Stephanie: "I have complicated feelings about my appearance and the way that people perceive me. People look at me and right away assume I'm a Spanish speaker and not Black, which I'm mixed. It's complicated. The way people view me, the things that I'm interested in, and the way that I actually am." Ryan: "My baseline philosophy of music education is that good people make good music, so it's my job to help make good people through music. So if you can walk away from my class walking taller in your body, feeling more at home in the shoes that you came in with, because you don't have to change ..read more

Shahzore: "When we were in Chicago, at the mosque, we were the white kids, and when we were in Stillwater at church, we were the brown kids, and very much so." Lisa: "How do you separate with something you can’t separate? You can try and unweave the braids sometimes of what is you being you, and what is you as a reflection of what and how you understand your racial/ethnic heritage." Join us for our first episode of Heritage Choir, a conversation series connecting community members and musicians of Border CrosSing as we explore themes of culture, storytelling and music. Each episode brings to ..read more

Rodolfo: "I live in this kind of borderland of indistinct roots in one specific culture... so I embrace it, all the sides of it. Even the parts I have no connection to!" Gabi: "Music and singing is something I love, I know I do want it to be part of my life, but I need to explore HOW I want to do that in a way that's sincere and represents me." Join us for second to last episode (# 7!) of Heritage Choir featuring Rodolfo Nieto and Gabriela Estephanie Solís. Gabi and Rodolfo are active solo performers and their conversation explores their perspective on performance and what it's like to be bi ..read more

Join us for our second episode of Heritage Choir, a conversation series connecting community members and musicians of Border CrosSing as we explore themes of culture, storytelling and music. Each episode brings together two people, often strangers, to share their personal stories and the way music weaves through their lives. This episode features Bethany Battafarano and Vladimir Garrido Biagetti - musicians, performers and composers who actively collaborate with Border CrosSing. Their conversation is packed full of excerpts from previous concerts together, their journeys as people and the kin ..read more

Sometimes... technology wins. While our conversation was rich and meaningful, internet speeds, freezing cameras and (the grand finale) a lawnmower prevented us from being able to release the entirety of the interview. Instead, we're bringing you a "mini episode" featuring Rahn Yanes and Segundo Velasquez. You'll hear them tell you about who they are and the work they do before sharing a song that holds a special place in their heart. Want more behind the scenes? Follow us on Facebook (@bordercrossingmn) or Instagram (@border_crossing_choir) or check out our website: www.bordercrossingmn.org ..read more

Jaime: "El proceso de composición para mi solamente tienes dos caminos: O la música nace, o la música se hace. No tiene otra. Cuando la música nace, es como que llega el rayo de luz que le llega a uno al corazón y sucede casi nunca... Es muy muy raro. Cuando la inspiración falta, tiene que recurrir a la técnica." We're back with one final bonus episode of Heritage Choir featuring Natalia and her dad, Jaime Alberto Romero. Jaime Alberto Romero is a Colombian composer and guitar player known for his "colorful harmony, freshness and spontaneity in his music" which has made him one of the most p ..read more

We've come to our final episode of Heritage Choir, featuring Maibel Troia and Bob Peskin. This wasn't meant to be the last episode, but after the rich conversation and the song share, we knew this is how the series needed to end. Bob and Maibel are singers, conductors and musicians. Their lives are fascinating and the stories they shared are incredible. I really, really encourage you to watch the final ten minutes of this podcast on our YouTube page. To see Bob holding the actual music his mom wrote out by hand, and to see Maibel singing with Sir Simon Rattle and la Orquesta Simon Bolivar is ..read more

Anaida: "You end up merging into that Spanglish world. There is something very alive with the language, we evolve with the language." Arturo: "And the reason he was crying his eyes out is he did not expect that any little child would be singing a song to him about his father, Jose Martí. This song links me to Cuba in a very personal way." Join us for Episode 3 of Heritage Choir, featuring Arturo Steely and Anaida Carquez. This episode covers so much - being bilingual, Miami in 1950 vs Miami in 2020, and working with Maria Guinand. Want more behind the scenes? Follow us on Facebook (@borderc ..read more

Matthew: "You're doing this thing that is quite literally impossible to do by yourself. It also makes you feel like you're a part of the universe... that you are making you're more of an impact than you think you ever could alone". Gigi: "Through taking voice lessons I discovered... "Oh! I get to learn other languages if I sing in this style!" Join us for Episode 6 of Heritage Choir featuring Matthew Valverde and Regina Stroncek. Gigi and Matthew are choral musicians, solo performers and self proclaimed language geeks. Our conversation explores why Spanish and Portguese are so often ignored ..read more

Jaime: "El proceso de composición para mi solamente tienes dos caminos: O la música nace, o la música se hace. No tiene otra. Cuando la música nace, es como que llega el rayo de luz que le llega a uno al corazón y sucede casi nunca... Es muy muy raro. Cuando la inspiración falta, tiene que recurrir a la técnica." We're back with one final bonus episode of Heritage Choir featuring Natalia and her dad, Jaime Alberto Romero. Jaime Alberto Romero is a Colombian composer and guitar player known for his "colorful harmony, freshness and spontaneity in his music" which has made him one of the most p ..read more