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Barbara Maier Gustern is an 80-year-old classically trained singer in New York City. She teaches singing lessons out of her two-bedroom apartment in Chelsea. For decades, she’s taught a wide range of singers: Argentinian and opera singers, aspiring cantors, the Grammy-nominated vocalist Roseanna Vitro. But she’s become a favorite among the edgy and powerful voices of New York’s downtown queer, performance and rock scenes: Her students include Debbie Harry, Taylor Mac, Justin Vivian Bond, John Kelly, Lady Rizo, Penny Arcade, Handsome Dick Manitoba, Miss Guy and Kathleen Hanna.

Barbra Maier Gustern

A shared love of dirty jokes and wild performances made her an unlikely matriarch to this talented and raunchy family of artists. The avant-garde composer and musician Diamanda Galas called Barbara, “the baddest bitch in New York City."

Machine Dazzle

Reported by Nicole Pasulka. Produced by Nicole Pasulka and Jenna Weiss-Berman.

Photo: Michael Blase

Live from Joe's Pub, part 2. We had a release party at Joe's Pub in New York for our Celebrity issue, and we invited some real celebrities to join in the festivities and read some of their favorite excerpts from the issue. In part 2 of our

Live from Joe's Pub, part 1. We had a release party for our Celebrity issue, and we invited some real celebrities to help us make merry by reading some of their favorite excerpts from it. In this podcast and the next, we'll play you our fav