CO-FOUNDER & ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

David Spelman is a curator and music producer working in recordings, films, and live events. Best known as the artistic director of the New York Guitar Festival, he's also widely acclaimed as an artistic advisor and guest curator for music festivals, museums, and performing-arts centers in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia. Selected as one of the New England Conservatory's "100 Most Distinguished Alumni,” he also serves as a frequent conference panelist & speaker as well as magazine contributor. His projects have attracted the support of The National Endowment for the Arts, the Government of South Australia, New York Public Radio, L’Oréal, and Apple Inc. www.davidspelman.com

CO-FOUNDER & HOST/MC

John Schaefer has been the host and producer of New Sounds since 1982, and its innovative Soundcheck podcast, which has featured live performances and interviews with a variety of guests, since 2002. He is also the co-host of the nationally-syndicated series Carnegie Hall Live, produced by WQXR, and hosts the Ojai Talks, a series of live interviews with artists at the annual Ojai Festival in California. He created the New Sounds Live concert series in 1986, which features new works, commissioned pieces, and a special series devoted to live music for silent films. Schaefer has written extensively about music, including the book New Sounds: A Listener’s Guide to New Music; the Cambridge Companion to Singing: World Music; the TV program Bravo Profile: Bobby McFerrin; and the documentary film The Art Of Ostad Elahi. He is a frequent juror for the Pulitzer Prize in Music and teaches the Media Workshop each year at the Bang On A Can Summer Festival at Mass MoCA. To learn more, go to http://www.newsounds.org

DEVELOPMENT

Zingi Mkefa is a writer and development specialist for nonprofit organizations. He graduated from the New School in 2014 with a master’s degree in International Affairs. In 2006, he received a Fulbright scholarship to complete a master’s degree in Journalism at New York University, where he specialized in Cultural Reporting and Criticism. His career as an arts journalist in South Africa spans ten years and has included bylines in notable publications such as the Sunday Times and THISDAY (South Africa), an arts talk show on RadioToday, and he has served on a variety of arts awards judging panels including the Naledi Theatre Awards. In 2010 and 2011, he served as advisor and mentor for the student theatre program at South Africa’s annual National Arts Festival. Zingi married his life partner Elliot in 2014; they live together with their dog Augie in New York.

MULTIMEDIA

Kyoko Takenaka is a musician, photographer, & videographer based in New York City. Recently her interest lies in combining all three mediums. As a multi-media artist, she has a passion for stretching boundaries -- whether it be between fiction vs documentary, music vs visual art, or performing vs capturing. Her goal is to experience the world through a wider lens. 

ART DIRECTION & WEB DEVELOPMENT

Ertaç is an art director with more than 15 years of experience in brand identity, graphic design, and visual communication. He has worked extensively with Nublu and Nublu Records, creating posters, album artwork, and merchandise, and serves as art director for NYC Winter Jazzfest, where he develops logos, merchandise, and promotional materials. His work includes a poster for Herbie Hancock and custom merchandise for Billboard, Rolling Stone, Variety, and WWD. In 2019, he founded his boutique design company, Brooklyn Airlines, which continues to serve clients while also producing his popular “I Hate Leaving New York” merchandise line. for more information please visit: www.ertacuygun.com

MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS

A once (and future?) radio DJ, Neil Thompson first carved a path to stardom by spinning on air certain dusty volumes of vinyl (jazz, mostly) on the hallowed 5th floor of his college radio station. Announcer jobs in public as well as commercial FM eventually followed, yet the gig Neil misses most was his brief stint as the "unused portion guy" at Cracker Jacks, where his duties entailed reading letters of woe from snack food junkies who were disappointed by the quality of the prize—or, even worse, had munched their way through to discover the box contained no prize at all. Recent years have found Neil marketing himself as a fashionista, based on his ability to write phrases like, "pairs well with lime-green for a hazy, summertime feel." Other eclectic career moves have included time served as an audio book engineer and a feisty film critic. The NYGF, however, has restored him to his first love: delightfully esoteric music. 

GENERAL MANAGER & PRODUCER/CURATOR

A.J. Benson’s earliest musical memories are of puzzling over his parents’ Mamas & Papas, Dave Brubeck, Trini Lopez and Herb Alpert LPs as a kid in Connecticut. He’s spent the last fifteen-plus years in the music industry, in a number of executive and consulting capacities at A&M/Octone Records, Island Def Jam Music Group, Arista/J/RCA Records, Virgin Records America, and Cherry Lane Music, overseeing various aspects of projects for Aretha Franklin, Patti Smith, Maroon 5, Ben Harper, OutKast, Johnny Cash’s estate, Barry Manilow, The Roots, Whitney Houston, Foo Fighters, The Notorious B.I.G., Dave Matthews, K'NAAN, several American Idols, and many other artists in between. He is currently running his own music and arts consulting venture called I Float Down The Liffey, LLC. He joined The New York Guitar Festival in 2005. Biggest career coup to date: somehow persuading Bruce Springsteen to show up and perform at the Festival’s 2006 launch concert, The Nebraska Project. (Close runner-up: Landing Justin Vernon of Bon Iver to compose and perform an original score to several Charlie Chaplin silent films for the 2010 Fest.)

GRAPHIC DESIGN

Award-winning graphic designer, art director, skateboarder, and traditional tattoo collector Nick Kiefer resides in the glorious city of Asbury Park, NJ. He’s designed record covers and local music posters for more than half his life. Currently on staff at a small advertising agency close to home, he shapes local brands (Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back!), keeps his commute to a minimum, and catches waves before the sun sets. His steady flow of freelance clientele, which ranges from local musicians to national broadcast television, constantly pushes his creativity to the limits.

INTERN

Dylan Wise is a visual artist, and a recent fine arts graduate at Monmouth University. He joined the New York Guitar Festival as an intern in 2011 and works with the festival team on graphic design and marketing assignments.