Composer, pianist, poet, and visual artist Milad Yousufi (b. 1995) was born in Afghanistan during the civil war and trained at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music before being awarded a full scholarship at the Mannes School of Music. His compositions have been performed by the Kronos Quartet and the New York Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra, and at Lincoln Centre, Boston Symphony Hall, Carnegie Hall and the Barbican Centre. Yousufi’s work is deeply inspired by his country and culture.

Now residing in the US, his works express the complex feelings towards his country of birth — feeling abandoned yet longing to go back to it. His lush orchestral compositions can be seen as a bridge between his current country of residence and his homeland, and often feature strong elements of Afghan traditional rhythm, dance, modes and instruments. He has worked with some of the most established names in contemporary classical music, including the Terezin Music Foundation and Simone Dinnerstein.