Congratulations to From the Top’s 2024-2025 Fellows!

This season, 107 young musicians from across the United States joined From the Top’s Learning and Media Lab Fellowship program. In addition to recording their appearance on From the Top’s broadcast/podcast with host Peter Dugan, Fellows spent six weeks in virtual sessions with peers and industry professionals.

Together, they dug into experiences and conversations that furthered their knowledge around:

• Utilizing media and technology in their artistic practice
• Communicating their personal stories
• Exploring diverse career pathways in the arts
• Building a community with peers and professional musicians
• Planning a unique one-on-one concert experience for a member of their community

Fellow Brandon Fu and host Peter Dugan.

Thank you to our guest artists for sharing your journeys and challenging our Fellows to envision their futures in new ways. In these sessions, Fellows ask guest artists a wide range of questions. The result is an open and honest conversation about their careers. Access to these personal stories spark so many “ah ha” moments in our young musicians.

Fellow Lillian Arnold Mages, 15, with Orli Shaham.

This season’s guest artists included:

Broadcast co-hosts and guest artists: Orli Shaham, Gil Shaham, Nathan Chan, Greg Anderson. Sophie Davis, Josie Davis, Yuna Langehennig

Learning and Media Lab speakers: Teddy Abrams, Sameer Patel, Rebecca Bogers, Danielle Kuhlmann, Yasmin de Soiza, Herb Smith, Jennifer Arnold, Joe Soucy, Dr. Molly Gebrian, Alex Laing

“Hearing about Sameer Patel’s life story, I couldn’t help but notice how many ups and downs he had gone through, and how the path that he had taken was very different from what he had imagined. It was very inspiring to see someone who faced and was able to overcome all these challenges.” –Bhargava Kulkarni, 16, from Okemos, Michigan.

Mikael Malmgren listens to a presentation during the Music and the Brain Youth Symposium.

“I’ve never met people like this before. Kind, humble, driven—and just like me. It made me feel like I belonged.” –Mikael Malmgren, Fellow

Special Learning Programs!
This season was unique in that we were able to convene musicians around two specific big ideas: music and the brain as well as music and the environment.

Music and the Brain
Eleven of this year’s Fellows came together at the Brain and Creativity Institute at the University of Southern California for a week-long residency focused on Music and the Brain. Our goal was to explore the connections between music and the brain with our scientific partners at USC’s Brain and Creativity Institute. The Fellows recorded for the NPR broadcast, performed in a multimedia concert, and presented research projects to 100 of their peers during a Youth Symposium.

Musicians and the Environment
More than a third of the young musicians who apply to From the Top speak ardently about the importance of the environment in their lives. This inspired a six-week learning initiative. We convened Zoom conversations with more than 60 musicians ages 14 to 25. Participants explored how to integrate their artistic practice with the environmental issues that they care about.s

They met with experts in science and artistic program planning and gained tools to become advocates for change. At the end, they were tasked with the challenge of creating their own project, intertwining music and the environment.

From the Top’s Fellowship is free for all participants, thanks to the generous support of From the Top’s individual donors, foundations, and corporate sponsors.

Congratulations to From the Top’s 2024-2025 Fellows!

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