Midori Samson

Flute Instructor

Assistant Professor of Bassoon, University of Kansas

As a former camper and counselor, Dr. Midori Samson (she/her/siya) サムソンみどり is honored to return as a faculty member. She is a bassoonist, educator, and social worker whose artistic practice integrates music with social justice and healing-centered care. Holding degrees in music and social work from Juilliard and the universities of Texas, Michigan, and Wisconsin, she facilitates arts and healing activities for communities around the world. Some recent engagements include touring the Turkey/Syria border with a circus to perform for families in conflict zones; co-writing a play with artists in Kigali to commemorate the Rwandan genocide; researching the artistic contributions of atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima;  collaborating with Yo-Yo Ma and Gabriela Lena Frank; leading arts therapy sessions for internally displaced high schoolers in Ukraine; composing an audio-visual album based on stories of her Filipino/Japanese immigrant ancestors. She is Assistant Professor of Bassoon at the University of Kansas, performs with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, teaches at the Bay View Music Festival, and volunteers as a crisis hotline counselor.