A wonderful conversation with my dear friend Hyung-ki Joo for the OAMusic Podcast.

We talked about comedy, Bach, Glenn Gould, Billy Joel, music competitions, deaf children experiencing music through vibration, the absurd seriousness of the classical world, and why communication ultimately matters more than perfection.

One of the most fascinating musicians I’ve ever met — irreverent, brilliant, deeply thoughtful, and always searching for new ways to bring people closer to music.

I’ve known Hyung-ki for almost 30 years, since our days at Manhattan School of Music, and this conversation felt less like an interview and more like reconnecting with an old friend after decades of artistic adventures.

Writer, curator, and Wordless Music founder Ronen Givony joins the OAMusic Podcast to discuss his new book, Us v. Them, a history of the Brooklyn music scene in the early 2000s.

We talk about DIY venues, Williamsburg, Glasslands, Death By Audio, Grizzly Bear, TV on the Radio, Death by Audio, Nonesuch Records, the post-Napster music world, and how indie music became both a scene and a marketing term.

Ronen also reflects on founding Wordless Music, his time at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and the strange cultural moment when classical music, indie rock, and New York nightlife began to overlap.

Buy Us V. Them here:
https://www.amazon.com/Us-v-Them-Deca...

Wordless Music
https://www.wordlessmusic.org/aboutco...

Ronen Givony is the founder of Wordless Music, an orchestra and concert series that has worked with artists across genres, from Sigur Rós and Mica Levi to Terrence Malick and Paul Thomas Anderson. A curator for music festivals and venues in the United States and abroad, he is the author of two other books: "24 Hour Revenge Therapy (or, The Strange Death of Selling Out)" and "Not for You: Pearl Jam and the Present Tense." Born and raised in South Florida, he now lives in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn.

In this episode, I sit down with composer, pianist, and accordion virtuoso Ronn Yedidia for a wide-ranging conversation on music, creativity, and the state of classical culture today. We revisit his extraordinary journey from child prodigy in Tel Aviv to Juilliard, and explore two major recent projects: his deeply expressive 24 Preludes and his jazz-fusion album Prophets.

Along the way, we talk about composition, improvisation, influence, the role of beauty in music, and why so much contemporary concert music has lost touch with audiences. Ronn speaks candidly about old forms, new music, jazz, orchestras, programming politics, and the need to reconnect musical life with listeners.

A rich conversation about artistry, freedom, tradition, and the future of serious music.