Register
WMI PLUS At Home Experiences are free of charge, but you must register to reserve your space. You will receive an order confirmation once your registration is complete that includes the link to the event. Only registered participants will receive email instructions on how to join the event via Zoom online. Bring your questions! The presentation will be followed by a Q&A session with attendees posting their questions electronically for live answers.
Kaoru Watanabe is a renowned New York composer and instrumentalist known for blending Western and Eastern music. Raised in a musical family, he studied Black American jazz at the Manhattan School of Music and spent a decade in Japan as the first American performer with KODO. Collaborating with elite Japanese artists and immersing himself in traditional arts greatly shaped his work. Since returning to New York, Watanabe has become a sought-after collaborator, working with notable artists like Mikhail Baryshnikov, Yo-Yo Ma, Laurie Anderson, and Rhiannon Giddens. He was an advisor and featured musician on Wes Anderson’s Oscar-nominated soundtrack for Isle of Dogs and a guest on Silkroad’s Grammy Award-winning album Sing Me Home. His compositions have been featured in prestigious venues worldwide, and in 2024, he launched the Bloodlines Interwoven festival, supported by the Mellon Foundation.
Harpist and composer Maeve Gilchrist, originally from Edinburgh and now living in Brooklyn, explores innovative techniques on her instrument, blending harmonics and improvisation. She performs as a soloist with orchestras, in traditional Irish folk groups, and with electronic enhancements. As a band leader and composer, she collaborates with groups like the Silkroad Ensemble and Arooj Aftab’s Vulture Prince Ensemble. Maeve has performed at major events like Celtic Connections and the Tanglewood Jazz Festival and has shared the stage with artists such as Yo-Yo Ma and Esperanza Spalding.
