. Violinist and composer Curtis Stewart begins with an audio essay reflecting on the life cycle of grief. In June 2023, Curtis released his latest album Of Love , which he dedicated to the memory of his mother, violinist, composer, and teacher Elektra Kurtis, who passed away in 2021. In this episode, he reflects on his experiences of...

At the start of his time with the Artist Propulsion Lab, composer and saxophonist Steven Banks set out to compose a piece of music that explores meditation and mindfulness, and in which the music and meditation were supportive partners. The result is  Begin Again , created in collaboration with  Ten Percent Happier meditation teacher Matthew Hepburn.  Begin Again  uses guided meditative exploratio...

Cellist and composer Andrew Yee (she/they) presents an audio memoir of identity and belonging through music. For several years, they have been exploring their identity through a recital series called  Halfie.  This memoir draws on their  Halfie  recital in the Greene Space, as well as conversations with Andrew, their dad Harry Yee, and their friend, composer and cellist Paul Wiancko. All works per...

This episode contains discussions of syphilis. If you are concerned you have syphilis or another sexually transmitted infection, you can find information about sexual health clinics in New York City  here . This Composer is Sick  wraps up with an exploration of how syphilis affected the life, works, and death of American composer Scott Joplin. Host Emi Ferguson and her guests, Joplin biographer an...

This episode contains discussions of syphilis. If you are concerned you have syphilis or another sexually transmitted infection, you can find information about sexual health clinics in New York City  here . There's something strange in the last movement of Bedřich Smetana's String Quartet No. 1, "From My Own Life." In the middle of a lively finale, the quartet breaks off, followed by a mysterious...

This episode contains discussions of syphilis. If you are concerned you have syphilis or another sexually transmitted infection, you can find information about sexual health clinics in New York City  here . What's the relationship between syphilis, mercury, and the composer of "Die Forelle?" Flute-player Emi Ferguson continues her exploration of how syphilis impacted classical composers. This epis...

This episode contains discussions of syphilis, its symptoms, and its transmission. If you are concerned you have syphilis or another sexually transmitted infection, you can find information about sexual health clinics in New York City  here . While an undergraduate at Juilliard, flute-player Emi Ferguson almost quit music to pursue epidemiology full-time instead. Even though she stuck with music,...

This conversation was originally recorded and released in November, 2021.  This week, we are re-releasing a conversation between flutist Brandon Patrick George, a member of last year's inaugural Artist Propulsion Lab class, and Darren Walker, president of the Ford Foundation. They discuss how arts organizations can be more diverse, equitable, and inclusive, and also why leadership and representati...

This week on the Artist Propulsion Lab, baritone Justin Austin is joined by audio engineer and producer Josh Berg. Justin and Josh met when they collaborated in the recording studio with Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, on the album  Donda . Justin and Josh discuss their work with Ye, musical genres and cross-pollination, authenticity, and more.    

WQXR's Artist Propulsion Lab is the station's program to support emerging and mid-career artists by providing them with opportunities to perform and commission work, and to take advantage of the station's platforms, like this podcast. Starting today, and continuing every other Thursday, join this year's class of artists as they explore a topic important to them. In this episode, violinist and comp...

The Artists Propulsion Lab is WQXR's program to support early- and mid-career artists - and now, they are starting a podcast. Episodes are released every other week, starting July 7.