Aruán Ortiz Named a 2026 Fellowship Finalist in Music Composition by the Cintas Foundation
Introducing our 2026 Fellowship Finalists: In Music Composition - Aruán Ortiz in his own words:
“My work as a composer, pianist, and musical researcher is rooted in lived experiences and the collective memory of Afro-diasporic communities across the Americas. It is a continuous process of transformation where sound becomes a way to understand myself and the world around me.
“My artistic voice moves fluidly between tradition and experimentation, composition and improvisation, post-genre and multidisciplinary practices. My relationship with music is not only academic, but also spiritual and ancestral. This awareness has allowed me to draw from the complex Afro-diasporic layers of trauma, resilience, and reinvention. My work is an invitation to listen more deeply to history, to silence, and to one another. Through this process, I strive to move beyond my creative framework, exploring how identity, imagination, and sound can merge into a single, profoundly human expression.”