OHNomad – “A Fund Manager”: Turning Market Lessons Into Beautiful Piano Music
In this world everyone has their interests and sometimes trying to make people like your interests is a bit difficult unless made easier. It’s like explaining your job to someone, they watch and over time you see their eyes glazing over. And I think we can all agree that finance is one of those jobs. Numbers, chats here and there, investments and talking about the market ain’t a source of entertainment for everyone. But what if it was made more simpler, and those ideas translated into music? Well, hedge fund manager and composer Owens Huang known as OHNomad has the answers to that on his current EP.
Teaming up with jazz pianist Leon Hsu, Huang released the EP “A Fund Manager“, a four-track project captured right at the famous Van Gelder Studio. Now the fun part about this EP is, people might think this is gonna be yapping about stocks, crypto or flashing green candles, the EP tackles the heavy mental weight of doubt, risk, uncertainty and fighting the urge to blindly follow a crowd using financial terms and the best part? It’s a total instrumental EP.
You know nothing beats the idea of having the freedom to think for yourself. Making critical decisions, thinking different and not settling for what everyone prefers. And that’s this track “Contrarian”. It feels a bit lonely and sometimes risky, I love the restraint in here, it’s like every instrument is allowed to take it time, do their own thing. It feels thoughtful and I like the changes in direction from the instruments, giving you the ideal concept of how market can turn. Sometimes it’s about holding your ground when everyone else is in rush to make it to the top. Take your time, move at your own pace and not be bothered by what the next person to you is on about. The beautiful thing is, all of this can be experienced in the track, it’s get fast, rushing and then slows down, go quiet and then jump up again and you can feel the different notes all ringing.
One common theme or phrase that makes every investor or even life itself nervous is “This Time is Different“. Normally we all after series of failures says this time is gonna be different, and why do we say so? That’s because maybe we’ve invented a new idea, a new system and new innovation that to us will make this time different. We get that believe and sometimes that too much believe is also a catalyst for a danger ahead. And this is the market, you steady a stock for a long time and come into conclusion that this will move and lock in on that, but sometimes what we do forget is anything can happen and that moving stock can become a headache to us.
And that’s life, believe in your ideas, believe you will make it, but don’t be too ignorant about the risks that comes with everything. You can feel how each note moves with a cautious curiosity, balancing bright moments of hope against lingering shadows of risk. It sounds like someone staring at a brand-new idea, trying to figure out if it will change the world or burst like a bubble. I love this piece, though innovation is important, but knowing when to question something is as much as important too. Don’t chase something because everyone says it’s gonna go well, question the whys and move cautiously.
I like the development through the EP, after we’ve experienced that this time can be different, maybe it’s time we “Stay Neutral” on certain occasions and just observe. The track that pulls it inspiration from Zen philosophy, deals with keeping a clear head when panic or hype takes over a room. This is us humans, when something in our life gets going too well, we just can’t contain it and begin to just over process everything. And when it falls too, sometimes the amount of hope we had in it breaks us and sometimes not all of us bounce back. We let our emotions always gets the best of us and sometimes we fail on being logical on many things.
To me logic always wins, and probably the best way to approach anything, cos if you see the logic behind everything, you see the truth behind them mostly. Just listen to how the piano notes just remains steady and grounded. It strikes a good balance that we lack sometimes in critical situations and decisions. Every chord rings out with clean clarity, patience and doest shout, allowing listeners to focus and listen internally before making any move. This track is evident in our daily lives these days, when everyone seems to have an opinion and social media can make even the smallest disagreement feel like a national emergency.
We draw the curtains on the track “Stay Neutral Stay Longer“. And what else more could we ask for? This is an extended piece to the previous track, hinting at how we can extend our stay in the game through pure improvisation. Leon Hsu takes extra time to explore the space between notes, letting ideas breathe and evolve slowly. It feels patient, unhurried, and deeply reflective, allowing listeners to enjoy and experience the same concept from a different perspective. And that’s how life can be sometimes, like a football match, you’re always on the field of play but sometimes you need to be on the bench to watch how the game unfolds so you get different ideas to infect the match at any different stage.
What can I say? To me, “A Fund Manager” bridges two completely different worlds, the strict logic of finance and the messy freedom of jazz. Huang handles the concepts, drawing from global backpacking trips, philosophy, and market dynamics, while Hsu translates those thoughts into fluid, intimate piano work. I like the production a lot, feels a bit raw and physical, the organic feel of those piano and the faint mechanics of the keys moving is just wholesome. Go give it a listen, enjoy something smart, calm, and completely detached from radio pop styffs. It offers a rare space to think, reflect, and just sit with your own thoughts!
Enjoyed that and want more from OHNomad? Check him out on the links below;
English