Meet Me Where I Have Been

I’ve always been proud of my background but self-conscious about coming from a place that I thought of as “uncultured.” However, I look back and see that music and the arts have always been central to my family and me. These moments are not considered “high art,” they’re rarely noticed when you’re already immersed in that environment, but these small artistic interactions are exceptional and central to daily life. My intention with this work is not to weigh the importance of different cultural backgrounds or to suggest artistic pedestals. Instead, the purpose is to express how our singular intimate relationship with art is so significant.

The suite uses audio sources found in the American Folklife Project’s collection in the Library of Congress. Each movement focuses on a single recording, with the overall framework being art in hidden places. Using recordings from the collection, my goal has been to emphasize the areas of life in which we interact with art but do not always notice its presence or importance