Nashville December 2, 2026

This Isn’t Music

The Quartet Premiere

Created by Violetta Zironi & Michael Hunter Ochs

Date: Wednesday, December 2, 2026
Time: Doors 7:00 PM · Show 7:30 PM
Where: Nashville Jazz Workshop

The piece

The sensation of the whole.

Violetta Zironi has synesthesia. When she hears music, she also sees its colors, feels its texture, tastes its flavor. For years she assumed everyone experienced music this way.

And even though they didn’t, perhaps we all perceive more than we realize.

This Isn’t Music is an original, multisensory theater piece performed by Violetta Zironi accompanied on stage by the Lockeland Strings.

This first workshop presentation marks the beginning of a larger vision: a piece that will evolve toward an immersive, full orchestral experience.

Audiences are invited to witness its inception and contribute to its development by sharing their immediate responses during a post-performance talkback.

This Isn’t Music: The Quartet Premiere is made possible by the FY27 Metro Arts Grant.

The creators

Who made it

A synesthete songwriter and a multi-platinum composer.

Violetta Zironi

Co-creator · Composer · Performer · Synesthete

Violetta Zironi is an Italian songwriter and interdisciplinary artist with five albums, performances across the US, Europe, and Asia, and more than 10,000 digital artworks sold. She starred in Netflix’s Rose Island and won a David di Donatello Award with Orchestra di Piazza Vittorio. She was an early leader in blockchain music and built a global collector community. Now she turns her synesthesia into multisensory theater experiences. violettazironi.com

Michael Hunter Ochs

Co-creator · Composer

Multi-platinum, award-winning composer whose songs have appeared on albums with more than 25 million units in global sales. His work spans pop, film, television, and sacred traditions, including the Gospel Music Association’s Song of the Year “On My Knees,” as well as recent synchronization licensing in an international Instagram campaign. Since 2018, he has partnered with Violetta Zironi, co-writing and producing music that helped propel her earlier collections to worldwide recognition. michaelhunterochs.com

The team

Matt Rollings

Orchestrator

Two-time GRAMMY-winning producer, orchestrator, and pianist. Credits include Willie Nelson, Alison Krauss, Keith Urban, Eric Clapton, Billy Joel. Named ACM Pianist/Keyboardist of the Year ten times.

Jacob Aaron Schnitzer

Stage Director

Conductor, composer, and director Jacob Aaron Schnitzer is Music Director of the Gateway Chamber Orchestra of Middle Tennessee and Artistic Director of Density512 in Austin, Texas. A recipient of The Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Award, he has led more than 75 world premieres and guest-conducts internationally.

Lighting designer: Joshua Keith
Movement coach: Amanda Cantrell Roche
Production coordinator: Luca Chiappara

December 2 · Nashville Jazz Workshop

We’d love to see you there.

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