A passionate communicator, Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser brings clarity and meaning to the concert hall, fostering deep connections between audiences and performers. He is concurrently the Resident Conductor of Engagement and Education of the San Francisco Symphony, Barrett Principal Education Conductor and Community Ambassador of the Toronto Symphony, Artist in Residence and Community Ambassador of Symphony Nova Scotia, and Principal Youth Conductor and Artistic Partner of Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra. He previously served as assistant conductor of the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony and associate conductor of the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. Host of Canadian Broadcasting Company’s (CBC) nationally broadcast weekly radio show Centre Stage, he is also the subject of a multi award-winning CBC documentary Disruptor Conductor, focusing on his efforts to extend the boundaries of the orchestral music world through concerts for neurodiverse, incarcerated, African diaspora, and LGBTQ2S+ populations.

Aima Paule, aka Aïma the Dreamer, is a multidisciplinary artist who has been performing, as well as creating and hosting events, for more than a decade. They are co-founder of Oakland’s beloved Soulovely, a QTBIPOC dance party that launched in 2011. Aima has lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for twenty years and continues to be inspired by the beauty and brilliance of the art, music, and activism that is fostered here. No stranger to collaboration, they believe in the power of using art and music as a bridge between communities. Aima has rocked crowds from Oakland to Barcelona as a vocalist and emcee with groups such as Jazz Mafia and J-Boogie’s Dubtronic Science. They are currently with music group Femme Deadly Venoms, and have recently released their title track music video Femmenomenon. Follow them on IG, FB, & TikTok: @aimathedrmr.