There is so much beauty to be seen in the world, but one of the most beautiful sights I have seen to this day was on a scorching August day in downtown Detroit when I was set to perform in a wedding service on the roof of the Detroit Opera House. I could practically taste the air getting hotter as my group and I rode the elevator to the top floor and climbed the stairs to the roof. I opened the door to the rooftop and was immediately greeted by the clearest blue skies and the most gorgeous view of the skyscrapers that make up the Detroit skyline. I was only 17 and had performed in other settings before, but the beauty I witnessed on this day was what inspired me to pursue a career in music. I took a moment to take in the atmosphere: the flowers adorning the wedding arch, the color-coordinated chairs, the beautiful gowns that the bridesmaids wore, and the seemingly infinite expanse of buildings that touch the sky. We went up to the railing and looked down on all the cars in the street, we could even see Comerica Park below us. When it came to the actual performing, my group and I were primarily hired to provide background music before the service, but the two most experienced musicians in my group selected me as their third performer to play for the bride when she walked down the aisle. I was honored. This was the first time I was given such a great responsibility. It was all of the beauty that I experienced on that day that solidified my decision to pursue an education in music and a career in freelance performing. I loved performing prior to this occasion, but all of the beautiful sights that I saw on that day are what inspired me. This taught me that a career in performing, despite the financial burden that an education in music would place on me, would lead me to live my best life. I would get to do what I love, while also getting to travel to new places and see beautiful scenery. It is that drive to experience the beauty in the world that inspires me today.

My piece is inspired by the longing I have felt over the past year due to the COVID-19 pandemic to return to the in-person music collaboration that I have missed so dearly with both my university orchestra and the improvised music group I am a part of. This piece contains four cello parts, all played by myself, with each in a different register. This created a sound similar to that of a string quartet or a choir of cellos. This piece is entirely improvisational in nature, with each added voice breathing life into the piece the moment it left my fingers. In creating this I mimicked the process used with my improv group when we used to meet, which helped ease some of my longing.

As a cellist myself and the granddaughter of someone who suffered from a similar neuromuscular disease, my favorite artist is the cellist Jacqueline du Pré. I am inspired most by her immense talent, her perseverance in music despite her disease, and the fact that she is the only female cellist to reach that level of fame in history.