Today we’d like to introduce you to Annabella Paolucci.
Hi Annabella, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My sister and I both started playing the violin when we were 5 years old through an elementary school strings program. With so much support from our teachers, parents, and community, we both began taking music very seriously. We went on to attend performing arts middle and high schools, compete in competitions, travel across the country and world for festivals, and begin our professional journeys in classical music.
I absolutely fell in love with the violin. It has allowed me to travel the world, meet incredible people, and express myself through such a beautiful art form. For most of my life, I truly believed my path would lead to becoming a professional classical violinist, hopefully winning a position in a great orchestra one day.
But after my dad taught me the guitar and I experimented with writing songs for the first time, songwriting became one of the only ways I knew how to cope and express myself. Writing songs slowly became a huge emotional outlet for me. Eventually, I started experimenting with recording and producing my own music. At first, I had no idea what the capabilities of a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) really were, and I remember being completely mind blown the more I discovered. That was the beginning of my passion for music technology and production, and there was really no going back after that.
I started dedicating equal focus to both classical violin studies and music production, and I was amazed by how much the two paths influenced one another. Although they seem very different on the surface, they have complemented each other in such a meaningful way throughout my life.
I went on to pursue a dual degree in Violin Performance and Music Technology at the University of Michigan on a full scholarship, where I was able to deeply study both of my biggest passions. During my time there, I played in orchestra, freelanced around Ann Arbor, worked as an Audio Visual Technician, collaborated with musicians and artists in the area, and played electric and acoustic violin in my band, Cedar Bend Band. I also had the most amazing experience living in the beautiful community of Ann Arbor.
I am now pursuing my master’s degree in Media Scoring and Production at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami on a full scholarship, where I was also awarded a Teaching Assistant position. This past year, I was honored to receive the 2025 We Are Moving The Needle college scholarship and participate in the 2025 Latin Grammys Leading Ladies Mentorship Program.
I have absolutely loved living in Miami. I still perform and gig around the area, but I am focusing more heavily on my music production and audio engineering goals. Latin music is my greatest passion. Growing up in South Florida as an Argentinian-Italian-American, I feel incredibly fortunate to have been surrounded by such rich culture and such an amazing music scene. My dream for years was to move to Miami and become part of this creative community, and honestly, each day still feels like a dream come true.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Definitely not, haha. During my undergraduate years, I constantly felt torn between two passions and struggled to figure out how to divide my time and energy. Pursuing a dual degree while working multiple jobs and trying to maintain my own creative projects was incredibly challenging.
I remember countless all-nighters, stressful breakdowns, and moments of complete uncertainty about what I wanted my life to look like. And honestly, for better or worse, that phase hasn’t fully ended. I still experience stress, still pull all-nighters, and still deal with doubt and imposter syndrome. But no matter how difficult things get, I always find myself coming back to music. I know this is what I am meant to do, and my passion for it is too strong to walk away from, even during the hardest moments.
I also struggled a lot with performance anxiety throughout my years in classical music. While I still deeply love performing violin, I eventually realized that music production gave me a different kind of creative freedom and comfort. Producing allowed me to feel proud of the final product in a way that felt less tied to the pressure and unpredictability of live performance.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I feel like I live two very distinct musical lives that also blend into one: my violin performance life and my production life.
On the violin side, I especially love playing tango music and had the opportunity to study with a tango professor in Argentina for a few years. I also studied abroad in Mysore, India, where I studied Carnatic violin playing. More recently, I toured South Africa and performed at Carnegie Hall with the University of Michigan Symphony Orchestra.
I was also a two-time participant in the National Youth Orchestra of the United States (NYO-USA) in 2020 and 2021, and was recently invited back to perform with the NYO All-Stars Orchestra at Carnegie Hall alongside artists including Emanuel Ax, Joyce DiDonato, Renée Fleming, Lang Lang, Audra McDonald, and Daniil Trifonov, where I also got to be stand partners with my older sister for our first time ever.
And a very surreal experience of my career so far happened in November 2025, when music director and producer Carlitos Lopez gave me the opportunity to perform in the Latin Grammys Person of the Year with his orchestra, the Philharmonic Orchestra Project, alongside artists that I look up to, including Fito Páez, Elena Rose, Jesse & Joy, and Susana Baca to name a few.
Then on the production side, I mainly work as an audio engineer and produce within the Latin music Industry. More than anything, I feel like I am “most known for” my string writing, arranging, producing, and recording. That feels like the place where my two musical worlds intersect most naturally. I love creating and recording string arrangements, and I hope to continue collaborating with more artists and producers on that side of my work.
Since moving to Miami, I have mainly specialized in Latin pop production. I currently work as an assistant audio engineer at Electric Feel Studios and will soon begin an internship at SiriusXM in Miami Beach as a music programmer. I have also assisted Producer, Carlitos Lopez, as an assistant audio engineer on recording sessions for the Palm Beach Symphony, and I occasionally sub with the orchestra as a violinist, which feels very full-circle to me.
I also write, record, and produce my own music, so I’m really hoping to dedicate more time to that this summer!
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
I would say: don’t be afraid to be unique and create music that you genuinely believe in. The music industry can be incredibly competitive and sometimes discouraging, and it’s easy to feel pressure to follow trends or compare yourself to everyone around you. But I truly think authenticity is what connects most deeply with people. The artists and musicians who inspire me the most are the ones who use music as a form of honest self-expression. I also think it’s important not to be afraid to let your music reflect what you care about, like social justice issues and the experiences happening around you. Music has always been such a powerful tool for storytelling, healing, and activism.
I think another important thing I’ve learned is that there is no single “correct” path in music. For a long time, I felt pressure to choose one direction, but I’ve realized that having multiple passions can actually become your greatest strength.
And something I wish I knew more when I was starting out to how important it is to be patient with yourself. There will always be moments where you question yourself, but it’s important to not let that inner negative voice in your head win, and to keep surrounding yourself with people who inspire and support you.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annabellap.music/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annabellapaolucci/
