In this episode, acclaimed composer and synthesist Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith traces how changing environments, like her new locale of Lisbon, spark a sense of neutrality and openness, fueling innovation far from the ambition-driven cities of the US. Kaitlyn shares formative experiences with sound awareness, a kind of synaesthesia where music is felt as much as heard, and how time spent in nature nurtured her love for music. Blending modern and vintage synthesizers with the focus in practice of martial arts, Kaitlyn explores music’s potential to give meaning to ambiguity with in irrepressible optimism of where it can all go.

Carlos Rafael Rivera's score music is a reliable conduit of shivers and chills. The Emmy and Grammy winning composer's signature graceful style has amplified the drama of shows like The Queen's Gambit, Hacks, and Godless and his passage through the rigors and rewards of academia have made him a true student and teacher of his craft. You might be surprised how much of this goes out the window in favor of instinct when it's time to tell a story.

We're launching The Blank Chat podcast with Hrishikesh Hirway, well known as the creator and host of the best music podcast out there, Song Exploder. Less well known – for now – as a score composer. Hirway and host Charles Steinberg have a revealing talk about cracking the code of music journalism with Song Exploder and how Hirway seized the opportunity to score his first major feature film –Companion.