Ari Sussman, Composer

Praised for his “sophisticated writing” (GTM) and work that “weave(s) a trance-like mystical aura” (Zamir Chorale), composer Ari Sussman has always been on two separate but concurrent paths of identity. Growing up, Sussman went to Jewish day school, attended Jewish summer camp, and was active in his synagogue; at the same time, he was seriously studying the piano. Like oil and water, these two identities have always existed side-by-side for him, never completely blending, but always mixed together and important parts of his being.

Around his junior year of high school, Sussman discovered composition to be an artistically fulfilling way to express who he is. This path has led him on musical and personal journeys through undergraduate and graduate studies at the New England Conservatory of Music and doctoral studies at the University of Michigan. His music is influenced by Kabbalah, the natural world, cosmology, meditation, metaphysics, ancient and contemporary poetry, the human condition, and human interactions. The sounds in this episode illustrate equivocal worlds of sounds that are ambient, euphonious, and ethereal in nature.

This episode features Sussman's compositions "Kol Galgal," "Needless to Say," "We Are," and "Higaleh Nah." To hear more of his music and learn more about him, visit arisussman.com.