A child-prodigy violinist, Vijay Gupta had performed in top international venues by the time he reached his teens; he started college at the age of 13, finishing with a pre-med bachelor’s; and by 19 he was playing in the first violins section of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, having already earned an MFA from the Yale School of Music. Yet he gradually realized that mere excellence did not suffice. He wanted his art to be of service to the community around him. He set his sights on one specific community just down the street from the Philharmonic, namely Los Angeles’ Skid Row. In 2011 Vijay created Street Symphony, which since its founding has brought hundreds of world-class musical experiences to Los Angeles County communities affected by homelessness and incarceration.

In 2018 the MacArthur foundation recognized Vijay’s work as an artist and social justice advocate by awarding him one of their Fellowships, commonly called the “genius grant.”

In this conversation with Corey Madden, Vijay discusses how he grew from dreaming of attaining a position as a leading concertmaster to becoming the artistic director of a radically inclusive and collaborative nonprofit that does not merely do outreach to communities in need but engages with them in transformative ways.

http://streetsymphony.org/

https://www.uncsa.edu/kenan/creative-catalyst/artivate.aspx