Caroline Jesalva is a Chicago-based musician, curator, and arts leader dedicated to building adaptive ecosystems and equitable spaces that foster culturally responsive artistry and creative practice.

Caroline currently serves as the executive director of Concerts for Compassion, a New York-based nonprofit that creates inclusive spaces where refugees, artists, and local communities collaborate through concerts, workshops, and free music education programs.

As a violinist and vocalist, Caroline’s own artistic practice centers on community-driven performance, curation, and organizing in Chicago. A core part of this work is her role as violinist and co-artistic director of Crossing Borders, an organization that uses music to promote the dignity of people from all cultures by sharing the stories and music of those whose voices are suppressed because of race, gender, religion, or cultural identity.

Deeply committed to Chicago’s creative community, Caroline has also served as co-founder and curator of Music in the Garden since 2022, establishing an annual multidisciplinary exposition at the Elastic Arts Foundation that highlights experimental artists, improvisers, and radical creatives.

Caroline earned her degree from the New England Conservatory of Music, where she received the Entrepreneurial Musicianship Award. Her leadership and artistic contributions have been recognized with a 3Arts Foundation Make-A-Wave Award and selection as a Nova Arts Fellow.