“I'm pretty hardcore about early music. Did my undergrad and grad degrees in it, and basically knew it was my life's passion from about age 16 onwards. People often seem to think of that as a narrow focus, but I've never thought so: devoting myself to that period lets me embrace it more holistically, getting deep into not just the music, but the art and literature, the social contexts, the architecture... really every aspect of historical aesthetics is relevant to interpreting classical music.”

“Singing a piece from Ecuador is actually very emotional for me, since I mostly identify with Ecuadorian culture and am closest to that side of my family. As of recent, I have been craving to go to Ecuador (I have never been) to have a better understanding of where my family comes from and to practice speaking the Spanish language in a place where I would be forced to. Learning about Gerardo Guevara and his music has made me want to do this even more and has added to my Ecuadorian pride.”

“My first musical experiences were guided by my father. My father is a Music Teacher in Venezuela. There are pictures of him playing the guitar and me singing at age 4. I have been very fortunate because music has saved my life and my family’s life, music has kept us going through the bad times my country is going through.”

“Mis primeros pasos musicales fueron gracias a mi padre. Mi papá es Profesor de música en Venezuela. Hay fotos de mi padre tocando la guitarra y yo cantando a los 4 años. He sido muy afortunada pues siento que la música salvo mi vida y la de mi familia especialmente por las circunstancias de mi país y el lugar donde crecí.”

“But when everything has come together and you actually get the pay-off of sharing music with an audience, it makes everything else make sense! You never know the ways that music can speak to someone, and it's a real privilege to be able to connect to people in such a personal way.”

I saw the images from Hubble of the Pillars of Creation that were released in the mid-90s and thought they were the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen! I ended up decorating my living room in pictures of planetary nebulas taken by Hubble.