Da Capo Conversations 2.0 with Brice Smith and Zanaida Robles

For Good Measure, by Ensemble for These Times (E4TT)
Episode 176: Da Capo Conversations 2.0 with Brice Smith and Zanaida Robles

Looking for a way to listen to diverse creators and to support equity in the arts? Tune in weekly to For Good Measure!

Today we revisit Brice Smith's and Zanaida Robles' perspectives on their musical journey and background. If you enjoyed today’s conversation and want to know more about Brice Smith and Zanaida Robles, check them out here and here. Parts of this episode originally premiered in September 2021, click here, and in April 7, 2025, click here.

This podcast is made possible in part by a grant from the California Arts Council and generous donors, like you. Want to support For Good Measure and E4TT? Make a tax-deductible donation or sign up for our newsletter, and subscribe to the podcast!

Intro music: “Trifolium” by Gabriela Ortiz, performed by E4TT (Ilana Blumberg, violin; Abigail Monroe, cello; Margaret Halbig, piano), as part of “Below the Surface: Music by Women Composers,” January 29, 2022
Outro music: “Lake Turkana” by Marcus Norris, performed by E4TT (Margaret Halbig, piano), as part of “Alchemy,” October 15, 2021

Transcription courtesy of Otter.ai.
Buzzsprout: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1903729/episodes/17998870

Co-Producer, Host, and E4TT co-founder: Nanette McGuinness
Co-Producer and Audio Engineer: Stephanie M. Neumann
Podcast Cover Art: Brennan Stokes
Interns: Renata Volchinskaya, Sam Mason, Yoyo Hung-Yu Lin

Chapters

• 0:31 Today we revisit Brice Smith's and Zanaida Robles' perspectives on their musical journey and background. Here's what Brice Smith had to say.
• 2:46 Here's what Zanaida Robles had to say.

Transcript

Nanette McGuinness  00:00

[INTRO MUSIC] Welcome to For Good Measure, an interview series celebrating diverse composers and other creative artists, sponsored by a grant from the California Arts Council. I'm Nanette McGuinness, Artistic Executive Director of Ensemble for These Times. In this week's episode, we continue our Da Capo Conversations, a mini-series where we'll be giving familiar segments a topical twist. [INTRO MUSIC ENDS] Today we revisit Brice Smith's and Zanaida Robles' perspectives on their musical journey and background. Here's what Brice Smith had to say.

Brice Smith  00:41

I have a Bachelor of Music with majors in flute performance, violin performance in German language. I received my master's in flute performance and chamber music from the University of Michigan. Performer diploma from Indiana University, and my doctorate in flute performance and pedagogy from the University of Colorado Boulder. In high school, my passions centered around maintaining proficiency of the German language, in addition to advanced studies in flute and violin performance. Fortunately, the highly advanced studies in all three disciplines served as a seamless transition to achieving a well rounded undergraduate education, inviting the ideal model of an evolved professional musician, scholar and academic, I applied to well regarded research one institutions with reputable music programs to enhance my passions at the collegiate level, to obtain their respective degrees. The University of Arkansas provided a structured curriculum that allowed me to receive excellent instruction in all three disciplines in a four to five year time frame, while preparing to be an excellent and well rounded candidate for a graduate school program. Admittedly, the coursework and demands of my degrees were challenging. My success solely relied on time management, balancing day to day, practices, assignments, labs, rehearsals, among other responsibilities. Thankfully, I sculpted a balanced social life and prioritized health and wellness through the people that I met during my studies. Specifically, many of my friends were music majors, some of whom also participated in the symphony orchestra, Wind Symphony and Razorback marching band during my graduate studies, I enjoyed the ability to further cultivate a sense of collegiality with friends and faculty. Additionally, my passion for music, education, curiosity and creativity shaped my sense of personal agency. I would like to thank my family, close friends and the phenomenal faculty from each of my collegiate institutions, whom influenced my sense of personal autonomy.

Nanette McGuinness  02:46

Here's what Zanaida Robles had to say.

Zanaida Robles  02:49

I just have always sort of identified as a musician, even from the time I was as early as eight years old. I tell the story often, how I on television or somewhere in some church, or, I don't know, I heard someone being referred to as a doctor of music. And as soon as I realized you could be a doctor of music, I was like, That's me. That's what I'm going to be. And it took a while to get there. But I, you know, and I didn't know if I was going to be, I was playing I was, I like to make up songs on the piano. So I was like, I could play piano. I could be singer. I can I wanted to do all kinds of different things. I liked to write little songs. But I didn't care what I was, you know, what my instrument was going to be. I was like, but whatever it is, I'm a musician, that that is who I am, and that's really great. Always known. And so I've always been in music lessons and doing music throughout school, and I just can't get enough of I still can't get enough of music. I just really like music. I did most of my, most of my classical training and piano when I was young. You know, I took piano lessons for maybe eight years. I also took I played flute in my middle school band. I was first chair. I played either I there was a brief, very brief moment where I played accordion. But I like to point that out, because I think it's interesting. And I liked the accordion, but it wasn't a piano. So I was like, I don't want to play this. I want to play piano, right? Like, why would you give me a new porian? I think, I don't know. And then I that's, I mean, that's the extent of any formal like training I had. I otherwise, I just play whatever I can play. I try to figure out instruments. I'm... I'm a terrible brass... I cannot play brass instruments, but I'll fool around with strings, and I can play a few chords on the guitar, and I love percussion, and I collect djembe drums, and I have an assortment of different... 

Nanette McGuinness  04:48

Wow.

Zanaida Robles  04:49

So, I try.

Nanette McGuinness  04:52

Yeah, you know, that's great. You definitely....

Zanaida Robles  04:54

I have three ocarinas. I love... I collect little flutes too. I have a bunch of ocarinas. And my husband buys me different instrument. Like, that's his thing. He likes to buy me these, like, every year for either my birthday or for Christmas. He gets me a new instrument because he knows I like to collect them. So this year I got an automaton, which is a, it's like, it's an electronic instrument that's sort of played like a string. And it's very strange. Look it up. It's, it's, I have a lot of strange things.

Nanette McGuinness  05:20

[OUTRO MUSIC] Thank you for listening to for good measures to couple conversations and a special thank you to our guests for joining us today. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to our podcast by clicking on the subscribe button and support us by sharing it with your friends, posting about it on social media, and leaving us a rating and a review. To learn more about E4TT, our concert season online and in the Bay Area, or to make a tax deductible donation, please visit us at www.E4TT.org. This podcast is made possible in part by a grant from the California Arts Council and generous donors like you. For Good Measure is produced by Nanette McGuinness and Ensemble for These Times, and design by Brennan Stokes, with special thanks to Co-producer and Audio Engineer Stephanie M. Neuman. Remember to keep supporting equity in the arts and tune in next week "for good measure." [OUTRO MUSIC ENDS]