Story & Lesson Highlights with Allyson Cohen

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Allyson Cohen . Check out our conversation below.

Good morning Allyson , we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What are you most proud of building — that nobody sees?
I’ve been working to build a life that feels balanced, one where productivity doesn’t come at the cost of peace. I’m learning to move toward goals without turning every day into a race toward the next milestone. It’s taken real effort to build routines that make space for sleep, friendship, good food, curiosity, and still getting meaningful work done. We’re not taught how to do this in school, but it’s something I’ve devoted a lot of energy to learning: how not to “when” my life away; when I finish this project, when I get that job, but to make time for living well now, because that’s what sustains everything else.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Allyson Cohen, and I’m the founder and director of Unison Chamber Music Collective, formerly known as the Concert Music Outreach Collective (CMOC). We’re a nonprofit organization that brings high-quality, engagement-based chamber music performances to underserved communities including shelters, recovery centers, and prisons. Our mission is to use music as a tool for connection, healing, and equity.
Unison’s work is built around three main programs: our Concert Series, which is our core offering and brings interactive performances directly into community spaces; the Emerging Composers Project, which commissions and records works by early-career composers; and the Field Trip Project, where we bring residents from our partner facilities to professional live concerts in their communities.
The organization also has an exciting partnership with the University of Michigan. Six student chamber groups will have the opportunity to perform on Unison concerts, and in preparation, I created a workshop called Performing with Purpose: Unison’s Guide to Engagement with Cultural Sensitivity and Trauma-Informed Practices. This training gives students the tools to design programming that aligns with Unison’s mission—centering empathy, inclusion, and meaningful connection through music.

Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who taught you the most about work?
Two mentors have shaped not only my musicianship but my understanding of what it means to work with purpose and heart: Annie Fullard and Danielle Belen. They are both extraordinary women: strong, kind, and endlessly dedicated, but in completely different ways. Annie has been like family to me. Over the past eight years, she’s nurtured my love for chamber music and taught me to give my whole self to it. She always says, “The music will always be there for you—it will never let you down.” In my darkest moments, when I’ve doubted myself, I return to that truth and to the comfort of the music itself. Annie also taught me that more than anything, it is our humanity that allows us to be the best musician. Being kind to colleagues and to ourselves gets us the furthest.
Ms. Belen has given me the technical foundation and confidence to play with freedom and authenticity. Her belief in me has carried me through times when I couldn’t find that belief on my own. She pushes me past what I ever conceived possible , and provides an unwavering standard of excellence that she believes I can achieve. To both of these women, I owe not only my growth as a musician, but the way I approach my work with integrity, resilience, and respect.

What fear has held you back the most in your life?
The fear of failing has held me back for much of my life. Over time, though, I’ve stopped believing in “failure” in the way we’re taught to. There’s rejection, which stings, and there’s changing course or giving something up, but to me, the only real failure is not trying at all because of fear.
We all have goals and dreams, but our definition of success can, and should, keep evolving. We’re not guaranteed that once we achieve what we thought was our dream, we’ll feel any different about ourselves. More often, we just reach for the next thing, and then the next. Success and failure, in that sense, are such a waste of energy to obsess over.
In music especially, everything is so subjective—who wins an audition or gets into a festival can come down to a tiny margin or even the mood of the panel that day. If you let those results define your worth or dictate your next steps, you lose sight of why you started. Rejection is hard, but it isn’t the same as failure. I try to remind myself that each “no” is just part of the process and that the real success is continuing to grow, to play, and to find joy along the way.

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
A belief and project I’m committed to, no matter how long it takes, is making classical music truly accessible to anyone who wants to experience it. I’m devoted to helping create a field that is more kind, inclusive, through the music we play, who gets to be on stage, who is in the audience, and how this music is presented.
Through my organization, Unison Chamber Music Collective, I’m working to make that vision real. We bring music to people who might otherwise never have the chance to hear it, perform a wide range of repertoire that celebrates diverse voices, and aim to expand the traditional canon through our commissioning program. Not only this, but I’m also committed to helping create the next generation of musicians who share these passions. At the end of the day, we are all people with the same basic need for authentic connection, and that’s the most important thing we have and what I hope to cultivate and activate in everyone.

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. When do you feel most at peace?
When I’m in nature. Whether that’s going for a run, sitting in the grass, or just stepping outside for a few deep breaths. The more I learn this about myself, the more I make it a priority to build in time (even if only a few minutes) each day to get some fresh air.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.unisonchambermusiccollective.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unisonchambermusiccollective?igsh=NXFybjU4Y3ppM3Jn