Meet Kristina Teuschler

Hey Friends! Get to know our 2021 Summer Festival guest speaker, Kristina Teuschler.

I’m Kristina, my pronouns are she/her; I live in New York City, but I grew up in Wisconsin. My parents are both immigrants from Jamaica and Brazil. My primary work is as a clarinetist, and I have a job in the West Point Band, the oldest of the Army special bands. I also freelance and play with a number of groups throughout New York City.

Beyond performing, I’ve felt empowered working as an administrator. Previously, I had a fellowship for Orchestra of St. Luke’s working as their Community Liaison; producing free community concerts and events, and building and maintaining relationships with local community organizations and schools. I currently run Madison New Music Festival with my colleague and dear friend. Madison, Wisconsin is our hometown, and with the festival we work to curate the diverse musical community we wish we had growing up. I also serve on the board for The Westerlies, a genre-burning, innovative brass quartet.

I’m looking forward to sharing the tools and inspirations I’ve picked up on my journey. Many of my thoughts have been informed by my identity and experiences as a multiracial, Black, first-generation woman, as well as reading works of Angela Davis, Bell Hooks, James Baldwin, and other cultural sociologists. I’m driven to work towards a music world in which racial, gender, class, and cultural equity is at the center of arts organization’s operations, as it has been neglected for far too long. But ultimately I dream of a diverse musical community with shared power.

Written by: Kristina Teuschler