I've been talking a fair amount recently about the dangers of "data adjacent decision making." This happens when you have a lot of numbers, and probably a graph, and you put them next to a decision, and then believe that your decision is based on solid scientific reasoning. I've seen this danger crop up in …
30 Exactly 30
I turned 30 on June 6, 2014. Instead of a "30 under 30" list, I took some time that day to put together a "30 Exactly 30" list. I rooted around the internet to find thirty people born on exactly the same day I was. A lot of them were athletes, actors, and pop musicians …
Controlling Time
Last month I gave a hybrid talk at the Rhymes with Opera summer training program for singers and composers. Part of it was based on the same material as my talk for Fresh Inc., and the other part concerned my approach to putting music in theater. For the last few years I've been experimenting with …
YouTube launches Crowdfunding as a feature
It was only a matter of time. It used to be that social networking was a specialized feature that was only done by specialized websites. Then social became a must-have feature for everyone. That's what's happening now to crowdfunding. YouTube is adding a tip feature to its channel, announced in this blog post: Fan Funding: …
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Fresh Inc 2014
Last week I returned to the Fresh Inc Festival to speak about arts entrepreneurship (and specifically crowdfunding) to a group of young composers and performers. I was a little worried about doing the same talk over again, but as I began preparing my notes for the talk, I realized that wasn't going to be a …
Blette Soup
Stupidly easy recipe. Throw about a third of a cup of unwashed rice into a quart or so of chicken stock. Simmer it until the rice is done, and throw in a couple kind of bashed up but practically whole garlic cloves. Throw in a chopped up bunch of chard (that's the blette), and cook …
Los Angeles Fishventures
I have been remiss. Last May I went to a beautiful wedding in Los Angeles, and took advantage of being there to eat a lot of Mexican seafood. The entire nonsensical experience is catalogued in this particular Chowhound thread. The frequent posters were super helpful, so I did my best to photograph and describe everything …
4 Ingredient Salmon Tartare
Before I make any salmon main course, I make this tartare. I love raw salmon, I love how it tastes with soy sauce, and I do not have the wherewithal to confidently cut my own sashimi and still have the rest of the fish be nicely shaped portions, so I do this. Chopped raw salmon …
Recent blogging at NewMusicBox
At New Music USA, where I work, we publish NewMusicBox. Coincidentally, NewMusicBox is turning 15 years old this month, and there's a great series of posts examining the site's history (in related news, you should make a donation to keep the site going for another 15 years). Occasionally I'll contribute an article to the site, …
Stock Tips
Rachel Fershleiser once said "If I die, tell the New York Times I liked soup." Then she made this soup zine with her friend Ami Greko. I think the Times will be able to figure it out on their own. Most of the zine (which you should buy at Housingworks) is made up of recipes, …
Sixth Borough Punch
There is no photo for this punch. I hadn't planned to blog it, but the audience that drank it last night at the Con Vivo gala demanded I post the recipe. They did this after they drank it, so blame them for the lack of art. This recipe uses all of my cheap tricks in …
We launched.
You can now create a project page at New Music USA in order to apply for funding! It's easier than a normal grant process - just paste in your marketing materials, link to some media, and make a profile. And if we fund you, we publish your project page and both you and New Music …