NU DECO NXT

Modeled after Nu Deco Ensemble's innovative and collective spirit, Nu Deco NXT inspires, enriches, and connects Miami youth through the creation of transformative, genre-bending musical experiences. Through engaged mentorship and interaction with members of Nu Deco, NXT members sharpen their individual musicianship, expand their musical abilities and elevate the essential skills of ensemble playing while building community and developing into tomorrow's artists and leaders for the 21st century. In addition to learning challenging ensemble repertoire, NXT musicians dive deeply into improvisation techniques, music theory and composition, mindfulness and wellness practices, audition and performance practices- all with an emphasis on developing leadership & entrepreneurship skills.

MY WHY…

“I found meditation and wellness practices during the hardest period of my life. My conducting career was just beginning when both of my parents passed away suddenly. I was in despair, lost and confused, with nowhere to look for answers while the grief overwhelmed me.

Searching for purpose and meaning in the midst of that grief, a stranger in an airport saw me crying and suggested I try yoga. Then meditation came into my life through a friend I met at yoga. Then I discovered the power of breathwork and its ability to shift my physiology instantly. Over time, with practice, a toolbox emerged that changed me fundamentally: how I live, how I understand my true purpose, how I make music with others, and most importantly, how I show up in the world.

“For twelve years since their passing, daily meditation, breathwork, yoga and movement, along with the many other wellness tools that found me along the way, have given me more presence, focus and joy, and a deeper connection to the people I share the stage and my life with. I also see the people I meet each day for who they are, another beautiful human on their own journey. It has been a gift and an opportunity to learn more about myself and my soul's work, and it shaped who I am today…

“Before conducting, I gave everything to being the best tubist I could be. I chased victories, accolades and wins that fed my ego, and somewhere in there I lost the inner joy and spark of music. I set impossible, selfish goals and felt crushed when I missed them, a continual failure in the eyes of my inner critic. I beat myself up over and over. I couldn't accept a compliment after a concert. I shrugged off the most special musical moments of my life as though they meant nothing to me. Lost on the inside and adrift, showing bravura on the outside to keep up the illusion that I was in control, that I was the man I thought others wanted me to be

That original spark was lit when I was twelve years old. Hearing the Canadian Brass live in a small auditorium in Homestead, Florida, the first classical concert I ever attended, I came home and told my mom that night that I wanted to be a professional musician. In her always uplifting and encouraging spirit, she went out and bought every Boston Pops and Canadian Brass recording she could find at the local record store, for this new thing I had called a CD player. That initial fire carried me to All-State, to Interlochen camp and academy, to Juilliard, to the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony, and to festivals and orchestras around the world. An astonishing time of musical expansion and growth, shadowed by impossible goals that kept me reaching for the next thing, and for someone to impress, instead of enjoying what was right in front of me…

I often wonder how I would have grown in those years had I had these tools, or at least how I would have coped. They only came to me after real and profound loss, when I had to finally work out who I am rather than who I thought my parents and friends wanted me to be. Perhaps that is the point. My life has always been full of love and joy, and its struggles taught me exactly what I needed in order to be of use to others now, and to be the man I am today.

“Today I am an RYT-200 yoga teacher, a Chopra-certified meditation teacher, a breathwork facilitator, and the director of Nu Deco NXT's wellness program. Now I get to share these practices with young musicians in Miami and around the world. They shaped me, and I still discover more of myself every single day. The artist's journey is lifelong, as is the human journey, a search for the deepest and truest moments. As an artist, I look for ways to give those moments back to everyone I get to be with, on stage, in the audience and with students, through culture, art and music. That quest deserves all the support it can get.

My fullest purpose now is to serve the next generation of musicians: to show up for them, work alongside them, and pass on the tools I wish I'd had at their age. From the high school students of Nu Deco NXT to the emerging artists of Jong Metropole, these practices can change the course of a young life and bring someone closer to who they truly are.

The science also supports what I have lived. Slow, steady belly breathing calms the nervous system within minutes. A major 2019 review of randomized trials found that mindfulness practice can ease depression, anxiety and stress in children and teens. These practices help musicians, and they help everyone, at any age. 

My goal is simple: help others become more resilient humans, and let that show up in them as resilient musicians.”

— Jacomo Bairos

Learn more about Nu Deco NXT here!