Virtual Discussion Panel
:: Entrepreneurs in Music — and Don't Forget about Mozart!
:: 3/24/08 - 4/4/08
Welcome to day 5 of our Virtual Discussion "Entrepreneurs in Music — and Don't Forget about Mozart!". If you've missed the previous days, use the buttons above to catch up.
About this Virtual Discussion (Click to Show)
Panelists
Yvonne Caruthers's Statement (Click to Hide)
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Yvonne CaruthersSenior Editor |
Today is the last day of our panel discussion about entrepreneurship. If you've read the previous days' postings, you can see that we've covered a wide range of topics, but I think we've just scratched the surface. I hope someone will research the question I asked Angela after she listed a number of Boston area entrepreneurs a couple days ago - is there a list of entrepreneurs in orchestras?
But orchestras aren't the only place where musician-entrepreneurs are found, as several of our panelists admirably demonstrate. In fact, it could be argued that the best ideas in musical entrepreneurship are found far outside the orchestral field.
I hope there never will be an "end" to this discussion, but I asked our panelists to write today about whether they could see an opportunity they'd like to suggest to a young person. Their answers are below.
All of us here at Polyphonic deeply appreciate our panelists' submissions. On a personal note, I've been thrilled to take part in this panel because the subject lies so close to my heart.
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Ramon Ricker's Statement (Click to Hide)
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Ramon RickerEditor in Chief |
As Ann explained on Day 1 in her introduction to this VDP, I came up with the subtitle for this discussion, "Don't Forget about Mozart," during a discussion with a young non-musician writer who asked me, "Who was the first entrepreneur in music?" Drawing on my music history knowledge of thirty years ago, I said Mozart. I followed up by saying that he was one of the first composers who did not have a church or court position. He was on his own, composing, performing and hustling gigs. Now, I'm sure my musicology friends could come up with numerous other examples dating back to the Greeks, but I was pretty proud of myself.
Back to the title of this VDP: "Don't forget about Mozart." The point is we have this buzzword going around now - entrepreneurship, and we're talking about it like it is something new. It isn't. Musicians have been entrepreneurial ever since they first decided to make their living as full-time musicians. In my view there is also a secondary subliminal message going on in that title. "Don't forget about Mozart" also means, to me, that music should be at your core, front and center; and entrepreneurship (codeword for business person) should enhance that core. Combine some creativity and curiosity with solid playing and it will equal success.
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Claire Chase's Statement (Click to Hide)
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Claire ChaseFlutist; co-founder of ICE |
We are witnessing a dramatic shift away from the trend of specialization that was dominant for a large part of the latter half of the 20th century, not just in the field of music but across the board professionally. Imagine that just 15 years ago, if you had a physical ailment you'd call your family GP. Who has a GP anymore? If your toe hurts, you go to the toe doctor! And you'll likely wait 3 weeks to get an appointment. In my opinion, this is a casualty of our hyper-developed, hyper-compartmentalized commercial culture. This mentality has taken its toll on the education of musicians, too. We are forced to decide very early on what "type" of musician we're going to be, and how we're going to specialize.
The artist-entrepreneur persona, and in particular the young generation of artists who are just emerging on the scene today, is challenging that supposed ethic of specialization (that you need to do one thing, and focus only on that one thing) to the core. We're in the midst of a era in which performers are composers again (as they were for centuries of great music history before us); performers are improvisers; composers are improvisers; performers and composers are presenters and producers of their own work as well as that of their colleagues' work; etc. Many of us start in one field and end up in another; many of us straddle multiple fields at once, blending them to create new fields.
In all of these cases, entrepreneurship is, for me, defined by deciding what you uniquely have to offer with your unique combination of skills and, equally importantly, realizing *where you're needed.* We spend a lot of time thinking about *what* we do, how we can be better, how we can achieve more, but we generally don't spend a lot of time in this culture thinking about where we're needed, where what we uniquely do will have the most impact. Even without launching your own business or deciding to be an entrepreneur overnight, I think that shifting your way of thinking just slightly to include the question "Where am I needed?" can really help us all define for ourselves where what we do will mean the most to us and to the people around us.
Entrepreneurship is also about responding - with *action* - to the potential for change in a given environment. In my case, this meant responding to the changing landscape of ideas, the changing nature of the music itself that's being written, the changing performance practices of that music, and to the changing needs of our 21st century audiences. ICE was a response to those needs, and I still look at it as a response, one that is developing and changing every day. Five years from now, the needs will be different, and so our response will need to be different.
Webster Dictionary's definition of the word "contemporary" is "coming into being during the same period in time." I love this description of what we do. It's definitely appropriate for a new-music band, whose identity really does change every time our medium changes (which is just about every day!) but I think it's also relevant for musicians and entrepreneurs of all stripes. All of this is a process. We are all continually coming into being, no matter what stage of our career we are in, and no matter where we think we're headed. There's great joy in this, and great potential for discovery.
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Robert DiLutis's Statement (Click to Hide)
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Robert DiLutisRPO Clarinetist and Inventor of the Reed Machine |
I think the most important thing to remember when venturing off into another field is to remember that your instrument and your art form must remain most important in your life. Don't lose sight of what you truly love!
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Bridget McDaniel's Statement (Click to Hide)
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Bridget McDanielFounder, Tales & Scales |
Perhaps the best opportunity for a creative young person is the decision to commit to a community and to find a way to serve that community first and foremost with your talent and energy. It is always about relationships - where and how can you make the musical difference in the everyday life of the people in your community?
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Douglas Richard's Statement (Click to Hide)
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Douglas RichardComposer/Arranger/Copyist |
With the constant change in technology, it is important to remember that with change comes opportunity. If anyone, as Chuck related, says that there is no "room" for you, then I would suggest looking closer, or seeing where you can CREATE an opportunity to participate in the music industry. That does not mean that you necessarily end up playing your instrument, but that is not always a bad thing.
A college roommate of mine worked hard at refining his skills as a jazz trumpeter - he always noodled on piano, creating catchy little tunes that stuck in your head. 20 years later he is a highly recognized and sought-after composer for video games. That job did not really exist when we graduated college.
Sometimes you find yourself in the position to contribute in ways you never expected. That is probably one of the best moments in a person's future career. Just remember: the folks who say that you cannot do "it" are generally jealous and wish that they thought of that first (except for inventing the saxophone). All kidding aside, there is ALWAYS a place in music for people who are motivated to participate. The only limitation is what you impose on yourself.
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Chuck Seipp's Statement (Click to Hide)
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Chuck SeippTrumpeter, US Army Band |
I have some thoughts about some things I experienced last year that helped motivate me to be part of this panel. Entrepreneurship to me is so important and it seems that it is becoming an important part of the college concern these days.
I was at a university doing a master class, splitting a session with a person who happened to be in the music production field. I gave my talk, trying to be positive and telling the kids to experience as much as possible of what their school had to offer, to keep an open mind and work, work, work. The music producer decided it was his job to belittle the kids and tell them there really isn't room for them in the music field. Why should he hire any one of them for anything? And what made them think they had anything to offer him or anyone else? Performers, so what! He was making them obsolete by using his computer in the movie, TV and recording business. It was a wake-up call this person felt he needed to give them.
I know there are hundreds of universities across the country that are motivated to keep their numbers up. The result can be many kids struggling, trying to find themselves, but none-the-less going through the motions of what is expected of them. Some might naively think that, once the necessary required courses have been taken, the phone would ring off the hook for that dream job. This music producer felt he was doing these kids a favor with this wake-up call. What he didn't do is give them any ideas, hope, vision or possibilities. That is what is so great about this panel. The panelists, through their own experiences of ingenuity, passion, talent and hard work, will hopefully open some minds and offer possibilities to many. This has been a great learning experience for me and through this process, I have gained valuable advice that I can also pass on to others.
Thank you, Yvonne and Ann, for all your work in putting this together.
Chuck
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General Comments on This Discussion (Click to Hide)
1. the importance of saying "yes"!
2. having imagination
3. growing the vision/project over time - taking a long range view and celebrating incremental progress (Claire describes this very well)
4. finding mentors
5. a willingness to dive headlong into a project and learn as you go because schools don't provide all the necessary training (and can't)
6. dealing well with limitations - constraints spurring people on to interesting possibilities
7. taking care of business: finding methods to handle the practical issues of scheduling, finances, taxes and building these habits into one's routine
8. dealing with changes over time (new notation programs and options, changing family needs)
Best, Angela