2024
Profile
Before studying music, I studied psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and had a keen interest in the effects that schizophrenia and memory degenerative disorders had on the brain and how medicine and music therapy are used to alleviate symptoms. During my time in Santa Barbara, I founded the Santa Barbara chapter of Music Mends Minds, volunteered at schools teaching Social Emotional Learning, and listened to a ton of music through it all. Soon after graduating, I was given the opportunity to work at a nonprofit examining the effectiveness of mental health programs. It was here that my interest in data and ultimately YIR was born. I worked for this nonprofit for almost two years, learned a lot, and took the opportunity to move back to LA and return to school to study music.
After years of music gnawing, I’ve returned to school to fully embrace it. At 25, I took the leap and started my first private lesson, diving deep into classical and jazz music theory, jazz performance, composition, music technology, and the exciting intersections of music and data. I’m on track to graduate with an Associate of Science in Music Entrepreneurship in the Summer of 2025, and I couldn’t be more thrilled about what lies ahead.
I aspire to uncover new and innovative ways to explore music’s relationship with data, bridging creativity and analysis to push the boundaries of what’s possible. With influences including guitarists Flanafi and Mike Haldeman, who use Ableton to create unique soundscapes for improvisational music, I aim to create a space where data and the guitar come together to inspire creativity and to push the boundaries of guitar.
-IRA
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