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Marcio Garcia

February 2015
Juilliard Admissions
Discuss your personal artist vision as a performer in the early-21st Century. Please describe the elements
that will comprise your professional musical life and the tools needed to realize and maximize your
artistic impact.
The times, they have changed, and exposure isnt quite the impossible dream it once was. Being a
performer in the early-21st century, however, is no easy task. It seems as being creative isnt enough, and
we need to focus on so many other factors as we try to convey artistic impact that will further foster our
culture. In terms of my personal artist vision, my goal is to encompass new musical styles as a means of
paving the way for the upcoming generations by creating unique musical ideas that will show the public
my definition of art. Living in the early-21st century, I believe in taking advantage of globalization and
how easy it is to travel and connect with others. The Internet is now a two-way street of input and output,
and we can connect and collaborate with other musicians through social media. Ultimately, one of my
goals is to exploit the possibilities that we have today in order to remind the public that they can be more
than just consumers but also emotional beings that can appreciate their unique ability to feel.
The 21st century has provided us with new ideas and cross-genre musical collaborations. As a
jazz pianist, there is a plethora of jazz legends that I look up to, but it seems that they have no interest in
collaborating with the younger, upcoming generation or embracing their ideas. As an example, jazz
pianist Robert Glasper thoughtfully fused elements of jazz, hip-hop and R&B to create something entirely
fresh and innovative. I believe that mixing styles and utilizing language that the public can relate to is an
effective way to create interest and pave the way for the generations to come. As an artist in this century, I
hold the belief that we need to be active listeners, need to stay updated and have to take into account what
is being created by the new generation as a way to become part of the tradition.
Innovation is crucial for success within the arts. Being born in the Dominican Republic, I
naturally possess cultural capital that can have a positive impact by diversifying my art. Dominican jazz

pianist Michel Camilo mixed merengue with jazz, and my idea is to keep exploiting Dominican
idiosyncrasies into my art. As a classically trained pianist, I also have the foundation to bring a whole new
lens to the musical paradigm, which can become my trademark. I believe a successful early-21st century
artist should have a distinctive niche. Why should an audience give me their attention when another
person is doing something similar? Armenian jazz pianist Tigran Hamasyan has been incorporating
visuals into his shows as nowadays the excitement of a shows visual content is becoming tantamount to
the tunes. People really expect live performances to be a show, so I will provide one to them.
Social media has become a prime resource for information and connecting with people from all
around the world in the 21st century. It is of utter importance for a contemporary artist to establish
himself in social media as a way to gain exposure. I want my audience to be able to reach me and access
my art at their convenience, and become part of their lives in order to maximize my artistic impact. I think
it's important to consider globalization, which is now achieved in both the physical sense and
electronically. It is now much easier to connect with other artists, use them as influences, and even
collaborate with them. Jacob Collier, for instance, has become an Internet sensation after posting his
YouTube videos of heavily harmonized multi-tracked vocal tunes, and is now collaborating with Quincy
Jones and Snarky Puppy. In today's world, it is also a lot easier to fly to almost any country on the planet
to meet people, absorb other cultures, and perform your style in other societies. Ideally, I would relocate
to a culturally diverse scene, making it more accessible to contribute and learn with others. For me,
connection is very important, and we are now able to connect like never before.
I believe there is a fine line between entertainment and art, as there are different forms of
emotions that can be evoked. One of my goals as an artist is to emphasize the power of music and the
fact that we are not cogs in the capitalist machine. We are ones who remind the human cogs that they are
still human. Humans create culture and machines can never have a culture. Culture and society influence
the artist, who then creates art, which in turn fosters the existing culture. In a nutshell, my artist vision is
"go big or go home."

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