Visionary cellist and composer Serena Jost grew up between Switzerland and Michigan, speaking the Swiss German language with her family and climbing up on the roof with a homemade radio antennae to take in the sounds of languages she didn't know. Serena writes lyrics that are poetic rather than narrative, takes inspiration from literature, and composes some songs in wordless or invented tongues. 



Serena describes the mind-opening, terrifying shapes of the Swiss Alps and their effect on human psychology. She and Rose Thomas discuss different modes of language acquisition, from need-based to perfectionistic to every-day. They also discuss the seemingly divine nature of composition, discuss a couple of poems, and play several songs from Serena's three albums, A Bird Will Sing, Up to the Sky, and Closer than Far, as well as two unreleased recordings. 



Purchase Serena's recordings—and hire her for remote cello lessons!—at her website:

serenajost.com

You can purchase Rose Thomas Bannister's new record at rosethomasbannister.bandcamp.com.

Watch this episode on YouTube @mododiberepodcast 

SPANISH LEARNERS NEEDED! This episode is brought to you by Culture Without Borders Language Collective, our exclusive sponsor for the month of October 2025. If you've been wishing for real people to practice your Spanish with, CWB is looking for more English-speaking Spanish learners to join their monthly language exchange.These online meetups are completely FREE for participants.

Visit cwbcollective.com and subscribe to their newsletter to get the dates for the next meetup—including a bilingual wine tasting with Modo di Bere!

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Modo di Bere is a multiplatform publication by Rose Thomas Bannister. In addition to this podcast, Rose Thomas also makes:

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Music composed by Ersilia Prosperi for the band Ou: www.oumusic.bandcamp.com

Buy their latest album at https://folderol.it/ou/

This episode was produced and recorded by Rose Thomas Bannister

Video and audio edited by Giulia Àlvarez-Katz

Audio assistance by Steve Silverstein