“Sometimes there seems to be a divine connection between picture and sound.”

I remember staying with my grandma for a summer when I was 12. She had me watch this movie, The Mission, which was scored by Ennio Morricone. The movie is beautifully shot, but it was the music that was the central part for me. I couldn’t imagine the movie without that exact score. I got my grandma to buy me a cassette tape of the soundtrack so that I could listen to it over and over. The score is intertwined in the movie not only by nature of how well it pairs with the visuals, but in how some of the musical themes are played by the characters themselves as part of the storyline.

It was the first time I really began to be aware of how music relates to film and how it can transform or carry what’s happening onscreen.

I believe that music is a central aspect of visual storytelling. The opportunity to create music that can create or support a feeling through moving pictures is absolutely thrilling to me.

Megan McGeorge is a classical pianist, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist who performs under the name Leo. She is the founder of local non-profit Piano! Push Play!, which brings pianos to the streets to ensure that anyone can have access to them.