In early 2023, I formed a programming partnership between the Esopus Foundation and the groundbreaking Chicago-based nonprofit Access Contemporary Music (ACM) consisting of live podcast events held at New York’s Symphony Space. This third installment of the “Relevant Tones Live” series focused on a topic, Commercialism in Art, that influenced the founding of Esopus, a publication whose very purpose was to create a commercial-free space in which creative people could share their work in an unmediated way. The evening included a lively discussion about the often dissonant relationship between creativity and business, featuring ACM founder and composer Seth Boustead, composer Douglas J. Cuomo (whose work spans both critically lauded classical compositions and the Sex and the City theme); acclaimed filmmaker, performance artist, and actor Juliet Ellis; and myself.

As always for this series, live music played a fundamental role in the event. Cellist Iva Casian-Lakos, violinist Johnna Wu, and pianist Blair McMillen performed Cuomo’s piece A Far Playground for cello and piano, Commercial Etudes by Will Rowe, and Nivea Hair Care Styling Mousse by Jacob TV.

Product Displacement, the themed CD from Esopus 3 that featured songs in which musicians were asked to “embed” commercial jingles or ad slogans, served as house music for the event.