Three People who Inspired Me in 2023, in Their Own Bios and My Words

Earlier, I wrote an end of the year post on three artists I loved.
(three-artists-that-helped-me-in-2021.html)

This year, I wanted to post three people who inspired me in 2023. In looking for a common theme, it's pretty easy to see the commonality: All of these people are building something. The drive, energy, and resilience that these people show is truly remarkable. 

Alex Raineri's blog opens with a quote from a publication hailing him as a "Born communicator". Not only is this true in his piano playing, as the writer certainly meant, but is true in his work with other people. 

Alex recently opened his own venue in Brisbane to host the festival he built. The space is beautiful and his energy while talking about is is contagious. 

I was struck by Alex's dedication to his work as the AD of the Brisbane Music Festival. He simply never stopped, rising early to start rehearsals with dozens of people, run logistics during breaks, perform in the concert at night, and then run media for the festival "content!" at night, only to repeat it all the next day. I loved watching him work and learning what dedication looks like. I hope to emulate him in 2024. 

Briahna Joy Gray marks her instagram with "Former 2020 Bernie Press Secretary". On this list, she's the only person that I haven't spoken to, but I've heard a lot of what she has to say. 

Briahna has built mix of audiences- speaking to the middle-right on The Hill's "Rising" Show, but she also runs her own podcast, "Bad Faith", speaking to folks on the left. She is active across the political talking spaces, and hasn't backed down. I admire Briahna for her early assessments. In the few years that I've been watching her, she's changed my mind on a ton of things and is often ahead of everyone else on a particular topic, being proven correct months after she's said something. When I see her talking in my youtube feed, I listen.

She has endured attacks from the left and the right but stays true to what she believes. Politics is a lot more volatile than music, but we can all learn by her true-to-selfness. 

Megan Ihnen  "is a mezzo-soprano on a mission to change the world through the commissioning, performance, and proliferation of new music."

Megan's series, "Fri-Yay" started as a collection of fun tips for musicians, but has evolved into a full on lecture series on the importances of values, community, and focus in the music industry. I love that Megan seems to walk the line PERFECTLY between performer and speaker, proving to all of us that you can play (sing) and talk/advocate at the same time. These felt like two things I had to choose between in the Navy, and I'm so glad that Megan is here to show us otherwise.

She runs the Live Music Project with a mission to connect people with the means to access and experience live classical music in a way that strengthens community, celebrates listener agency, and amplifies local arts resources.

She speaks so passionately about this, and when I have questions about what I should do, I either think "What would Megan do?", or I just ask her.

Links:

Brisbane Music Festival (Alex)
https://alexraineri.com/

Bad Faith Podcast (Briahna)
​Bad FaithYouTube · Bad Faith100.7K+ followers

Megan Ihnen
https://meganihnen.com/