The semi-annual TEDxAtlanta conference took place March 13 and Robert Spano "held the audience spellbound" with a talk about the universal role of music. Discussing the event's theme of Creating Community, Spano says:

I know as an individual, I'm a member of many diverse communities. I am not just one thing; I'm not just part of one group. And those concentric circles and their way of meeting is part of the beauty of the word and the beauty of experience, and also part of the beauty of music.

In addition to his speech, Spano played an original composition based on Debussy's The Sunken Cathedral. You can watch a video of the talk here.

On May 3, Robert Spano conducts the Juilliard Orchestra in Alice Tully Hall with two works by Claude Vivier (Orion and Lonely Child), as well as Bartók's Miraculous Mandarin Suite and Sibelius's Symphony No. 7-a program that gives prominence to the voices of the 20th Century through three different composers. Highlighting Mr. Spano's passion for working with students, this performance comes in between performances with the Curtis Symphony Orchestra in Philadelphia and at the Dresden Music Festival.

Spring 2012 marks the third, and final, year of Spano's residency at Emory University. In its 165-year history, Emory University has honored only seven other individuals with such expansive residencies, including the Dalai Lama, President Jimmy Carter and author Salman Rushdie. To view the reminder of events during Robert's residency, click here.