Tea all the way. Rooibos (redbush) tea and fruity herbals are my favorites. I like the smell & taste of good coffee, but I’m impervious to caffeine and something about coffee gives me stomachaches (sadly). Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsGlad you asked. I was really careful not to use gender pronouns when writing it, because I wanted it to apply to any male/female/intersex relationship. It’s hard to avoid those pronouns! The biggest puzzle was "…and my ring to wear"—it was tricky not to say "the ring on his/her hand" or something. I got inspiration [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsDavid Beattie (who did the Waking Hour book) is working on Warm Strangers as we speak! He’s also already made progress on Inland Territory and Dreaming Through the Noise, dear fellow, but he does have a day job… Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsHi Savsabrina—very cool radio program you’re doing! Ben Sollee is doing great work with ILoveMountains,org, which is raising awareness about mountaintop removal mining in Appalachia, and is experimenting with bike-based touring (with a cello!): http://bensollee.com/ Imogen Heap supports nonprofits in various ways, including local ones on each stop of her recent tour: http://charity.imogenheap.com/ Jack Johnson [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo comments(Hi Gabe!) I’m trying to be as much of an information sponge as possible while I’m here, so my answer to this might change. But right now I’m focusing in certain areas that are going to be important no matter what particular future scenarios we face: – energy efficiency/low-energy living: how to maintain/build a high [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsYou have no idea how happy this question makes me. I don’t always work different elements of a song into the meaning like that, but when I do, it’s so gratifying when someone notices. The other instances I can think of, off the top of my head, are Pontchartrain (black keys in one hand, white [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsSo he is! And Jay Bellerose too, as @mikerelay on Twitter just pointed out. I learn something new every day… It might be "You’re Not Listening"—such a heartbreaking, wise song about the moment when it *is* the right thing to give up on a dream. I’m also infatuated with the middle section of the album, [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentshttp://viennateng.com/scrapbook/2010/03/new-chapter/ Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsThere’s a twinge of bittersweetness, sure, in knowing that the whole marriage-and-kids hasn’t happened as soon as my 20-year-old self figured it might. But it’s also a relief, in a way, that I don’t write prophetic songs. (Otherwise, with songs like Passage, I’m headed for trouble.) Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsA lot of the great musicians I’ve gotten to work with are Berklee alums: Elizabeth & the Catapult, Eddie Jackson (engineer/mixer for Inland Territory), Kyler England and Adrianne Gonzalez of The Rescues, etc. I’ve heard both rave and mixed reviews of the school. Some say it was an invaluable experience and they’d never be where [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsActually, my mainstay as a musician is still what gets me through a day of nonstop lectures & study group meetings: CLIF BARS! God I love Clif Bars. Cool Mint Chocolate and Black Cherry Almond FTW. Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsGood question! Short answer: because we need to understand how the "eco" part works before attaching it to the "business" part. I’m in a dual-degree program, and I’m starting at the School of Natural Resources & Environment; business school starts next year. The foundation classes here are in the social sciences (environmental economics, game theory [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsNot just walking around, but once in a while, at both benign and somewhat inopportune times. By my new gynecologist, for example. Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsAlex is here, holed up in another room…got any questions for him? Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsAlex has a great book called Songwriters on Songwriting: http://books.google.com/books?id=BT8UAQAAIAAJ&q=songwriters+on+songwriting&dq=songwriters+on+songwriting&hl=en&ei=Z93eTNemMI-6ngeHuZHJDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDEQ6AEwAA I don’t recommend reading the Bob Dylan interview if you’re having writer’s block, though. (Read the Leonard Cohen one instead.) Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsI don’t breathe fully from my diaphragm, and I still tense up in my neck muscles (I think) when going for high notes or singing loud. I’m a really quiet singer; if I had some training I could probably project a lot better than I do. That would change the quality/tone of my voice too [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsI probably don’t listen nearly enough to either. But so far, Ryan Adams wins—in an unfair match, because his cover of Wonderwall is everything a cover song should be. Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsShort answer: I don’t. And I feel for you! Music has taken a back seat for me, these past few months. But my desire to learn about/help solve social & environmental issues took a back seat for the past eight years or so; its turn finally came up this year, and it seems fair to [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsSomeone who loves long walks on the beach, has a great sense of humor LOL & lives life to it’s fullest! Kidding. I love people who get excited about learning things, who’ve pursued and gotten good at more than one thing, who think about how to contribute to the greater good in their own way, [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsHe had me break it down into the dream (the long-term, big-picture thing), goals (milestones that would indicate that it was happening), and strategies (steps to take to reach those milestones). I think playing the Fillmore in San Francisco was one of the goals (still working on that). One of the strategies was applying to [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsIt was kind of written about two different boys who played piano in the choir room in high school. One of them did get to hear it—he played piano on it when I perfomed it at the talent show, actually!—and the other one probably never will. Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsIt was shockingly easy—to the point where I didn’t really feel a transition at all. Becoming a student again felt like the most natural thing in the world. I was talking to Alex about this the other day…basically I’ve always been a nerd, deep down, and the academic life feels a lot more like my [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsBoth of them are scientist types. One’s in neuroscience (studying the auditory system, interestingly); another is probably going into genetics, possibly as an MD/PhD. Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsI’m 5’5.5" (gotten the occasional "Oh…I thought you were taller" after shows). I think I’m done with the really-short-hair years but I’m due for a cut. Somehow I own a lot of purple clothing, so apparently that’s my favorite color of all time (or at least what I think looks good on me). Favorite places…too [...]
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo commentsI registered with my legal name, so that’s how most people know me here. But I just confused things by emailing the school lists about a benefit concert I’m doing tomorrow for a great local nonprofit (http://viennateng-selmacafe.eventbrite.com/). So there’s been a fair amount of "So…what should I call you?" lately. Ask me anything
November 13, 2010Categories: generalNo comments