Shaped By Sound

Shaped by Sound spotlights North Carolina’s thriving music scene, featuring artists from a broad range of genres, including indie rock, hip-hop, R&B, alt-country, jazz, bluegrass and folk. Each episode weaves a visually stunning live studio performance by an NC artist or band with an intimate conversation about their creative journey. Made possible through support from Come Hear NC, a program of the N.C. Music Office within the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

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Created By	N.C. Music Office
Status	Returning Series
Original Name	Shaped By Sound
First Air Date	February 6, 2025
Last Air Date	March 19, 2026
Seasons	2
Episodes	26
Episode Runtime	0min
Language	English
Original Language	English
Production Countries	—
Production Companies	N.C. Music Office
Networks	PBS

S02E13

Al Strong

Al Strong is an award-winning trumpet player, composer, recording artist, and educator. A cultural innovator, he is the co-founder of the non-profit the Art of Cool Project, which spawned the internationally recognized Art of Cool Music Festival. A native of Washington, D.C., Strong is a graduate of the renowned Duke Ellington School for the Performing Arts and a passionate advocate for young people in music education. His experiences studying music at renowned Jazz Studies programs North Carolina Central University and Northern Illinois University, afforded him invaluable opportunities to perform at premiere jazz festivals.

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