Lera Auerbach is a Renaissance artist for modern times—a poet, writer, visual artist, composer, conductor, and concert pianist whose work has reached a global audience. Born in Russia, she now lives in the United States and Austria. She holds degrees from the Juilliard School and the Hannover University for Music, Drama, and Media in Germany. Auerbach has published six books of poetry in Russian. Her first book in English, Excess of Being (Arch Street Press,) explores the form of aphorisms and is illustrated by Auerbach as well. Her most recent book, A is for Oboe, written in collaboration with Marilyn Nelson, was published by Penguin Random House in the fall of 2021. She is a composer and librettist whose numerous works for opera, ballet, and orchestra are regularly performed throughout the world. She was elected a Young Global Leader and served as a cultural leader at the World Economic Forum. She is a regular contributor to the Best American Poetry Blog.