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From YouTube: Welcome, Neighbor: Andres Franco
Description
On the sixth episode of Welcome, Neighbor, we learn about Andres Franco. From ethnomusicologists to composers, Andres hails from a very musical family. Andres is originally from Colombia, and came to Pittsburgh to work with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. He is now the Executive Director of City of Asylum.
A
A
B
So
I
am
originally
from
colombia,
south
america
and
I
came
to
pittsburgh
about
six
years
ago.
I
came
here
initially
to
work
with
the
pittsburgh
symphony
orchestra.
I
was
the
assistant
conductor,
then
associate
conductor,
then
resident
conductor,
and
that's
how
I
came
to
pizza.
Actually,
my
first
time
in
the
city
was
for
my
audition
back
in
april
of
2015,
but
I
I've
lived
in
pittsburgh
since
about
september
of
2015,
and
I
really
love
the
city.
A
B
So
I
come
from
a
very
musical
family.
My
father
is
an
ethnomusicologist,
so
he
traveled
all
around
colombia
with
a
little
tape
recorder,
if
you
remember
those,
but
they
were
not
so
little
back
then,
but
just
recording
the
music
of
the
different
ethnic
groups
in
colombia,
so
their
native
colombians,
the
afro-colombians
and
then
the
europeans
and
then
all
the
different.
You
know
the
those
three
groups
really
mixed
and
we
have
a
very
rich
culture,
so
he
traveled
all
around
colombia
doing
it.
B
B
Then
I
moved
to
the
united
states
to
complete
a
master's
in
piano
performance
and
then
a
master's
in
orchestral
conducting
that
was
in
fort
porter
texas,
and
there
was
almost
21
years
ago.
Yeah
in
august
of
2000
is
when
I
arrived
in
the
united
states,
and
you
know
I
got
different
jobs
as
a
conductor
and
eventually
ended
up
with
my
position
here
with
the
pittsburgh
symphony
orchestra.
A
Wow,
that's
such
a
beautiful
and
rich
background,
and
thank
you
for
sharing
that
with
us.
I
feel
like
when
he
was
speaking.
I
was
just
like.
Oh,
it
would
be
nice
to
be
in
one
of
those
events
right
when
everyone
is
just
singing
and
dancing.
But
what's
interesting
now
is
like
now
and
you
would
know
better
than
I
do
now.
Your
work
at
city
of
asylum
right
is
a
little
bit
different.
B
In
my
blood,
so
definitely
I'll
continue
making
music.
But
with
my
work
as
a
conductor,
I
was
always
interested
in
the
voices
of
the
historically
marginalized
communities
within
classical
music,
so
being
from
south
america
and
from
latin
america.
I
did
program
and
conducted
a
lot
of
music
by
latin
american
composers,
but
I
was
also
interested
in
women
composers
who
don't
have
as
much
representation
in
classical
music
or
a
world.
B
You
know
five
six
years
ago,
when
people
didn't
really
know
about
it,
and
I
did
a
couple
of
programs
that
touched
on
on
that
particular
event.
So
I
my
interest
in
music
was
wide
and
it
went
beyond
just
music
itself.
It
was
in
a
way
using
music
and
using
the
art
as
a
vehicle
to
address
some
of
those
issues
of
social
justice
and
racial
equity,
and
he
was
also
very
interested
in
bringing
people
together.
B
B
So
that
is
what
brought
me
close
to
city
of
asylum
city
of
asylum
is
an
organization
that
started
to
provide
a
safe
home
for
endangered
writers
for
writers
who
were
persecuted
at
home
and
had
to
be
in
exile
here
in
the
united
states
and
that's
how
it
started.
But
then,
when
those
writers
came
into
pittsburgh
and
started
performing
or
reading
their
art,
you
know
their
literature
or
their
poetry.
People
really
reacted
to
what
they
were
doing.
You
know
this.
B
What
you
see
behind
me
is
actually
a
wall
is
not
a
background,
it
isn't
a
wall
in
my
office
and
it
shows
you
what
city
was
adam
does
so.
This
gentleman
here
is
a
nobel
prize
winner,
wally
soyinka,
and
we
have
over
here.
The
the
person
with
the
cab
is
a
saxophonist
all
over
lake
and
you
can
see
also
drummers
around.
So
it's
this
idea
of
building
community
around
literature
and
music
and
the
arts
in
general.
That
is
central
to
city
of
asylum.
B
B
A
B
Intrigued,
as
you
can
imagine,
it's
not
every
day
that
you
find
chinese
poems
painted
on
two
facades
of
houses,
let
alone
houses
in
towards
north
side.
So
I
became
just
really
intrigued
by
the
organization.
Then,
eventually
I
moved
to
pittsburgh
and
I
I
came
to
alphabet
city,
which
is
our
offices
headquarters,
where
we
present
all
the
programs
and
came
to
a
concert.
There
was
a
jazz
poetry
month,
concert
where
they
mix
jazz
a
lot
of
times:
avant-garde,
jazz,
poetry
in
this
space.
B
B
A
Curious,
you
said
something
right
that
is,
that
is
so
powerful,
and
I
think
I've
come
to
learn
over
time
like
how
the
arts
is
such
a
powerful
way
to
have
conversations
that
are
really
difficult
right.
You
talked
about
the
the
tulsa
massacre
again
racial
inequities,
that's
a
very
tough
subject
to
discuss
right,
ordinarily
and
but
somehow
with
arts
with
music
with
poetry.
A
B
I
think
the
arts
versus
anything
all
these
conversations
must
happen
in
different
circles
and
they
are
tough
conversations.
They
are
difficult
and,
of
course,
they
have
to
happen
at
the
policy
level.
They
have
to
happen
at
so
many
different
levels,
but
I
think
the
arts
in
many
ways
help
us
understand
other
people
and
or
at
least
understand
their
stories
and
their
experiences,
and
we
do
it
with
you
know
we
feel
differently.
B
So
you
can
study
a
you
know,
a
problem
or
a
subject
forever
and
hiding
your
in
your
head,
and
you
understand
it
very
clearly,
but
until
you
feel
something
it's
going
to
be
very
hard
to
move
everyone
in
the
same
direction.
So
I
think
the
the
arts
provide
that
human
connection
that
is
beyond
the
the
just.
B
The
the
understanding
of
a
subject
is
just
you,
you
go
to
the
core
and
usually
when
you
go
to
a
to
a
film
or
to
a
theater
performance
or
to
a
music
performance
or
to
a
reading
you
let
your
guard
down,
you're
there
to
experience
art,
it's
something
that
that
moves.
You
and
you
do
not
come
to
those
experiences
with
the
same
kind
of
you
know
like
predisposition
to
to
fight
or
to
resist
you're
there
just
to
experience
somebody
else's
story,
and
I
think
that
that's
what
makes
art
so
powerful.
B
Even
when
we're
talking
about
the
pandemic,
you
know
we
have
a
lot
to
do
now
in
terms
of
healing
not
not
just
physically,
which
is
very
important,
of
course,
public
health.
We
know
how
important
it
is
for
sure
after
this
year-
and
I
have
we
have
had-
but
it's
also
it's
also
just
the
healing
inside
you
know.
B
So
it
just
allows
people
to
have
conversations
more
openly
and
in
many
ways
you're
not
pushed
not
forced
to
take
inside
you're
just
experiencing
a
piece
of
art
and
is
both
the
experiencing
between
the
stage
and
the
audience,
but
also
among
audience
members
that
is
very
important,
so
you're
creating
these
spaces,
where
you
can,
we
can
share
and
be
in
many
ways
more
vulnerable.
So
it's
that
combination
of,
like
the
private
and
the
public
that
makes
arts
programs
and
arts
and
culture
programs
so
special.
A
That's
awesome.
You
said
something
that
you
touched
on
covet
a
little
bit
and
I
wanted
to
to
stay
on
that
a
little
you
all
did
an
incredible
job
when
covid
came
around,
I
think
quickly.
You
guys
pivoted
right
to
to
still
continue
to
provide
art
a
way
for
folks
in
a
way
to
not
necessarily
focus
on
their
situation
and
home,
but
still
give
people
an
outlet
to
be
able
to
enjoy
the
arts.
I
mean,
I
wonder
if
you
could
tell
us
a
little
bit
more
about
that
program.
A
I
mean
the
show
must
go
online
and
it's
still
a
place
for
different
partners
to
still
host
your
shows
as
well
through
show
must
go
online.
So
can
you
tell
us
a
little
bit
about
the
show
must
go
online.
How
that
came
about-
and
now
that
I
don't
know
to
say,
are
we
coming
out
of
covid
is
kobe.
You
know
on
another
level
now,
but
what
is
your
plans
there
right
between
doing
online
and
also
doing
in
prices
and
programs
as
well.
B
So
I
started
you
know
six
and
plus
more
than
six
months
into
the
pandemic,
but
I
know
the
the
the
history
of
what
happened
right
after
the
pandemic,
because
the
symphony
the
pittsburgh
symphony
orchestra
has
a
partnership
with
city
of
asylum.
So
I
also
knew
the
organization
because
of
that
partnership,
I
was
in
charge
of
being
the
moderator
for
the
programs
the
symphony
presented
at
the
city
of
asylum.
B
So
when
the
pandemic
started
the
one
of
the
co-founders
henry
rhys
reached
out
to
me,
we
had
been
working
because
of
the
symphony
and
he
had
this
idea
of
putting
a
channel
an
online
channel
together
for
all
local
or
pittsburgh-based
organizations,
and
he
wanted
to
know
if
this
is
something
that
the
symphony
would
be
interested
in
participating.
So
I
knew
about.
A
B
B
B
We
have
presented
more
than
250
programs
and
we
have
had
an
audience
of
more
than
35
000
people
from
all
over
the
world.
So
we
still
have
a
very
strong
local
connection
that
the
majority
of
our
audience
comes
from
the
pittsburgh
region.
You
know
allegheny
county
and
the
surrounding
counties,
but
now
we
have
viewers
in
every
single
state.
All
50
states
are
represented
and
more
than
65
countries
worldwide.
B
So
presenting
programs
online
had
many
advantages.
One
of
them,
of
course,
is
the
geographic
reach.
The
other
one
is,
if
you
think
about
it,
people
with
health
issues
that
cannot
come
here
because
of
mobility,
usually
because
they
don't
want
to
leave
home.
So
it's
really
allowed
many
people
to
have
access
to
our
programs,
but
I
think
the
most
important
thing
is
that
it
allowed
us
to
continue
advancing
our
mission
throughout
the
pandemic,
and
I
have
to
tell
you
we
do
surveys
regularly
and
reading
some
of
the
comments
on
the
surveys.
B
It's
really
it's
been
really
reassuring.
Many
people
say
that
that
was
the
only
bright
spot
in
their
otherwise
very
grim
lives,
or
that
was
like
the
the
self-care
moment
for
them
was
to
tune
into
one
of
the
programs
and
the
platform
we
use
has
a
chat
function.
So
we
were
surprised.
We
didn't
know
how
what
was
going
to
happen.
Then
the
chat
became
this
conversation.
B
Everyone
is
sharing
comments,
reacting
to
what's
going
on
in
the
program
asking
questions,
so
we
have
been
incorporating
a
q
a
session
at
the
end
of
programs,
because
people
were
asking
questions,
sharing
links,
sharing
resources,
so,
yes,
it's
been,
it's
been
just
a
bright
spot
in
an
otherwise
dark
period,
is
to
have
been
able
to
continue
presenting
these
programs
during
the
show
must
go
online.
I
should
add.
B
B
So
in
this
tent
we
have
three
sides
up,
so
there's
a
much
better
airflow
and
we
did
it
because
it
would
give
us
some
flexibility.
You
know
we
were
planning
this
in
february.
You
know
january
of
this
year
even
december.
What
we're
going
to
do
this
is
before
we
knew
that
vaccination
would
be
in,
like
you
know,
november
of
last
year,
before
we
knew
vaccinations
would
be
ready
and
widely
available.
So
the
tent
allowed
us
to
have
some
flexibility.
B
We
are
still
streaming
events
from
the
tent,
so
we
put
all
the
cameras,
lighting,
microphones,
high-speed
internet,
everything
that
is
needed
and
then
we
it
allows
us
to
bring
in-person
audiences
and
change
and
adjust
depending
on
public
health
conditions.
So
when
we,
when
we
started
doing
it,
it
wasn't
clear
then
in
june
it
seemed
like
everything
was
going
much
better,
so
we
were
able
to
allow
more
people.
Now
again,
we
are
seeing
some
some
spikes
in
cases
and
we
can
adjust
almost
in
real
time.
B
And
you
know
early
october
late
october
starts
becoming
dicey
because
of
the
weather.
You
know
you
would
have
to
have
put
the
sides
down
to
keep
it
warm
and
then
the
idea
is
to
have
them
up
because
of
airflow.
But
yes,
so
that's
the
plan
and
then,
if
we
can
go
back
to
in-person
programming
at
alpha
city
safely,
we
will
do
that
as
well.
A
Awesome
thanks
so
much
for
sharing
with
with
the
great
content
you
just
talked
about,
I
mean
I
can't
imagine
how
expensive
it
is
to
to
attend
a
program
with
city
of
asylum.
How
much
does
it
cost
for
someone
to
be
able
to
tune
in
to
watch
a
program
or
to
come
to
a
live
program
at
city
of
asylum
or
at
the
alphabet?.
B
No,
it
does
not
so
that
that
is
part
of
our
mission,
all
our
programs,
all
of
them,
are
free.
We
do
not
charge
the
audience
to
come
to
our
programs
in
person.
We
do
not
charge
the
audience
to
come
to
our
programs
online.
We
do
pay
the
artist,
so
they
are
not
free
for
us.
You
know
we
still
have
to
to
raise
the
money
to
pay
the
artist
and
staff
and
all
that,
but
the
audience
does
not
does
not
pay
a
ticket.
B
A
B
Children
started
questioning
and
having
these
conversations
about
justice
and
about
you
know,
freedom
of
expression
and
about
injustice,
and
we
realized
that,
even
though
here
in
the
united
states,
we
don't
have
the
circumstances
that
these
writers
have
at
home,
where
they
are
persecuted
because
of
their
writing
and
they
have
to
leave
the
countries.
There
are
ways
in
which
we
are
also
impeding
creative
free
expression,
and
one
of
them
is
by
not
having
access
to
the
art
like
it
doesn't
matter.
B
It
is
an
obstacle
so
by
having
free
programs,
it
allows
anyone
to
come
to
these
programs,
and
we
proactively
also
provide
serious,
almost
a
platform
for
experimental
artists
and
for
artists
that
have
been
historically
marginalized
to
be
our
to
present
their
problems,
their
art,
their
work
at
city
of
asylum.
So
all
the
programs
are
free
because
that
supports
that's
very
important.
Part
of
our
mission
is
to
celebrate
creative
free
expression,
to
protect
creative
free
expression
and
to
make
sure
that
that
the
population
at
large
has
access
to
the
art.
B
Yes,
so
for
the
programs
you
may
visit
alphabet
city.org,
that's
where
all
of
our
events
and
programs
are
posted
and
then
there
is
information
about
how
to
attend
per
events
in
person
and
then
how
to
watch
them
online.
You
can
research
your
free
tickets
for
either
either
one
of
those
by
visiting
alphabetcity.org.
B
There's
also
a
calendar
for
august
and
then
it's
going
to
be
one
for
september,
so
you
can
see
what
is
coming
up
and
then
to
learn
more
about
city
of
asylum
and
the
the
writer
in
residence
program
and
everything
that
we
have
done
at
city
of
asylum.
You
can
go
to
cityofasylum.org,
so
two
different
websites,
alphabet,
city.org
for
programs
and
cityofasylum.org
for
the
sanctuary
program.
A
B
Yes
and
we
have
additional
locations
so
city
of
asylum,
yes,
is
the
organization,
and
then
we
have
alphabet
city,
which
is
a
building
here.
In
the
north
side,
it
used
to
be
a
masonic
hall
and
is
now
a
building
with
apartments
in
the
top
floors,
and
then
in
the
first
floor
we
have
a
restaurant,
an
event
space
where
we
present
our
programs
and
a
bookstore.
Then
in
the
basement
we
have
the
offices,
that's
where
I
am
right
now.
B
We
also
have
the
alphabet
reading
garden,
which
is
a
public
garden
located
here
in
the
north
side
as
well.
We
have
we
have
four
house
publications,
you
you,
I
already
showed
you
one
of
them,
so
these
are
houses
where
the
riders
in
residence
live
or
have
lived,
and
then
four
of
them
have
public
art
on
their
facades
and
each
one
of
them
has
a
connection
to
a
writer
or
artist
the
the
one
I
showed
you
was
juan
zhang,
the
first
writer
in
residence
painted
his
poetry
on
the
facade.
B
B
It
has
a
artwork
by
thad,
mostly
so
it
has
beautiful
wooden
sculptures
on
the
facade.
There's
another
one
called
the
burma
house
that
has
burmese
poems
in
the
facade
and
then
the
fourth
one
that
we
have
finished
is
called
the
jazz
house
and
it's
based
on
a
visual
art
by
oliver
lake.
The
saxophonist
I
mentioned,
there's
a
fifth
one
coming
up
sometime
soon
and
they
are
all
located
on
samsung
away.
So
that's
another
location,
and
then
yes,
alpha
city,
is
where
I
am
right
now.
A
B
B
So
I'm
combining
those
two
things:
my
love
for
coffee,
for
making
coffee
for
halloween
conversations
over
coffee
and
connecting
with
this
tradition
of
coffee
as
coffee
places
being
being
having
for
communication
and
exchange
of
ideas.
So
I
I
am
having
coffee
with
different
people.
We
have
had
two
episodes
so
far.
If
you,
if
you
search
alphabet
cd,
that
or
coffee
with
andres,
you
will
find
those
episodes.
This
is
something
that
I
should
add
about.
Our
streaming
is
that
most
of
the
programs
we
present
on
our
streaming
channel
are
available
on
demand.
B
There
are
only
a
few
exceptions
like
films
because
of
rights,
copyright
issues,
but
most
of
the
programs.
We
present
remain
available
on
demand,
so
you
can
actually
go
back
and
watch
if
not
250
programs,
probably
you
know
over
200
programs
that
we
have
presented,
including
coffee
with
andre.
So,
yes,
I
would
like
to
invite
all
of.
A
A
Do
you
have
any
other
locations
where
city
of
asylum
exists
outside
of
pittsburgh?
And
I
really
want
you
guys.
I
really
want
you,
sorry,
I'm
dressed
to
to
really
paint
the
picture
of
what
a
big
deal
it
is
to
have
city
of
asylum
here
in
pittsburgh
right
because
it's,
the
largest
of
its
kind
in
the
world,
correct.
B
Yeah
so
yeah,
that's
a
very
good
connection
between
the
two
questions,
so
the
first
one
is
city
of
asylum
is
part
of
a
larger
network.
It's
called
icorn
the
international
cities
of
refuge
network
which
is
located
in
norway,
and
this
is
a
network
of
more
than
70
cities
around
the
world
at
7-0
that
have
made
a
commitment
to
protect
freedom
of
expression,
and
they
do
welcome
riders.
They
do
provide
housing
for
riders
who
are
persecuted
at
home
and
of
those
70
cities.
B
B
Most
of
the
cities
in
europe
receive
funding
from
the
municipalities
and
many
cities
in
europe,
and
I
think
mostly
the
united
states
receive
funding
from
universities,
so
they
have
partnerships
they're,
you
know
housed
within
universities.
We
are
an
independent
501c3
organization.
We
are
an
independent
nonprofit
organization
and
the
only
one
that
is
grassroots
supported
that
has
no
official
affiliation
with
a
university
or
a
municipality,
or
we
receive
no
no
funding
from
any
university
in
particular,
so
we
do
fundraise
independently
and
we
are
currently
the
largest
century
in
the
in
the
world.
B
Most
icon
cities
have
only
one
writer
at
the
time.
Some
of
them
have
two.
We
have
up
to
four
or
five,
sometimes
even
six
writers
and
artists
in
residence
in
our
houses.
So
we
we
are
really
larger
than
most
other
cities
by
by
you
know,
two
or
three
two
or
three
times
larger,
something
that
makes
city
of
asylum,
different
cities
and
pittsburgh
different
is
that
most
other
cities
provide
a
very
specific
time
frame.
B
So
you
get
a
residency
for
let's
say
two
years
and
then,
when
the
two
years
are
up,
you
you're,
you
have
to
find
another
place
to
live.
We
do
commit
to
a
long-term
outcome,
so
we
do
provide
two
years
of
living:
stipend,
free
housing,
health
insurance,
legal
help.
You
know
support
you
know,
of
course,
community.
B
When
the
writers
come
here,
the
community-
as
you
can
see
the
picture
behind
me
that
really
embrace
the
writers
and
artists,
but
after
the
two
years-
and
you
know
the
beginning
of
the
two
years,
we
start
thinking
how
we
can
help
them
to
become
independent
long-term.
If
they
are
able
to
go
back
to
their
country
of
origin,
because
the
threat
has
subsided,
then
they
can.
If
they
cannot,
then
we
start
trying
to
find
ways
for
them
to
become
independent
and
continue
writing.
B
So
that
is
something
that
also
sets
us
apart
is
that
we
do
help
the
riders
beyond
the
two-year
official
residency
here
at
city
of
asylum
and
in
the
united
states.
There
are
a
couple
of
locations
that
have
been
inspired
by
what
we
we
have
been
doing
so
detroit
just
opened
a
city
of
asylum
that
is
modeled
after
the
pittsburgh
model
and
is
somebody
from
pittsburgh
who
was
familiar
with
city
of
asylum
pittsburgh
and
inspired
by
what
we
were
doing
and
she
lives
in
detroit.
B
A
That
is
incredible,
so
for
people
watching
I
mean
we
really
have
a
gem
of
an
organization
here
in
pittsburgh
and,
what's
great
is
if
you're
not
in
pittsburgh,
you
still
have
the
opportunity
to
really
tune
into
awesome
programs
for
free
right,
even
though
it
is
for
free,
like
address
mentioned
before
there
is
a
donate
button.
So
please,
even
if
it's
supporting
by
one
dollar
as
much
as
you
can
you're
it's
going
towards
a
great
cause
as
you've
heard.
I'm
sorry
just
before
we
let
you
go.
B
No
faith-
I
just
wanted
to
thank
you
for
the
invitation
to
to
be
part
of
this
series,
and
also
just
to
really
reinforce
this
idea
that
city
of
asylum
pittsburgh
is
very
it's
a
very
special
organization.
It's
not
because
I
am
now
the
executive
director
of
city
of
asylum.
You
know
I
changed
my
career.
I
went
from
being
a
conductor
to
being
an
executive
director
because
I
am
really
committed
to
the
mission.
B
It
really
moved
me
move
and
continues
to
move
me
as
a
foreign-born
artist
in
pittsburgh,
and
also
as
somebody
who
who
defends
freedom
of
expression
and
freedom
of
expression
by
artists
is
something
very
important,
but
I
have
to
tell
you
there's
nothing
like
city
of
asylum
anywhere
in
the
world.
It's
really
a
very
special
organization
and
I
think
it
puts
pittsburgh
on
the
map.
You
know
people
when
they
they
hear
serious
olympics
where
they
know
that
this
has
been
deemed
the
model
for
the
world
by
the
head
of
icorn.
B
So
it
is
a
very
special
organization
that
you
pittsburghers
have
supported
here
in
our
city.
You
know
one
of
the
reasons
that
what
I
wanted
to
work
at
city
of
australia
is
because
I
wanted
to
spend
more
time
in
pittsburgh
and
be
able
to
have
a
larger
impact
on
the
community
here
in
our
city.
So
if
you
are
familiar
with
the
organization,
please
come
back,
we
would
love
to
see
you
again.
B
If
you
are
not
familiar,
do
do
go
to
a
website
and
learn
more
about
both
our
sanctuary
program
and
all
of
the
different
house.
Publications
alpha
green
garden,
this
beautiful
building
we
are
in
right
now,
but
also
you
can
attend
any
of
the
programs
that
we
present
and
you
can
go
back
to
may
for
2020
and
watch.
You
know
more
than
200
programs
that
we
have
available
on
demand
or
if
you
want
to
come
to
a
tent
tenth
programs
are
probably
going
to
still
be
around
for
a
while.