Each semester, the students in my class at Yale learn how to apply their new entrepreneurial skills in a semester project that is subject to two rules: 1. Do something you never done before; and 2. Go outside your comfort zone. The goal is for students to feel free to experiment, focusing on the learning experience and not on achieving …
Creating Success in a DIY World: 4 YSM Music Entrepreneurs Share Their Insights
One of the highlights of my semester is when I invite recent alumni from the Yale School of Music to speak to our students about how they created their career success. My students are consistently impressed and amazed that musicians who are a mere 5-8 years ahead of them are already successfully wending their way through the world of music. …
Crafting a Great Speech to Engage Today’s Audiences: How Musicians Can Become Ambassadors for Music
I am passionate about the importance of speaking to audiences about music because it is an opportunity to bring our audiences into our world and let them discover the transformative power of music. Over the past few weeks, I have been addressing this topic both with my students at the Yale School of Music, as well as at a wonderful …
Quadrant II Time Management for Musicians: Achieve Your Goals by Focusing on What’s Important
The life of professional musicians is complicated! Professionally, musicians engage in a wide variety of activities both for creative stimulation and financial stability: Rehearsals Performances Tours Running concert series and festivals Teaching Collaborations Creating new ensembles and ventures Tending to the business side of being a successful musicians That’s just on the professional side. They also have families and friends, …
Conversation with David Lang: Creativity, Entrepreneurship and What it Means to be an Artist in the 21st Century
Last week, I initiated a new program at the Yale School of Music featuring important thought leaders around Yale to open up a conversation on the arts in the 21st Century. For our first program, I had the pleasure to interviewing my friend and colleague, composer David Lang, along with 3 students at the Yale School of Music, for …
Living “in the Zone”: How Music Entrepreneurs Optimize Their Flow Experiences
Creative people know the feeling of being “in the zone”, the state of effortless concentration and joy where your skill level meets the challenge at hand, you know what you want to achieve and you are receiving the feedback on how well you are doing, time whizzes by because you are doing something that you love, and you are thus inspired …
Personal Branding for Musicians: How To Discover and Communicate What Makes You Unique
A personal brand is a powerful marketing tool for creative artists that communicates your authentic unique gift to the people you want to attract. It is a message to your ideal audience members • that expresses what makes you unique and memorable • and distinguishes you from your competition • so that your target audience connects with you emotionally and wants …
Informational Interviews for Musicians: How to Get the Inside Scoop and Expand Your Network in 7 Steps
The informational interview is an excellent career building strategy for musicians since you can find out from an insider what it takes to build your career path, discover new and different career options and learn about the realities of working in the world of the arts. In addition to being a source of first-hand information that is not otherwise available, …
Playing to Strengths Part 2: What do I do about my weaknesses?
I’m working away at some great pieces on the piano—Shostakovich Piano Trio, Bach Toccata in E Minor, Brahms Intermezzo Op. 117 No. 2. Yes, I play challenging repertoire and eventually do it well. And when I put my time and focus on learning and mastering these pieces, the results are wonderful. Yet it takes me a LOT of time to …
Playing To Strengths Part 1: Do I Have To Be Good At Everything In Order To Succeed?
My class at Yale this semester is my most diverse group to date, mixing opera singers, early music voice majors, composers, string and orchestra players, one guitar major and a conducting student. The result is a rich sharing experience from many points of view. And they are highly motivated to find out what it takes to create success in today’s …