(Photo: Matthew Quigley) Mariko Hiraga Wyrick — Music — From Mill Valley, California — “I do what I do because I am able to help people. The idea that I can temporarily relieve someone of their daily worries and take them somewhere else free of distress is a unique power that is quite remarkable. The cello is a vessel through which I can tell my story to an audience. It is my way of the purest expression that I have to offer and I am so fortunate to be able to do what I do.”