Abstract Jude tells the story of being born in San Diego, California to a very musical family, where they spent most of their time outdoors, playing sports, exploring. They moved to Seattle, Washington in early 2000s, where a new and different journey starts, including composing music and taking piano and vocal lessons. Jude then goes to Oakwood College in Alabama, where they deepen their musical practices, composing own songs, while facing the realities of overt racism in the South. Jude spends time...

Abstract Layne Garrett discusses growing up in a typical household in Tennessee and spending his childhood, visiting family on long road trips to Texas. While interest in music was always present in Layne’s life, it was in high school that exposure to outsider literature and open tuning in guitar brought him to be a part of music projects and pursue creative expression. He reflects on four years of living in a new city in Phoenix after college, where lack of social engagements got him to experiment...

Abstract Luke Stewart talks about being born in the Mississippi Gulf Coast and moving to Washington, D.C. in pursuit of music and historical connections to the legacy of radical music and culture in the capital. His approach to performance is that of recognizing musical legacies of the cities, where he is based, and using radical music and culture as tools of resistance and call for social justice. He meets a community of improvising musicians and elders while working at WPFW. Luke continues to meet...

Abstract Sarah Hughes reflects on growing up in Maryland and starting to play the saxophone at the age 9, inspired by a musical family and early exposure to live jazz performances. She Remembers her development as a jazz musician and interest in improvisation. When she starts to attend the New England Conservatory, she builds new skills in the music and meets many inspiring and challenging peers and mentors. After returning to Baltimore, she starts to play music with DMV improvising musicians,...