Carnegie Hall

April 21, 2026; NEW YORK, NY)—Carnegie Hall celebrates 15 years of its Musical Connections program this season with Sing Sing Voices, a new collection of video playlists featuring original music created by participants and alumni of the Hall’s long-standing residency at Sing Sing Correctional Facility. Now available to the public for the first time, the three playlists feature video reflections from the men who are members of the Musical Connections artistic community, along with filmed introductions by Grammy Award-winning artists Common, Joyce DiDonato, and Arturo O’Farrill—all of whom have collaborated with the men in Musical Connections workshops and performed with them at the maximum-security prison in Westchester County.

The three Sing Sing Voices playlists contain recorded performances from the past 15 years—each centered around a distinct theme—showcasing nearly 50 original songs spanning classical, jazz, blues, gospel, reggae, hip-hop, and more, offering listeners a compelling view into the depth, artistry, and humanity of music-making inside Sing Sing.

• Reimagining Change, introduced by acclaimed rapper and actor Common, features music about justice, hope, advocacy, and building a more equitable world.
   
• Inner Transformation, introduced by opera star Joyce DiDonato, highlights songs of solitude, resilience, and personal evolution.
   
• Exploring Identity, introduced by renowned composer, pianist, and bandleader Arturo O’Farrill, celebrates music of ancestry, belief, and belonging.

Together, the music represented on these playlists captures only a fraction of the hundreds of original songs created by men at Sing Sing as part of the music residency over the past 15 years.
 

Common, Joyce DiDonato, and Arturo O’Farrill

Carnegie Hall’s Musical Connections program provides intensive training workshops in composition, songwriting, instrumental skills, and performance for men who are incarcerated. The participants engage in a yearlong learning experience, creating and performing music side-by-side with visiting professional artists across a broad range of musical interests, traditions, and compositions. Several concerts throughout the year for the facility’s general population as well as family members, Sing Sing staff, and invited guests, feature original works written and performed by the men with professional musicians drawn from the Musical Connections teaching artist roster. Since the residency began 15 years ago—in partnership with New York State Department of Corrections—more than 300 original pieces have been composed by program participants, with the Musical Connections Ensemble collaborating in concerts with acclaimed featured guests, including Common, Joyce DiDonato, Arturo O’Farrill, and Rhiannon Giddens.

Through Musical Connections, participants are invited to unlock their creative potential, building meaningful community and finding healing through music. The workshop also serves as a vehicle for personal empowerment and a catalyst for change. In addition to participants’ musical and artistic accomplishments, participation builds skills and provides a positive way for the men to explore and express themselves; accomplish goals on their own; and to communicate and work productively with others—important skills to develop as they prepare to return home to their own communities. (Roughly 95% of the men incarcerated at Sing Sing will eventually return home.)

As an important component of the program, an advisory committee of participants who have now come home was established in 2016. The group meets monthly in Carnegie Hall’s Resnick Education Wing to support each other, inform the Musical Connections program, and continue to make music, performing together as The Freedom Trap across New York City and beyond. On Saturday, July 11 at 3:00 p.m., The Freedom Trap will perform a set and also join Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra on stage at the amphitheater in Riverbank State Park in Upper Manhattan as part of the free Carnegie Hall Citywide concert series.

“As we celebrate 15 years of music-making at Sing Sing Correctional Facility, we are excited to share with the world some of the men’s extraordinary original music through the Sing Sing Voices playlists,” said Sarah Johnson, Chief Education Officer and Director of the Weill Music Institute. “These playlists illustrate ways the Musical Connections residency fosters self-expression, musical skill building, resilience, and community. Sing Sing Voices is an invitation to all of us to listen, to reflect, and to recognize the creative force and humanity in people who live within prison walls. It’s an opportunity to explore and celebrate the power of music in support of personal and social transformation.”

“I want my music to show that it helped me change my life and gave me a new outlook on how I live my life now,” said Paul, a Musical Connections program participant.

“This body of music is also about the joy of change,” said Ivan, a former Musical Connections participant at Sing Sing who has returned home and is now a member of the Musical Connections Advisory Committee. “People have an idea, I think, of what type of music or what type of art people on the inside make. And they’ve got it wrong. The music inside is celebratory. It’s joyous. And it’s not because people are celebrating their conditions. They’re not celebrating the fact that they’ve committed crimes … But it’s an opportunity—a very rare opportunity—to pour some light into the world.”

“I think anyone who listens to the Sing Sing Voices playlists will be moved by the honesty, vulnerability, and artistry expressed through the men’s creative work,” said Joyce DiDonato. “I’ve been amazed—and often transformed—by the extraordinary experience of making music alongside the Musical Connections program participants since my first visit to Sing Sing in 2015. I imagine listeners will feel that same impact.”

Listen to Highlights of Sing Sing Voices Video Playlists:

Inner Transformation Playlist—Introduced by Joyce DiDonato
      “Holding Out Hope” by Kenyatta
      “I Must Confess” by Dexter

Reimagining Change Playlist—Introduced by Common
      “Victory” by Alfred
      “Pinocchio” by James

Exploring Identity Playlist—Introduced by Arturo O’Farrill
      “Amazing Grace / Overwhelmed” by Alfred
      “Kranz” by Shadrich

Watch the Sing Sing Voices trailer
 

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About Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute
Established in 2003, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute (WMI) creates visionary programs that embody the Hall’s commitment to music education, playing a central role in fulfilling the Hall’s mission of making great music accessible to as many people as possible. With unparallelled access to the world’s greatest artists, WMI’s programs are designed to inspire people of all ages, nurture tomorrow’s talent, and harness the power of music to make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. An integral part of Carnegie Hall’s concert season, WMI’s hands-on collection of 15 innovative programs facilitate creative expression, support health and well-being, develop musical skills and capacities at all levels, and encourage participants to make lifelong personal connections to music.

Hundreds of thousands of people each year engage in WMI’s programs in a range of settings—including schools, hospitals, justice settings, community centers, and more—through national and international partnerships. This includes more than 208 orchestras, peer arts organizations, and education and community-based organizations in 46 states as well as internationally in 33 countries on 6 continents. The wide range of WMI activity includes early childhood programming for families; professional development for teachers; long-standing workshops for young people and adults who are incarcerated; national youth ensembles for the US’s finest rising musicians; intimate concerts centered around well-being; and much more. WMI’s programs tap into the creativity of audiences of all ages, inviting them to make their own music in all genres, express their viewpoints, and raise their voices.

As a leader in music education, WMI shares an extensive range of online resources and program materials for free with teachers, families, orchestras, arts organizations, and music lovers worldwide. In recognition of its work to measurably improve health and well-being through the arts, Carnegie Hall was named the inaugural Healing Arts Center of Excellence by the Jameel Arts and Health Lab, a global initiative in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO).

For more information, please visit: carnegiehall.org/education

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Major funding is provided by Ameriprise Financial.

Public support has been provided by the New York State Senate through NYS Senator Julia Salazar.

 

 

 

Photo: Stephanie Berger