Meet the Team | Make Music Day

Make Music Alliance Team

Aaron Friedman

Executive Director

Aaron founded Make Music New York in 2006, and was Executive Director of the organization for its first ten years, growing it into the most expansive musical event in the city’s history. In 2014 he became Executive Director of the Make Music Alliance, which has spread Make Music Day to over 150 cities in the United States, as well as cities in China, Nigeria, the UK, and Australia. Previously he worked in a variety of music and advocacy roles, including founding “Silent Majority” to combat noise pollution in New York, and consulting for the NAMM Foundation, Make Music Day’s presenting partner. He plays tenor saxophone.

Maddie Stenson

Deputy Director

Maddie is a professional artist, musician, and singer from Connecticut. She has worked in the arts nonprofit sector for many years and is experienced in developing community-based events across artistic disciplines.

Peter Cobb

Senior Advisor

Peter is a lifelong musician with a love for jazz saxophone. He has a background in law and has worked extensively in the nonprofit arts world. He previously owned and operated a hybrid laundromat and concert space, and currently serves on the boards of several music and arts organizations.

Kia Baird

Program Coordinator

Kia is a multifaceted professional in the fields of community development, vocational services, and the arts. A classically trained soprano, Kia studied at Winston-Salem State University. Her notable performances include the soprano part in Raymond Wise’s opera “Barefoot,” narrated by Dr. Maya Angelou, and being the featured soloist for RPM Voices of Rhode Island. She is the founder of Girls In Jazz, and has served on the board of the Norwich Arts Center in Connecticut. In 2021, she was appointed Outreach & Impact Coordinator for the Southeastern CT Cultural Coalition. She is also a Certified Employment Support Professional, connecting individuals with meaningful employment opportunities.

Matt Fox

Chapter Advisor

Matt Fox is the owner of Fox in a Box Marketing & PR and a programmer on KOOP Radio. He is a certified Master Gardener and won third place in the Texas State Fair’s 2024 honey competition.

Frank Garcia

Marketing and Communications Consultant

Frank is the co-owner of Peruke, a ukulele store and community based in Peru which is currently leading the ukulele wave in LATAM. He is also the head of Marketing & Artist Relations at Flight Ukulele, where he currently works with over 100 artists around the world and has helped Flight become the most followed ukulele community in social media.

Board of Directors

Andrea Berman, Chair

Andrea has spent her career working in philanthropy, leading grantmaking at family, community and private foundations. Andrea’s expertise is in nonprofit management and she has led organizations and taught others best practices. Currently, Andrea is the Grants Manager at the Future of Life Institute and is responsible for planning, administering and implementing philanthropic grants programs aimed at reducing global catastrophic risk.

Andrew Horwitz, Vice Chair

Andrew is a cultural consultant, creative strategist and writer living in Los Angeles. He has served as the VP, Director of Programs at the Skirball Cultural Center, and from 2011 – 2013 he curated and produced Manhattan’s free, outdoor, multidisciplinary arts festival, The River To River Festival, for LMCC where he served as Director of Public Programs. He has worked producer at Performance Space. 122, curator of the PRELUDE Festival at the Graduate Center at CUNY and as Director of Strategic Partnerships at the Foundation for Jewish Culture among other positions. He is also the founder of arts website Culturebot.org, launched in 2003, and was a 2014 recipient of the Creative Capital | Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant.

Max Lester, Secretary

Max is the Vice President, Solutions at The Orchard, Sony Music Entertainment, overseeing the global client Solutions team, M&A integrations, and business process optimization. Max graduated from New York University in 2014 with a double major in Global Liberal Studies & Spanish/Latin American Studies, and received his MA in 2016 from University College London in Art Conservation. Before moving to New York, Max attended the Lycée Français de San Francisco.

Mike Rosenthal, Treasurer

Mike has served as a technology and marketing strategist and consultant for some of the biggest recording artists in the world. He ran the marketing department at Mick Artist Management and was the digital strategy manager for viral sensations OK Go. The Co-Founder of Fanaply, he also ran a half dozen music festivals globally and produced hundreds of live events.

Aaron Friedman

Aaron Friedman founded Make Music New York in 2006, and was Executive Director of the organization for its first ten years, growing it into the most expansive musical event in the city’s history. In 2014 he became Executive Director of the Make Music Alliance, which has spread Make Music Day to over 140 cities in the United States, as well as cities in China, Nigeria, the UK, and Australia. Previously he worked in a variety of music and advocacy roles, including founding “Silent Majority” to combat noise pollution in New York, and consulting for the NAMM Foundation, Make Music Day’s presenting partner. He plays tenor saxophone.

Anne Katz

Anne is the executive director of Create Wisconsin, Wisconsin’s community cultural development organization. Before she joined the organization as director in 1995, Anne was the director of development and outreach for the Madison Civic Center. She has worked in administrative roles for the City of Madison Arts Commission, Madison Festival of the Lakes, and Madison Repertory Theatre; Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center in Waterford, CT; The Big Apple Circus; New Dramatists, Inc.; and The Feld Ballet in New York City.

Victor Piñeiro

Victor is Director of Digital Innovation at HBO Max. Previously he spent a decade establishing and leading @YouTube, @Skittles and various other brands’ social presences. He also wrote/produced the award-winning metaverse documentary Second Skin, SXSW ’08’s opening night movie, and followed it up with the documentary that launched Motherboard, Vice’s tech channel. Victor is the author of Time Villains, a Kirkus & Amazon best book of the year and winner of the International Latino Book Award.

Aish Sinha

Aish Sinha is an executive in the Digital Media industry and leads New Business Development at TikTok. Prior to TikTok, Aish led Strategy at mobile operator Vodafone. Earlier, as an investment banker, he advised founders in Media & Tech on M&A and fundraising. He has lived on four continents, and is the host of a podcast at the intersection of self-improvement and consciousness. Aish serves on the board of Bellevue Literary Review, and is the founder of a non-profit providing scholarships to underprivileged students in India. Aish holds a BS from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and an MBA from Columbia Business School.