Arts Enterprise: A Perspective from Madison

Suzanne Vega: Artist-Citizen

2010-04-23T14:21:00.000-07:00

Suzanne Vega is an enigma. I've known her name and song "Tom's Diner" for a long time...yet until recently I didn't have a clear picture of her place in music and culture. With her engagements in Madison coming up I figured it would be good to dig a bit deeper.

While Vega is, of course, an important figure as a folk-pop singer-songwriter of the 80's and 90's, looking at her career more closely reveals a much larger cultural relevance. Indeed she's a powerful musical figure (and voice), who has elevated the place of female songwriters by addressing issues - such as including childhood abuse ("Luka"), personal loss, and reflections on urban place and identity (Beauty & Crime) - that challenge us listeners to take a renewed look at our role in the world around us. And she's done so within a sophisticated sonic realm most in the pop world wouldn't dare attempt.

At the same time she's been on the cutting edge of tech advancements for more than a decade, including being one of the first stars to embrace MP3s (remember when those were new?), and Second Life (the first artist to perform digitally as an avatar). Vega's sense of artist-citizenship goes further than her art-making; for years, she's been dedicated to (quietly) helping raise awareness for charitable causes like Amnesty International, Casa Alianza, and the Save Darfur Coalition.

Most impressively, though, she fought against the "machine" to preserve her artistic voice, and has managed to collaborate with some of the biggest names in pop music, finding a place in that echelon, without abandoning her roots. And now she's giving back to the next generation of artists, through professional workshops that promise to offer an exciting and fruitful dialogue!

Here's a taste, a recent clip of her performance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon:

Hope to see you at Overture tomorrow, and please post your feedback....

April Arts Roundup: Wisconsin Film Festival Edition

2010-04-13T08:29:00.000-07:00

So I know I've gone off on a tangent in my recent posts, straying far from my original intention to form a dialogue on the current state of professional artistry and entrepreneurship in the arts. But I've been thinking lately about the importance of not only embracing a holistic palette of arts interests, but also of incorporating such a scope into the more specific discussion of how one becomes a fully-formed and independent artist in today's world.

This stems from two of my earliest memories which are coupled within the framework of artistic expression. I vividly remember seeing movies on VHS from the time I was a toddler (classic 80's fare like Indiana Jones, Ghostbusters, Back to the Future, and all those Disney classics) that changed the way I viewed storytelling and led me to pursue early visual arts training (in drawing, sketching, painting, and even writing a few hack-comic books). During the same time, my exposure to music with my parents, Aunt, and Grandmother in our Toronto apartments (everything from Vivaldi and Dvorak to Creedence Clearwater Revival and the Beatles) obviously hit a chord (oops, sorry about that), igniting a passion for musicmaking. The first experience led to lifelong penchant for watching new (and often fringe) films, while the other has led me to a career! My tastes have changed, but it's hard to say omitting the one hobby in favor of the other profession could have been productive in the path my artistic pursuits have taken.

With that in mind, I'm excited to frame this Arts Roundup post around the Wisconsin Film Festival, one event that I look forward to year after year. (Note: please comment and add other non-film festival arts events that are coming up in April!) I finally have the time to see more than a couple of films, and I spent much of my time in the airport two weeks ago mulling over my options in the WI Film Fest edition of the Isthmus. Here are my six picks, although there are about 200 more that should fit anyone's fancy!

Father and Guns: 04/14 - 7:30pm @ Orpheum Main

One of the French Candian movies at this year's festival. I missed 2008's Bon Cop, Bad Cop but this comedy looks like it will provide an opportunity to redeem myself. This is not only one of the opening movies of WFF10, but also will be a Wisconsin premiere! C'est bon!

The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls: 04/15 - 6:00pm @ Orpheum Main

Much has already been written about this movie (Audience Award winner, 2009 Toronto Film Festival), and as a fan of documentaries this was a no-brainer. But I have another reason to see this film: during my time in New Zealand back in 2005 I read about the Topp Twins but never saw them in person. Can't wait to catch a glimpse of these enigmatic Kiwi legends, and to see more of Christchurch and Wellington.

The Host: 04/15 - 10:00pm @ Orpheum Main

When I saw Memories of Murder about two years ago, I knew I had stumbled upon another great South Korean director. Each of the installments of the four-film retrospective on Bong Joon-Ho at WFF10 are worth checking out, but this is a great entry to begin with (especially if you want to sample his work before committing to six additional hours of Joon-Ho's work). Also, I used to own about a dozen old Godzilla movies, and I'm not ashamed to say it.

Harmony and Me: 04/16 - 7:45pm @ Wisconsin Union Theater

Will this be the 500 Days of Summer of 2010? I don't know, but this looks like an entertaining and different take on the classic 80's love story. The filmmakers should be present, so get ready for a post-film Q&A.

Sat. Afternoon Shorts: 04/17 - 3:00pm @ Play Circle

I love short films. Short stories too, but especially short films. These are always a highlight of the WFF, so, naturally, I had to include at least one set. While Monona Terrace is my favorite venue for shorts, I highly recommend going to the Play Circle to experience it's intimate setting for (at minimun) one film. Saturday afternoon includes everything from an essay on condiments, to the life of a fowl actor, to some excerpts of the Wisconsin's Own series.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: 04/17 - 7:30pm @ Orpheum Main

This is the main event (or one of them). I've been reading about this movie for over a year, and it's finally in Madison! This Swedish thriller, based on the book by Stieg Larsson, is a good bet for "breakout" international film of 2010. It's being reviewed (mostly positively) across the U.S., and is being hailed for it's depth, style, and taut narrative. OK, so you don't HAVE to go to WFF to see it, as it may hit theaters later...but then it's an amazing experience to see a movie at the Orpheum Main Stage when it's packed to the walls (that means about 1,600 people)! Don't miss it!

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To see all the films playing at this year's Wisconsin Film Festival, find showtimes, or order tickets, click here or on the logo at the top of this post.

Happy Easter + Viva Santa Fe!

2010-04-04T16:09:00.000-07:00

I'm finally back from the New Mexico-Texas excursion, which was laced with traveling drama, a national conference of unexpectedly rich research, and some cultural sight-seeing.

Taking a day to recover from the hectic MTNA schedule, we took advantage of our proximity to the famous Turquoise Trail and spent an afternoon cruising some of the most dramatic and beautiful scenery in North America. Whether you're an outdoors enthusiast, Wild West buff, or just plain curious, the 60 mile highway that traverses the western plains from northern Albuquerque to Santa Fe is well worth your time.

And the destination makes this fun day even more satisfying. Santa Fe has been embedded in my mind ever since I first saw it 7 years ago, seeing it again was a real treat. With a quaint historic center made up of winding pedestrian streets, this classic Western town boasts excellent weather, plenty of museums, fantasic cuisine, and, of course some of the best artwork in the U.S.

This equation amounts to probably one of the best 12-hour mini-vacations around. Three of our highlights:

Madrid, NM: This ghosty town has charm and quirkyness to spare. Double the fun if you make this stop on a motorcyle.
The Shed: Quintessential New Mex cuisine, and the best margheritas around (literally, there was nothing even close in Albuquerque). The blue corn quesadillas are a delight, and makes sure you try both the red and green chilis...a Shed specialty!
Marble Brewery: Actually founded on Marble Street in Albuqeurque, this Santa Fe location boasts 10 beers on tap (in rotation, but I recommend the Marble Red and Brown Ale) for those of age, a rooftop patio (with historic city center views), and made-to-order wood-fired flat-bread pizzas made with local ingredients. Viva Santa Fe!

Now on to Texas! It was great to have another week to hang out with Chris, and to see Denton after all these years. My foray in Tex-Mex cuisine continued, but I must say that each and every beer fanatic must visit a Flying Saucer (I think there are three in the Dallas-Fort Worth area). With an impressive list from around the world, and many local micros as well, this is THE place to hang and enjoy a night out with friends.

Oh, and the recital was a success...although recording mishaps plagued us again, but I'll try to salvage some data to post soon. Now I'm in Madison, enjoying the turning to Spring...and all the pleasures this great town has to offer!

Speaking of which, coming up next will be a special post devoted to the Wisconsin Film Festival, surely one of Madison's best annual events! Til then, Happy Easter to all!

MTNA Conference Recap: Stage Fright, Laban Movement, and Entrepreneurial Mentorship 2.0

2010-03-26T08:26:00.000-07:00

It's been a whirlwind of a week. Needless to say, my travelling adventures worked out; I made it to Albuquerque for the Music Teachers National Conference after all, and got to enjoy two and a half days of hyper-stimulation about all things music. I had fun with my poster session, and got more feedback about Entrepreneurial Mentorship, and of ways to view it from different perspectives (I sense another paper brewing...).

What makes these conferences fun (besides catching up with people from across the U.S., and learning about what's happening out there in the field-at-large) are the unexpected gems - the sessions that offer both substantially rewarding information, and deflate the stress of such a packed week of events.

The two highlights for me came on the final day of the conference. Frederic Chiu is not only one of my favorite pianists, but he is also a skillful clinician. His entertaining, intellectual, and probing session on stage fright brought together issues of musical training, the efficacy of routine, and psychological analysis. His discussion on Silvan Tomkins' Affect Theory was a particular "Ah-Ha!" moment for me. The idea that our emotional responses preclude (or at least out-pace) our rational responses, gives a new perspective on how our psychological state can influence and/or cause performance meltdowns. It also enhances the notion of regret aversion, which Bar ry Schwartz links to the mental trauma of making decisions - both in terms of musical interpretation/technical choices, and of the stress we face in our career development. In his book The Paradox of Choice the world of ever-expanding choices, we artists (often as "maximizers") not only have to deal with the opportunity cost of those options we gave up, but also of the ramifications those decisions have on our future trajectory. This can be traumatizing, and I am beginning to think there may be a connection between these feelings and the decisions we make - especially when we face the choice of leaving the field for "better" opportunities. Linking these two concepts from psychology offers a glimpse at how we may learn to control, or at least deal with, such challenges and perhaps quell some of the career-related fears of many artists.

Paola's session was also fantastic. I know I'm biased, but she held a crowd of 60+ people at 8am for the entirety of her talk. Blending a lecture with interactive movement experiences, I think this was perhaps the best session I've attended on movement/performance health/expression yet. We got an overview of Laban Movement Analysis (LMA), Bartenieff Fundamentals, and plenty of resources on how to use those principles towards greater physical health, flexible alignment, and (most important, perhaps) more effective musical communication. I know she also got great feedback on her ideas, and can't wait to move forward with more work on Laban Movement Analysis, and hopefully more conference presentations delving deeper into how we can better couple movement awareness with musical expression to further communication between artist and audience. Brava! (Check out her website here for more info)

Now I have to tell you about Santa Fe....which was a delight in and of itself...but that will be coming in my next post! For now, I have to catch a flight. Hope all is well in Madison, could the Terrace possibly open by the time Easter rolls around?

March Musical Madness, Part 1.5: An Interlude

2010-03-23T12:29:00.000-07:00

March 20th, 2010: Remember that great Steve Martin and John Candy movie "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles"? It's one of my favorites, yet now that I am currently in the middle of such an experience, it's taking on a new meaning.

I won't bore you with all the details, but let's just say I'm never inclined to fly United again. Also, don't buy cheap tickets. More connections mean getting stuck in a city at 2am, with no hotel, no time to explore, no deodorant, toothpaste, or sleep. But it could be worse - my bags could be lost somewhe...actually, nevermind. Hence the lack of toiletries.

Anyways, at least I got to do two things I've never done before: miss the first two days of a national MTNA conference, and fight my way onto a Greyhound for an unexpected 7 hour roadtrip. OK, one of those is better than the other, but I'm trying to think positively here.

Hold on a sec, someone on the bus just asked me read his Prozac prescription for him so he wouldn't accidentally overdose...done. OK that makes three things I haven't done before. Wait, make that four, he just asked to borrow my water too.

Hmm, how do I top that? I don't know but this trip seems to have more surprises up it's sleeve. And now I can see the snow-capped Rockies in the distance. I'll let you know when I get on the train.

March Musical Madness, Part 1

2010-03-22T16:57:00.000-07:00

It always seems like March is a period of hyper-activity, augmented by short bursts of manic breakdowns. At least with mid-terms, the fervor to get at least one concert out of the way, and Spring Break plans that never quite work out, it seems that way.

As I'm currently stuck at the Madison airport (it's March 20th as I write this, but imagine it won' get on the web for a few days) ready for two weeks of my own travelling mayhem, I figured it's a good time to recap the first two weeks of the month - which was indicated to me by a colleague to be the busiest of Year in Madison! It will also distract me from my airport stress.

While there were plenty to cover, most have already been written about (go to the Well Tempered Ear for a great analysis of everything musical going on in Madison). I'm going to focus on two Arts Enterprise Madison events that had Bren a long time in the making.

So, we'll start out with the Jacqueline Schwab workshop on living an independent life as a musician. Hers was a story of twists and turns, many of which surprised me, and gave me reason to question my values.

For example, while she has a degree from New England Conservatory, it's in folk music...not the kind of track you often hear about. Even more off beat is the fact that folk styles are traditionally learned through rote, or at least through doing rather than studying. Of course, outside the world of folk artists, having that diploma surely wields an advantage. Plus, one's network surely expands over time. She found ways of breaking ground by leveraging tradition to her advantage.

Honest in her recounts of struggling as a young artist in Boston, it was clear she had experienced much of the challenges we students hear often about. Her story showed that perserverance does pay off, and while hard-earned achievements often don't guarantee fame and fortune, one can pave his or her own way to musical success - and on their own terms.

We were lucky to follow this up with a two-day residency by the hot young jazz quintet Diverse. Their path seems different - with early successes, and a promising future, it was clear that these young musicians had only just begun their careers. It helps that they are jaw-dropping on stage!

They were also tremendously generous, delaying their departure on a hectic shcesule to offer a 75min Q&A session for students. We had a fun and inteiduing discussion, one that probed questions not only of muodcal style, influence, and vision, but of nuts and bolts career issues as well. I particularly like the notion that one member brought about creating a mission for your ensembles. This simple, oft-omitted step clarifies vision, synthesizes goals, and acts as a benchmark for success.

All in all it's been a fun couple of weeks, now I'm off to New Mexico for a research presemtation and then Texas for Anhinga Duo recitals (three down, hopefully three more to go!).

I'll be writing next from Albuquerque, with the second instdllment of March Musical Madness, and with an update about the MTNA national conference. Tip then, check out these artists on their websites:

Jacqueline Schwab Homepage
Diverse Jazz Homepage

Writing for Fun: Can It Be True?

2010-03-06T14:10:00.000-08:00

I struggle with writing. So much of the time it feels like pulling teeth...or cleaning teeth...something very much akin to going to the dentist. Any chance to delay, distract, or disconnect from such obligations are welcome. Yet I can't help but feel the urge to complete an essay or blog, to fulfill the anticipation of satisfaction that comes with a job (hopefully well) done.

So it was refreshing to find this article on the art of revision by journalist and writer John Douglas Marshall at IndieReader.com.

Here are some of his tips, in a nutshell:

1) Revisions mean the crap you just wrote is only the beginning. Don't forget that the first draft is just that - the first attempt at making words into art. Admittedly, this is easier for some than others...but at least you can sleep on it, read over your work, and refine it. If only such process-orientation was accepted in the world of piano-playing.

2) Revising is easier on the nerves than writing the first draft. You've already broken the ice, now it's time to enjoy the nuance and unpredictability of looking at a page with new eyes.

3) Try viewing the act of writing as continual revision. Embrace the technology age...cutting and pasting has never been easier. This is one I really like, because my neurosis is somehow quelled by the idea that I can fix as I go. This rarely actually happens, though.

4) Multiple revisions mean multiple realities. So, after a half dozen drafts, doesn't it look like we have six different papers? I never thought about how good that can be - who knows where those drafts may take you for future projects.

As someone revising two papers for publication/presentation at the moment, Marshall's article helped me think of all this work as a pleasure. OK, I'm not gonna lie, it also helps that I'm at my favorite coffee shop sipping an amazing cappucino. Reading what I just wrote, I must be a writer-in-training....

Check out IndieReader.com for more articles, a blog, and lots of other goodies here.

March Arts Roundup

2010-03-05T11:41:00.001-08:00

With the fun Jacqueline Schwab event this past Wednesday behind us (check out this multi-faceted artist's website here) I finally realized it's March! And maybe it's because of the balmy weather we've been experiencing here in Madison, but I am getting evermore excited for these upcoming events:

03/07-08 "Making the Music Dance"
8:30pm Morphy Hall (03/07) and Steinway Piano Gallery (03/08)

Pianists and dancers from UW-Madison will present two collaborative performances entitled "Making the Music Dance." The concerts are the culmination of a series of movement workshops, led by graduate piano student Paola Savvidou. You will hear piano performances with live dance improvisation; the overall effect being an aural, visual and kinesthetic interpretation of music by the great masters.

The purpose of the movement workshop and performance project is to develop kinesthetic awareness in pianists, embody the essence of the music, and find creative ways of improving alignment at our instrument, deepening our musical understanding and communication.

Pianists: Sonya Clark, Amanda Horn, Doug Jurs, Jonathan Kuuskoski, Olivia Musat

Dancers: Lissa Erickson, Jamie Landry, Mary Patterson, Carlyn Pitterle, Olivia Templin

Works: Sonata in A-flat major, Hob. XVI: 46, Adagio (Haydn), Island of Joy (Debussy), Sonata in F-sharp major, Op. 78, Adagio Cantabile-Allegro ma non troppo (Beethoven), Nocturne in C minor (Chopin), Sonata No. 2, Andante (Skryabin)

This project is funded by the UW-Madison Arts Institute and the Steinway Piano Gallery of Madison.

For more information contact: Paola Savvidou, savvidou@wisc.edu
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03/10 Guest Artist Series Part V: Diverse Jazz Live! at Der Rathskeller
"The Professional Portfolio in Action"
8:30 pm @ Der Rathskeller, Memorial Union

This residency is a joint-effort among the Arts Enterprise chapters at University of Michigan, Bowling Green State University, and the University of Missouri-Kansas City. We will host the award-winning jazz ensemble Diverse on their midwest tour (comprised of UMKC students) for a concert and Q&A session (03/11 @ 11am, Room TBA for students. All events are FREE!

This project is supported by the Associated Students of Madison. For more info, email: artsenterprisemadison@gmail.com
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03/12 and 03/14 The Anhinga PianoSAX Duo Live! in Madison
12:15pm @ First Unitarian Society, 900 University Bay Drive, “Friday Noon Musicale” Series (03/12)
2:00pm: @ Oakwood Village-West Auditorium, 6209 Mineral Point Rd. (03/14)

OK, a bit of shameless self-promotion! My new piano + sax duo will be in Madison for two concerts as part of our inaugural tour through Wisconsin, Texas, and Oklahoma. Both concerts are FREE and will feature works by Claude Debussy, Robert Muzcynski, Frederic Chopin, and Astor Piazzolla, among others.

To learn more, you can go to: www.jonathankuuskoski.com or www.chrisdickhaus.com
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03/18 Wisconsin Story Project: March Storyshare with Volcano Insurance
7:30pm @ The Project Lodge, 817 E Johnson St.

These are always fun...come out to support the Wisconsin Story Project as they raise funds for their debut show "Cancer Stories" at the Overture Center Playhouse Theatre in May 2010! At this March installment WSP will be sharing the bill with the Surrounded By Reality Jazz series and the jazz guitar trio Volcano Insurance.

The story theme of the night will be "On the Spot." Come share, come listen, come hang out. It's not to be missed!

Check out: http://www.wisconsinstory.org/
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As always, please add those events you'd like to share that I missed...and hope to see you there!

The Academy Awards: A Measure of Artistry or Relevancy?

2010-02-24T07:02:00.000-08:00

I always get excited about the Oscars. As far back as I can remember, I've stayed up late to watch the stars, the hosts, the drama. Maybe it helps that I've been stuck on movies since I before I started walking. In fact, I remember back on our old Packard Bell computer (the Windows 93 version) I once set up a catalog of all the movies I'd seen, categorized by genre, year, and rating (yes, I had opinions back then, too).

Anyways, every year I toil with predictions of who the Oscar-winners will be. Will it be the favorite? The underdog? The spoiler? Usually we can expect some surprises. Mostly these are good, like Juliette Binoche winning for "The English Patient" in 1997. Sometimes, though, like when "Crash" upset "Brokeback Mountain" for Best Picture a few years back, they leave a sour taste in my mouth. It is in these circumstances that I wonder: do the Academy Awards function as the measure of artistic greatness or relevancy?

I list these as mutually exclusive choices because often it seems like they do battle against one another, as if the audience-at-large tends to choose their films based on one major criteria. I watched "Titanic" because of the effects, the sheer scale. It definitely wasn't relevant to me, not even in terms of the overblown love story. On the other hand, I don't know much about the mafia, but it's hard to deny the impact of the "Godfather" parts 1 and 2, and others like "Goodfellas" and "Bonnie and Clyde." These movies had iconic visual styles, and refined narratives that communicated far more than the words on the page (er, screen).

Maybe the best example is "Star Wars," whose inspiring message coupled brilliantly with breakthrough technology to offer one of the most entertaining movie experiences of all time. "Avatar" is the latest Oscar front-runner following in that legacy. If it does win best picture, something most blockbusters have failed to achieve in the past 30 years, most would acknowledge has to do with it's mind-bending technological achievements rather than the depth of the story or acting.

That's not to say great movies can't also resonate with us, even if they are dated and no longer as socially relevant. Orson Welles' "Citizen Kane" - both visually stunning and perhaps the quintessential commentary on power, greed, and the American dream - still echoes as powerfully as it did in 1941. "The Hurt Locker" is another terribly relevant movie, and I dare say it may be great...but will that be enough to overcome the "Avatar" juggernaut. And, even if "Hurt Locker" upsets the race, is that even a fair measure of it's worth? After all, many of the so-called "greatest" directors never won Academy Awards for any of their films. Cases in point: Welles, Stanley Kubrick, and Robert Altman.

We'll have to wait and see what happens on March 7th, but until then I've devised a test of my questions. Here are my picks (of the 'major' categories), based not on viewing and comparing all the eligible films, rather on my compulsive obsession with cinema news, trends, and the current buzz. If I shoot more than 50%, maybe being in the forefront of the media is more important that message, vision, and artistry at the Oscars after all.

Best Picture: Avatar
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart
Best Actress: Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side
Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz, Inglorious Basterds
Best Supporting Actress: Mo'Nique, Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
Best Screenplay (adapted): Geoffrey Fletcher, Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
Best Screenplay (original): Mark Boal, The Hurt Locker
Best Achievement in Cinematography: Mauro Fiore, Avatar

Music on the Moon

2010-02-10T10:11:00.001-08:00

One of my favorite NPR programs is WBUR's On Point with Tom Ashbrook.

Just yesterday they had a particularly interesting program topic, the dramatic announcement that NASA would soon turn over space travel - low-earth orbit, space station missions, and possible future travel to the moon - to private corporations. This is really a pivotal moment, perhaps on par with the launch of the Mercury astronauts, since it signals a change in momentum for a program that has long been dormant component of our National policy. It's also sparking debate as to whether private corporations are prepared for servicing this extremely high-risk, highly-expensive new market.

At the same time All Things Considered just ran a program on the history of music inspired by the notion of space flight (here is the complete article). So what do you think? Are we going to get space-age music (a new version "Night Flight to Venus" is a sure bet), or Kubrick-style reversion back to classics that evoke the experiential nature (lightness, silent space, chaos) of being in space?

Report: CMS Summit and the Future of Arts Entrepreneurship

2010-02-04T10:09:00.001-08:00

It's taken me a while to get back to writing about the experience of attending (and presenting) at the first-ever College Music Society Summit. Partly because of the crazy schedule that awaited me back in Madison, and partly due to the gestation period I normally need after one of these highly-stimulating and tiring events.

In any case, this was (I believe) a watershed moment for the field of Arts Entrepreneurship (if there is one), that produced some valuable lessons about the current status of the arts student.

We need to remember that there are still too many variables, in terms of personal educational ideologies, for any sort of standardization to take place. And this is probably a good thing, as many of the noted scholars, administrators, performers, and composers pointed out: each educational environment (e.g. school, university, college) needs a unique and malleable combination of curricular and co-curricular initiatives. Otherwise, Arts Entrepreneurship risks the loss of its true effectiveness, as a vehicle for problem-solving and developing socially-minded arts ventures/projects. As was noted during the proceedings, we stand at the precipice of falling into yet another silo of bureacracy, and worse yet, irrelevancy.

There were, however, some trends emerging from the chaos of all the intellectual rhetoric:

1) Need exists for student involvement, leadership, and action

It's fairly obvious to students that we need to take responsibility for our talents and abilities, and to channel them towards social good. The importance of this opportunity for students and professionals to get together lay in the possibility for faculty to more fully realize the capabilities of students. That is, it became clear that many students have the capacity and drive to begin building a professional profile while still a student. This realization may open up new channels for student/professional collaboration, and, I hope, more student-initiated arts projects.

2) Divide exists between perceptions students and realities of working artists

The results of the student survey showed, among other things, that a majority of students (70%still hold on to the dream that most will either teach at a college/university or will be paid primarily to perform. This, or course, flies in the face of many graduates' realities. We often don't have the skills to navigate the professional world when we leave our institutions, nor do we realize the scope of possibilities out there for professional artists. We're now in the nascent stages of developing broader frameworks for achieving success in the 'real world' - and I think Arts Enterprise has the opportunity to play a large part in paving those roads!

3) Empowerment is the key to fostering renewed success for 21st century arts careers

One of the highlights was the chance to interact and mingle with so many people who have diverse backgrounds, and individual visions for helping students succeed. We did see a common theme emerge, though, and that was the idea that empowerment is the key ingredient to fostering innovative and sustainable careers. By combining skills with vision, we can transfer ability into action. More importantly, it must be through an individual's own sense of responsibility that he or she will find success in socially-driven and concsious art projects.

On that note, here is one example that illustrates the synergy of all those concepts. I mentioned in my last post that AE Madison was teaming up with UW-MTNA to host fundraising concerts for Haiti relief. Well, I'm happy to report that our first effort was a success! Thanks to the combined efforts of Steinway Piano Gallery, the fantastic publicity generated by our hard-working student groups, and effective logistical planning, we were able to fill the Gallery and raised an inspiring $673 from just 32 seats! Now just $1327 to go to meet our goals; I hope you'll be able to join these students as they work to build momentum to the second (and final) installment of our series. Read more here.

Til next time, enjoy the weekend and carry on, arts entrepreneurs!

Music for Haiti: Action-Based Learning At Its Best

2010-02-01T09:03:00.000-08:00

Report: Our first event for 2010 was a smashing success! UWCU was gracious to host an hour-long seminar on "Financial Management for Aspiring Professionals" which proved both informative and engaging. Our seminar covered the essentials of budgeting, saving, and smart spending. Sprinkled with trivia questions about financial planning myths, we were also treated to lots of handy take-aways, including personal budgeting worksheets, and an outline for basic financial planning. And they managed to make this stuff fun! These guys rock, and I urge you to check out all the free seminars they offer.

Now, in lieu of my usual Arts Roundup post, I want to write more specifically about two exciting and urgent upcoming events. The UW Collegiate Chapter of the MTNA (for which I serve as a community advisor) has put together two concerts to raise money for Haiti relief. They're calling it "Music for Haiti," and (through these musical offerings) hope to raise $2,000. 100% of the proceeds will go to Hope for Haiti, one of the top agencies working on the ground to assist those affected by the devastating earthquake.

This was such a timely and thoughtful idea, Arts Enterprise Madison had to find a way to help them out. I can't think of a better example than this of how action-based, experiential learning can be channeled towards social good. UW-MTNA is also a strong ally in building an awareness of the need for artists to recognize their responsibility to society. In other words, how we can all use our art to serve and support those in need. So, AE Madison is sponsoring a reception, and working to build as big an audience as possible through our network in the community. Here are the details, and I hope you'll be able to join us for two evenings of wonderful music to help a very worthy cause:

Thursday, 02/04, Steinway Gallery of Madison, 7:15pm
(6629 Mineral Point Rd.)

Saturday, 02/13, Morphy Hall, UW Humanities Building, 6:30pm

With your help, we can raise $2,000! The concerts will include works by Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Copland, Berg and Chopin.

To read more about the event and UW-MTNA, click here. Hope to see you there!

New Year's Resolutions, Part 2

2010-01-27T11:32:00.000-08:00

My last post was devoted to corporate identity, and the ramifications of misidentifiying the responsibilities of corporations as "individual entities." It was also a bit of a rant. I want to take some time now to look at the positive side of that issue. This post also brings the discussion back to the world of art-makers, to their interactions with society and it's agents.

We must remember that all those who engage in creative enterprises face the question of how to determine a metric for valuation that honors both our individual skills and measurable potential impact on society. In fact, the question of valuation is one of the most challenging topics for any industry, and particularly with regard to how we can quantify the non-quantitative. How can we count into the equation the intangible measurements of success, those that lie beyond the bottom-lines of profit maximation and cost reduction?

This is an issue which touches all artists. I recently attended a piano teachers' conference where one panel was addressing the question of valuation, and one member advocated the dramatic raising of teacher fees for those who undervalue their potential earning power. "Stop charging $10 per hour," the speaker admonished, "because it is you who prevent the rest us from maintaining an adequate living. You are devaluing our field."

In many ways this panelist was correct: all-too-often piano teachers seeking to make casual, supplementary income don't bother to address how their earning power could increase. They also often fail to address the aggregate effect of setting the fee ceiling so low. In an ideal world, we could all collectively set our fees up to, say $100 per hour, if we included all the qualititative implications of our teaching. The increase in academic performance that corollates with music study, the predilection towards mathematical success, and the other positive behavioral patterns associated with students who pursue long-term piano study could, hypothetically, be used to support such a tuition hike. And we would all have to do so in tandem, AS a collective.

But what of the places where the current pricing norm is $20 per hour? Who could waltz into that town with the request that patrons pay five times the normal rate for the same service? Obviously, one would have to promise that he or she could offer many times the value to justify that kind of increase. How? For 3 hour-long lessons instead of the typical 30 minute offerings? I don't think so. We'd have to find ways of calculating all those non-quantifiable attributes our teaching offers. We'd have to show how our teaching does more than teach - how it empowers, how it engages, how it stimulates, how it frees. This is the true obstacle for most of us, as it requires a whole new perspective on our achievements. It also calls us to look forward to see the potential future accomplishments of our students.

Of course, there are some corporate models in other industries where "unquantifiable" assets have not only been accounted for, they have been leveraged to create more value for those who cultivate them. Apple, for example, is not (technically) an innovator. It didn't create the first MP3 player, the first SmartPhone, or the first desktop computer. But it DID find ways of making these technologies more accessible, more attractive, and trendy. In the process the engineers at Apple - like other companies, such as Google and Virgin Entertainment - have found ways of revealing the potentially "qualifiable" assets that these technologies possess. You want the iPod because it's fun to use, because using the iPod isn't just functional, it's entertaining, and because it brightens your day. That is why Apple's grip on that market is so powerful, and why it is continually the trend-setting brand in mobile technology. The just-enveiled Mac Tablet (or iPad) is the latest example of their impact.

Now we must find ways of 1) measuring our impact on society through our art-making, and then 2) developing a metric for valuation that fairly compensates us for our work. I don't know many pianists who would rather sell shoes than play or teach, it's just that most don't imagine that a new horizon exists for sustainable earning power AS professional musicians. This must be done on an individual basis, of course, due both to the varied micro-economic settings of artists and their personal levels of training and social attributes.

So here's resolution number two: this year, I promise to task myself on the question of how we can achieve a better benchmark for artistic work, and help others recognize a new and improved vision for their future as professional artists.

New Year's Resolutions, Part 1

2010-01-24T13:35:00.001-08:00

I only just got back to Madison on Monday, and it's already been a busy week. With Brown's victory in Mass., Border's teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, and the NYTimes.com to start charging uses in 2011 (heard that one before, maybe they won't stick to it this time, either)...I've had plenty of material from which to brew some ideas. The problem has been to get my brain to work.

Political views aside, probably the most staggering news for me has been the Supreme Court's rejection of previously established corporate spending limits (NYTimes.com). This has the potential for re-shaping the way campaigns are run, fought, and won...but more importantly for this discussion is how that decision provokes the notion that corporations should be granted the same privileges of the First Amendment (without restriction) promised to individuals.

Here's the problem, as I see it: while we are taught to treat corporations as individual "entities," separate of their owners, this systemic (and legislative) doctrine was introduced primarily due to the powerful advantage corporations have attained over time. That is, when corporations were first formed, they were typically small enterprises (and to some extent, most still are, I suppose) created to synergize the assets and capital of individuals. Greater power yields greater reward. And, in terms of business, this led developed (and developing) countries to the greatest aggregate wealth ever achieved in the history of the world. Bravo, corporations.

The problem arrives when these "individual entities" begin to sway that massive power towards policy. This is no surprise; with greater wealth comes greater responsibility, and many such organizations now have much to lose when particular legislation comes to bear. And this is in no way a political statement, as both Conservatives and Liberals alike have fallen into the shadow of corporate agendas. Governments are also prone to such abuses; thus the current American system, which, although sometimes inefficient, does at least exhibit the speed-bumps necessary to slow cartel-building (although I guess anything's possible).

But as of this week, according to the Supreme Court, we are supposed to suddenly accept that corporations (whether comprised of 2 people or 20,000) have the same pattern and degree of influence as individuals. And this is simply not the case. Corporations exist for one reason, to maximize profit. This is not true for human beings, as (for most of us) our financial aspirations are tempered with emotions, needs, and social consciousness. If anything, even the best corporations exhibit a serious lag on that curve because they must grapple with more costs, more overhead, more people, more ideas, more discord - than one individual could possibly mount.

Similarly, individuals need to coalesce to create enough leverage to change policy, while corporations (especially the largest ones) today have more than enough power to provoke and sustain significant policy change. When corporations band together to back one candidate with $50,000,000, who is to say, realistically, that another candidate who stands against that policy (and thus must rely on smaller individual donations) has a fair chance in any election. And with the Supreme Court's backing, who can blame them? After all, those corporations may have hundreds of millions at stake! Most importantly, if and when that first candidate gets elected, we no longer have any legitimate reason to protest when they put a personal agenda - driven by corporate goals rather than public interest - into action.

And this is a great mistake. Quote from the great Peter Drucker,

"Business management must always, in every decision and action, put economic performances first. It can justify its existence and its authority only by the economic results it produces...It has failed if it does not improve, or at least maintain, the wealth-producing capacity of the economic resources entrusted to it. And this, whatever the economic or political structure of ideology of a society, means responsibility for profitability."(1)

Let us never lose sight of that. And so, as my first New Year's Resolution of 2010, I promise NOT to view corporations in the same light as individuals, no matter what the Supreme Court says.

--
(1) Drucker, Peter. (1974). "The Dimensions of Management." From Management, Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices. New York: Harper Publishing, p. 40.

Happy New Year + Late Jan. Arts Roundup

2010-01-19T09:24:00.000-08:00

Just arrived back in Madison after a hectic Holiday break, including the FANTASTIC Inaugural CMS Summit on Music Entrepreneurship! More on that later....for now, I have a list of a few hot events in and around Madison that I don't want you to miss!!

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Emerson String Quartet
Friday, 1/22 8:00pm
Location: Wisconsin Union Theater

Don't miss one of America's greatest string quartets, back in Madison by popular demand!

Check out: http://uniontheater.wisc.edu/season/emerson2.html

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Wisconsin Story Project Presents: Cancer Stories Fundraiser
Saturday, 1/23 7:30pm
Location: Project Lodge

The Wisconsin Story Project will present it's first theatrical project, entitled Cancer Stories, in May 2010 at Overture Center (http://www.wisconsinstory.org/csp.html). Now they need our support! This promises to be a lot of fun and for a very worthy cause. So please try to be there!

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Screening: "Beautiful Losers"
Thursday, 1/28 7:30pm
Location: Memorial Union Play Circle

Here's the word from Alex Wolf, of the Wisconsin Union Film Committee: "In the early 1990's a loose-knit group of likeminded outsiders found common ground at a little NYC storefront gallery. Rooted in the DIY (do-it-yourself) subcultures of skateboarding, surf, punk, hip hop & graffiti, they made art that reflected the lifestyles they led. Starring a selection of artists who are considered leaders within this culture, "Beautiful Losers" focuses on the telling of personal stories. It speaks to themes of what happens when the outside becomes "in" as it explores the creative ethos connecting these artists and today's youth."

Sounds like fun!

Check out the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyRAHKTy6hI

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Arts Enterprise Presents - Sustainable Creativity Part III: Financial Management for Aspiring Professionals
Monday, 2/01 6:00pm
Location: Room TBA Humanities Bldg (Check TITU)

Could let this one slip through! This interactive workshop will feature UW Credit Union representatives as they help students deal with issues related to planning for life beyond the institution. This FREE event is a CAN'T MISS opportunity for entrepreneurs and soon-to-be self-employed artists to get a head start on setting up a system for sustainable financial success. Topics to be explored include:

•Saving and budgeting plans
•Planning for retirement now
•Understanding your student loan debt
•Using and building credit wisely

Don't miss this exciting, FREE event. We'll provide light refreshments, as well as our trademark door prize raffle. So you have nothing to lose, and hopefully something to gain!

Check out: http://www.artsenterprise.wisc.edu/student.html

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That's it for now! Looking forward to a great 2010, and many more fun events...

Welcome to the Jungle....or How to Avoid Getting Trampled at Target

2009-12-06T09:31:00.000-08:00

Hi all,

We are nearing the final weeks of the semester and things are at full-crank again. Looking forward to the much-needed break, but before we depart for the Holiday Break, I couldn't leave without one post about the Post-Thanksgiving consumer craziness that's beginning to brew.

A recent NYTimes article showed that artists are feeling the crunch from our economic situation (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/24/arts/design/24study.html?emc=eta1). Not only did more than half of all artists across disciplines (5,300 participants took the survey) feel a drop in income from 2008-09, roughly 2/3 of the group indicated that their income fell below $40,000/year. This struck me as I braved the Black Friday deals here in Madison; early-bird specials, one-day-only in-store discounts, and CLEARANCE signs are still swimming in my vision. I don't know about you, but even though we are conditioned to believe this is the best time to buy gifts, it seems like there must be a better way to spend our quickly-diminishing holiday funds. And especially when I don't particularly enjoy the experience of shopping on those days, when normally-pleasant humans become jingle-bell crazen animals.

It's weird though, because the more I bought, the less I felt satisfied with my purchases. Now, I did find what I wanted, at a good price. So it wasn't about being dissapointed in missing the chance to get the gift I had been thinking of. Rather, I felt like I was living inside Barry Schwartz's The Paradox of Choice: the more options I had, the less satisfied I was with the product. Because, as Schwartz points out, one's expectations rise incrementally with each new option, so his key to true happiness is this: keep your expectations low.

But isn't there another way to satisfy my gift-procuring experience? After all, I don't want to get mediocre gifts for my family and friends. So, when I got home I set upon the task ot figuring out whether spending all that time and money was actually worth it? Turns out, for me, buying online from retailers like Amazon.com saved between 10-20% EVEN when compared to the best deals in brick-and-mortar. Now, I'm not the only one who figured this out. I can't be. So that means people must actually like being out during those days, kind of like going to a birthday party in 6th grade. You may not really like the location, but you can't afford to miss it.

Maybe it's worth a little bit of time to see whether shopping is really worth the time at all. Joel Waldfogel's new book Scroogenomics: Why You Shouldn't Buy Presents for the Holidays (2009) proposes exactly that: spending money on presents for your family and friends just doesn't add enough value to justify the expense, because, due to a number of factors, the recipient feels less than satisfied (http://press.princeton.edu/titles/8972.html). Maybe we could find some really innovative ways of adding value through thoughtful and unexpected gifts.

Here are some places to start:

The 29-Day Gift Giving Challenge:http://givingchallenge.ning.com/
The Happiness Project: http://www.happiness-project.com/
The Paradox of Choice: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VO6XEQIsCoM
PriceWatch: http://www.pricewatch.com/
And my favorite book on the subject:

Lewis Hyde's The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World! Find inspiration here: http://www.amazon.com/Gift-Creativity-Artist-Modern-Vintage/dp/0307279502

Only problem is, I'm writing this with a whole pile of presents sitting next to my desk. So I guess I'm outta luck this time....

Thanksgiving to All

2009-11-26T10:38:00.000-08:00

On this day I will finally honor a long-held, and too-often-ignored promise of shorter blog posts.

All I have to say is, Thank You for reading, and have a great holiday!

Artful Activism: What Musicians Can Learn from Environmental Filmmakers

2009-11-21T13:06:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, Madison was lucky to witness the Tales From Planet Earth. It's hard to described what exactly TFPE was, except that one could call it a hybrid film festival/call-to-action for anyone concerned about the environment, society, and politics. Yeah, I guess that pretty much sums it up...

So, anyways, what I found most amazing about it was the vigor, the excitement, the passion that was present among all those participating (filmmakers, community coordinators, and audience). But more important than that - and I realized this in the midst of the opening night extravaganza featuring a talk by Guggenheim-winning social activist Majora Carter - was the why. That is, why everyone seemed to cared so much...after all, it was just a film festival calling out the problems of our complex society, right? Wrong.

What set it apart from a film festival, and what translated to over 4,600 people turning out for it, was the way it blended, nay synergized, the energy stirred up by films like Academy Nominated-The Cove (2009) and Trouble the Water (2008) into action. How did co-directors Judith Hefland and Gregg Mitton (of UW's Center for Culture, History, and Environment) do this? By coupling action with art.

These four themes provided a roadmap of issues explored by the various films presented on the roster:

•Landscapes of Labor
•Precious Resources
•Strange Weather
•In the Company of Animals

Each track featured cinema that interwove environmental activism with poverty, race relations, immigration, politics, globalization, and economics. This, of course, reflects the interconnected, complex, and complicated relationship all of these issues share. Next, by offering seven community events that matched the themes and their relational complexity (e.g., quasi-think tanks, Community Supported Agriculture fundraisers, and town-hall type interactive panel discussions), audience members were able to instantly channel their interest into action that, when brought home to each participant's local community, could have a lasting impact on Madison, to Wisconsin, to the whole country.

Now, imagine what could happen if we (as artists) could channel that same passion we have into community action. Even if we could tap into 25, 50, 100 people in our community to get together and (instead of just sitting there listening to us sweat-it-out on stage) work collaboratively, it would become something more than just a concert. That way, we could all make a huge difference (in a localized sense) towards promoting a better/stronger/healthier __________(and yes, here feel free to fill-in-the-blank on the issue of your choice). Couple that with the connectivity Twitter, Facebook, and the iPhone offers...and we're talking something big!

Where do we start? That's the question, isn't it! Well, all I can think of as a starting point is Bill Ivey's notion of cultivating an "expressive life." He proposes that just as so many in society had equated tangible (financial) wealth as a sole measure of success for much of the 20th century, we must now look towards the art around us (and our ability to synthesize it into our lives) as a new addition to that rubric. I think this goes two-ways. In other words, artists need not only search for meaning in art, but a meaning through art. As he writes in the introduction to his must-read book Arts, Inc.: How Greed and Neglect have Destroyed Our Cultural Rights (2008), "...by failing to link our expressive life to America's public purpose, we have placed our nation's heart and soul at risk" (p. xviii).

Well said, Mr. Ivey, and let's be the first to take up the cause and turn our artistic abilities into activism.

So, what do you want to do?
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To learn more about Tales From Planet Earth, check out: http://www.nelson.wisc.edu/tales/speakers.html

Musicians' Wellness Day 2.0

2009-11-15T12:25:00.000-08:00

I'm recovering from the UW-MTNA's second annual Musicians' Wellness Day, held at UW-Madison and featuring interactive sessions on Feldenkrais, Yoga, and Laban Movement. I'm excited to say that this year we again had a healthy (oops, sorry) turnout and a really enjoyable day of exercises that can't help but make you want to stay fit, both in body and mind.

As musicians, and probably artists in a more general sense can empathize here as well, we all-to-often neglect our bodies in favor of long hours in the practice room. Of course, we HAVE to practice, but shouldn't the two go hand-in-hand? I'm particularly interested in the notion that we need to put our physical wellbeing in the forefront of our life, just as we promote the idea that honoring the music we make as the top priority in our artistic pursuits, because if we are NOT physically healthy we simply won't have all of our creative tools at our disposal.

So what can we do about it? I mean, we can foster this sort of experience through events like Wellness Day (if we are lucky enough to have a group of musicians and artists who are interested enough to put such an event on), but the challenge lies in transferring a fun one-day event into a steady commitment to nurturing a healthy lifestyle.

One problem is the proliferation of misinformation about 'exercise' - everywhere you look are ads touting the next 'easy' way to get ripped or lose 100 lbs. without giving up your cheese curds. We obviously haven't learned our lesson, first revealed decades ago that, yes, staying healthy requires effort, smart eating, and lots of exercise (gasp!).

I learned this lesson from being a competitive swimmer for 10 years, competing year-round at state, regional, and national competitions. Many of my peers went on to swim at the collegiate level, and two even made it to Olympic Trials. Now, I was never that caliber of an athlete, but I can say that the harsh, exhausting, and ultimately addictive nature of intensive sports training (for me, at least) directly paralleled my musical study. In fact, I often thought they complemented each other. As my coach's favorite T-shirt used to remind us: "Ignore your health, and it will go away." I think somewhere along the line we all forgot that one doesn't necessarily have to separate sports from art - they both demand a commitment from our bodies and minds alike, and they both require an holistic and consistent maintenance of our overall well-being.

Maybe I'm being disingenuous. In fact, it's probably more likely that we artists just don't think we have the time to commit to working out, Yoga, or some other supposedly therapeutic hobby. Plus, there's that rumor that we can burn up to 300 calories an hour practicing our instrument. So who needs 'exercise' anyways?

After Wellness Day I'm reminded of the hard-to-believe revelation that we can actually incorporate exercise into our practice sessions. At the very least, we can begin to harness a greater personal awareness of our physical habits we use in our arts training. I'm starting to think maybe it's time to get our feet under us so we can start moving in a healthier direction; in our lives as well as in the practice room. As yesterday proved, for the second year in a row, it's not as hard as it sounds, and, when you can find a few others interested in getting healthy, all of a sudden "working out" can become a lot more relevant to our musical experience. And, it's just a heck of a lot of fun.

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To read more about the complex notions of eating "healthy" and "exercising" as they relate to our relationship with society, check out these resources:

1) Pollan, Michael. (2007). The Omnivore's Dilemma. Penguin Books. ISBN: 0143038583
2) Green, Barry. (1986). The Inner Game of Music. Doublday Press. ISBN: 0385231261
3) Finally, this is a great Blog: http://a2create.blogspot.com/

November Arts Roundup

2009-11-04T12:19:00.001-08:00

Here are my "arts events" picks for November 2009:

................................................................................
11/05 Broken Lizard

Location: Barrymore Theatre, 8pm

Check out this comedy team responsible for movies such as Super Troopers and Beerfest. See the link below to find out of tickets are still available!

Check Out: http://www.barrymorelive.com/
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11/06-11/08 "Tales from Planet Earth: Environmental Film Festival"

Location: various throughout Madison

This FREE and OPEN to the public festival has an exciting line-up of films, including the much-hyped documentary "The Cove," about an infamous Japanese dolphin farm.

Check Out: TalesFromPlanetEarth.com
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11/12 Bill Ivey

Location: Madison Museum of Contemporary Art

Former Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts and recent Obama advisor will be here to talk about "Arts, Inc. Greed, Neglect, and Our Cultural Rights." This is going to be one of the highlights of the year, so don't miss it. This FREE event is part of the Arts Enterprise Public Forum.

Check Out: http://www.uw-artsenterprise.com/?page_id=38
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11/14 Musicians' Wellness Day

Location: UW Humanities, Rm. 1341

Join UW-MTNA for the second annual Musicians' Wellness Day, which features sessions on Yoga, Feldenkrais, and Laban Movement. Open to all students, and faculty - this event is also FREE!

Check Out: the UW-MTNA Facebook group www.facebook.com
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10/24-5/9/2010 MMoCA Exhibit: Cage and Cunningham: Chance, Time and Concept in the Visual Arts

Location: Madison Museum of Contemporary Art

This incredible multidimensional exhibit is sure to raise many interesting questions about the intersection of dance, visual art, and music! Don't miss it!

Check Out: http://www.mmoca.org/
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Let me know what I missed from this list......

If Don't Read This You Are A Bad Person

2009-10-26T12:38:00.000-07:00

I'm writing today after a weekend attending the World Piano Pedagogy Conference. It's was fun to get away from Madison for a few days. Amazing how it always feels like a vacation, even when one ends up in a highly-charged and intense educational experience. But maybe it's really because October in Phoenix feels better than July in Madison.

In any case, I have to say that many of the sessions were incredibly enlightening (especially those offered by Phillip Kawin and Yoheved Kaplinsky). The intensive schedule (as they always are) got me thinking (during one of my caffeine pick-me-ups) about the relationship between administration and participant. What struck me as I was leaving one of the sessions was how so closely these events, although educational and often non-profit, resemble the consumerist transactions (or trade-offs) we are making every day. Unfortunately, both sides often don't see this quality, which can lead to organizational dysfunction.

For example, at one international conference I was recently attending, I heard an administator, in their welcoming address, admonished those who had chosen to refrain from coming that year. As if they should be ashamed for their choice not to fork over hundreds of dollars (not including airfare and hotel) for a conference that MAY not have been earth-shattering.

Nevermind the fact that such a statement has no affect whatsoever on those who are NOT in attendance, such an attitude reflects the all-to-prevalent idea that WE, those whose support makes these events possible, should feel obligated to support them. I would argue that precisely the opposite should be the case. It is the responsibility of those hosting an event to make them attractive enough to keep the "audience" coming back for more. This is no different than the standard we hold films, theatre, and yes, music concerts to, so why should it be different for an event that often includes LARGE monetary and capitol investments (travel, hotel, transportation, food, etc). It should occur to those running festivals and conferences that maybe everything isn't perfect, and pre-emptive research should be focused in improving program offerings in accordance with the needs of those who pay big bucks to attend.

And let's be real here, any event that costs close to a $1000 to attend can't pretend that it ISN'T a commercial event - whether we like to admit this or not, when money is involved we all make decisions based on opportunity cost, not to mention value-adding calculations, just as we would with any large-ish commercial transaction.

The REAL question, then, is: why do artists sometimes feverishly hold on to the notion that we (the public) owe them something? Maybe it grows out of a dependency on arts' patronage that has both allowed the creation of unprofitable creativity to survive and promoted a divide between the empresarios and producers of art. Or maybe it's the die-hard habit of channeling organizational frustration at the "customer" ("Why DON'T they like what we're doing, anyways? They must not get it!"). The classic argument that many (even within in the arts' professions) just don't "get" High Art. Either way, it's time artists woke up and realized that the "customer", whether right or not, should be the focus of every artistic endeavor that requires patronage for survival. Similarly, we as participants must do a better job at communicating honestly and constructively our thoughts about how to improve these extremely expensive programs. As has been proven in the advertising world, this must stem from an open-minded view of creativity and it can change the world.

Speaking of which, one of the highlights of my trip was checking out the college-town of Tempe. It resembles Madison, albeit a drier, less pedestrian, and hotter version of it. Their 'State St.', AKA Mills Ave., had a wonderful little movie theater featuring the new documentary "Art&Copy", about creativity in the advertising industry. This is a must-see for anyone in an artistic profession; a truly convincing tale about the power, and necessity, of creativity. It offers valuable lessons on valuation decisions, and what makes something "sell".

As the subjects of this film profess, instead of complaining about a diminishing pool of attendees, why not do some research about WHY your constituency is turning their back on you. Maybe it's the cost. Maybe it's a bad experience last year. Maybe it's the advertising strategy. Maybe it's some subtle aspect of the event you never thought of (free coffee can go a LOOOONG way). In any case, too often suitable feedback mechanisms aren't in place at conferences and festivals. It can be tough for administration to make adjustments without knowing how the experience could be made more fulfilling.

At least it's a place to start. For now, though, I'm back to reality and the all-to-present reminder that winter is just around the corner. So, as the trees change to shades of autumn and we prepare to dig out our boots and jackets, and as the Capitol Farmers' Market moves indoors in the coming weeks, don't feel guilty if you decide not to attend an expensive and somehow unattractive out-of-town event. But DO try to let them know what would make you more willing to attend next year. And, whatever you do, remember to read my blog.

Pianists in the Creative Age: Where do we fit in?

2009-10-16T13:37:00.001-07:00

One of the buzziest words around in the realm of professional development is the so-called "professional portfolio." This catch-phrase is all over the place, and everybody seems to think it applies to them. My favorite definition is this one, designed for teachers:

"The professional portfolio is a vehicle for collecting and presenting that evidence [of their growth and achievement over time]." (1)

There's even a website that will help you develop a "professional portfolio," customized to your needs and career path: http://www.portfolio5.com/. It makes sense that such an exploration into the idea of how a broad, multifaceted career(s) can foster viable and sustainable professional lifestyles is a popular idea in our new Creative Economy. People don't work for one company anymore; in fact, most people under the age of 30 have already had several employers, and I'm not talking the summer, beach-bum-in-sandals kind of gig. (2)

It's pretty easy as a pianist to see the neccesity of a "professional portfolio." After all, we are continually called upon to shift, chameleon-like, from soloist, to chamber musician, to teacher, and sometimes to be an entrepreneur. So why is it, then, that so many of us miss out on developing (first) a framework for evaluating our creative skills in the aggregate, and then (second) figuring out relevant, impactful, and effective methods for putting them to use?

Maybe it's because we are, in large part, asphyxiated by the historical rigidity of tertiary curricula. Colleges and Universities are notoriously slow to adapt, and music is no exception. A recent study found that of B.M. piano performance degree requirements at 82 accredited tertiary programs across the U.S., only 24% required a "functional keyboards skills" course. Only 5% required a jazz/improv skills class. (3) Are you kidding me?!?! This at a time when social scientists have been heralding the coming of a need for a diversely-trained and flexible workforce, primarily based on right-brained, creative-thinkers. (4)

While education at the College and University level seems to adapt at a snails' pace, when it does evolve, it jumps into gear seemingly at light-speed. A few years back, this was exemplified by the rise in 'business' training for artists, primarily through an attempt to bridge the gap between the silos of the Music and B-Schools. The problem was, as we found out, many schools didn't do as good a job as they had hoped in integrating the curricula into the context of arts' training. In other words, lots of artists where learning how to use SAS and Minitab, but weren't exploring how they could use these tools within a given arts' career.

More important, though, is the realization that an MBA isn't enough to ensure success today, regardless of one's chosen profession. (5) We need to turn to the advantage that we (pianists) all exhibit as musicians and pedagogues: the ability to communicate our artistic vision through creative and impactful channels. This doesn't mean we have to start programming Radiohead transcriptions - actually Christopher O'Riley already does that, darn - but we do have to start exploring how we can transfer our skills towards making music in a way that promotes creative-thinking, collaborative artistic expressions, and a focus on meeting the needs of our society (I say at the local level!).

From here we can start to build on a foundation of music-making that is infused not only with meaning and purpose, but also a greater sense of identity. This is precisely what our students must be exploring as well, for if we believe any of the research being on the economy, it is apparent that the creative workforce has already begun to take on the responsibilities of renewing our society through as-yet-unforseen innovation. By doing so with intent, we can become leaders in a new movement, one devoted to creating successful, independent, and maybe even divergent arts careers. It’s time to help your students’ find their niche!

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1: From Scholastic.com: http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=4148
2: Check out Next Generation Consulting for some stats, http://nextgenerationconsulting.com/
3: Walker, Tammie. "The Status of the BM Piano Performance Degree." AMT Journal, April/May 2008, 20-22.
4: Daniel Pink's A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future, (Riverhead Trade: 2006) and Richard Florida's The Flight of the Creative Class: The New Global Competition for Talent (Collins Business, 2007) are two excellent examples of this research.
5: Asher, Donald. “Alternatives to the MBA.” MSN Encarta, Posted December 2006. Accessible at http://www.gradview.com/articles/graduatestudies/alternatives_to_mba.html

October Arts Roundup

2009-10-08T18:52:00.000-07:00

Here are some exciting upcoming events in the Madison area:

Sundance Cinemas: The Screening Room

All Month Long, movies show one per week

Check out the great line-up Sundance has in it's exclusive screening room in October: "Every Little Step" 10/2-8, "Paris 36" 10/16-21, "Under Your Skin" 10/9-15, and "Humpday" 10/22-28. Tickets go on sale the Monday before each film starts.

For more info: http://sundancecinemas.com/showtimes.html?cinema=madison

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Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra

Friday, 10/09, 8pm: Capitol Theater, Overture Hall

Come check out this concert featuring works by Resphigi, Mendelssohn, and Mozart, and violinist Augustin Hadelich.

For more info: http://www.wcoconcerts.com/
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Wisconsin Book Festival

Through 10/11: Various Locations

Check this year's slate of writers, including keynoter Wendell Berry (4pm, Overture Hall).

For more info: http://www.wisconsinbookfestival.org/
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Imani Winds

Thursday, 10/15, 7:30pm: Mills Hall, UW Humanities

Don't miss this world-famous, Grammy-nominated wind quintet, on campus for the first time!

For more info: http://www.music.wisc.edu/extensions/eventdetails.jsp?event_id=1128
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UW Madison 'Collage' Concert

Friday, 10/16, 7:30pm: Mills Hall, UW Humanities

This one-of-a-kind event features interdisciplinary arts performances by UW Students. Always a hit!

For more info: http://www.music.wisc.edu/calendar
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These are my picks, but there are (surely) many others throughout the month.

Check out: http://isthmus.com/theguide/ for a comprehensive list of arts events in Madison (updated every week).

Why Artists Need to Get Heretical

2009-10-05T19:53:00.000-07:00

Leadership is a tricky thing. As the idea goes, not everyone can be a leader, yet everywhere we look there are signs that we need more leadership. In our companies, in government, at school, at the grassroots level. It's easy to believe that leadership is the answer to all our problems.

But it's not that simple. Leadership isn't about finding the 'right' person to follow, it's about figuring out what you want to change and then making that change happen. Maybe 1 person will follow you, maybe 50, but either way 'you' (more than ever before) CAN make a real difference without the 'right' pedigree, education, or bankroll.

How? By leading. You know, we think about leaders as 'heroes', the Mel Gibson kind where we direct a massive mob against the evil tyrants of the world (usually, in his case, they are British). In reality, leading isn't so cinematic (and it's a lot less bloody, at least at first). Most of the time it's more like getting 4 or 5 people (probably your friends) who really care about an idea to commit themselves towards making it happen. That's how lots of little movements got started, like Civil Rights and the British Invasion in the 60's, or the crazy idea that we could ALL use personal computers. (I personally disagree with the last one - I'm typing this up on my iPod and it's WAAAY easier...)

Leading, then, is more relational than mythical. Blogger/author/entrepreneur Seth Godin describes leadership in terms of helping a group of people recognize and achieve a common goal. I think he's right, and he's right about another thing, too: we all need to get heretical.

This shouldn't be too hard for us artists, since we're not really known for our stability in the first place. We just have to focus a bit more on channelling our zeal (AKA OCD syndrome) towards creating change. Change in our institutional environment, change in our career possibilities, change for future artists.

That sounds cliché, but really, isn't art the lense through which we view our history? And aren't the big changes in history the parts you remember? Let's go back a bit. Pythagoras was nuts. Really, completely nuts. He thought the planets' orbits were in-sync with some larger mathematical ratio, and that this ratio was relative to musical intervals. Whoa! Caravaggio, now there's a crazy who was also a true heretic. He even painted the Virgin Mary in innappropriate clothing (her ankles were showing). He wanted to paint a more realistic picture (no pun intended) of Biblical history. In the Late Renaissance, that's big. William Blake, you don't even have to even read any of his stuff to know how nuts he was. Have you ever seen any of his paintings?

OK, flash forward. How about John Lennon? That guy was so crazy ("Stop the Vietnam war!"...what a psycho) he inspired another crazy guy to kill him. Steve Jobs, Michael Dell, and Bill Gate have there own little "crazies only!" club going OK. And we can't forget Andy Warhol. The guy LIKED being known as a quirky, artistic maniac. Maybe it's because people loved him for it.

It has always been artists who have challenged the status quo. Why? Because new art necessarily must be different than the old. And that is hard for many people to accept. But, in the end, we remember those people now because what they did was revolutionary in some way, and more importantly, what they created had an impact on society. Those things are always more memorable to us than all that boring stuff that didn't change for decades (or sometimes centuries).

Try this: right now, start thinking about how we, as artists, can use the power of our art to foster change. Can we do it alone? I don't think so. We need to start by working towards building our network, what Godin would call a 'tribe', to start showing more of our peers that anti-establishment zealotry really isn't such a bad thing. In fact, being a heretic is probably the best way to get something done, because there's nothing more memorable than a crazy person who (if you listen) might actually make sense. And what is memorable, by default, gets noticed. Which means, if you take the opportunity to make a convincing point, somebody might remember it. If you're lucky, they may even decide to follow you. (Whoa, better know what you're talking about)

I'm pretty sure that we can find a few more crazies like us out there, after all, we are artists. And when you find them, try to listen to what they have to say....you mind even find yourself believing in them too. I'd write more, but I can't sit still any longer. Maybe I'll see you out there....

Summary of the Gabriel Kahane Q&A, or Musings on the Entrepreneurship/Art/Creativity Trifecta

2009-09-17T10:49:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy week. After weeks of logistical prep, Gabriel Kahane finally arrived on Monday night (9/14)for an open Q&A on 'Sustainable Creativity.' About twenty students gathered in our smaller performance space to talk with Mr. Kahane about his work, his multiple hats (composer/singer/song writer), and what it means to find one's way as an artist today.

Let me take the moment to say that Mr. Kahane was a real delight to have as a guest; honest, thoughtful, and intellectually keen, he graciously let us have a glimpse into his world while posing important questions as to our roles as musicians, as creative entrepreneurs, and as artists. Among the many interesting tangents this framework of a discussion led us down, perhaps the most intriguing was the debate about the inherent danger in mixing entrepreneurship and art. This was a point we returned to again and again throughout our discussion, and one that is worth exploring more thoroughly than a brief 60 minute dicussion would allow. A such, I thought it would be appropriate to talk about this challenging concept (and one that lies at the heart of Arts Enterprise's mission) in this forum, as my first commentary-focused Blog entry.

So, what are we talking about when the idea of entrepreneurship comes to the fore of a discussion of Arts Enterprise? Firstly, let's admit that this is a loaded question. Why? Because entrepreneurship has multiple meanings and definitions, depending on the scholar and/or the constituency of one's audience. At the same time though, entrepreneurship (at least in most of us) conjures up preconcieved ideas of self-centered, profit-hungry, business suits fighting to the death in search of the 'next big thing.' This notion is mostly at odds with that of artistic 'authenticity' (another dangerous term) - an idea rooted in the 19th Century, as a function of the Romantic concept of 'art for art's sake.' Interestingly enough, we forget that today many in the arts world utilize entrepeneurial concepts for the betterment of art, and as a vehicle for bringing creative, socially-oriented, and impactful works of art into being. Maybe it's just must more appealing to focus on crticizing those others who prioritize the fame often associated with successful art (Americal Idol, anyone?).

It is with this idea in mind that I suggest a re-evaluation of 'entrepreneurship' as it pertains to the arts. Lewis Hyde promotes the idea that art must exist both in a free-market economy and as the vehicle for a 'gift-based' economy. His proposition, encapsulated in his book "The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World", claims that we must all recognize the inherent social value of our art, and that this should outweigh our art's practical (monetary, or economically-valued) merits. This statement brings with it an inherent debate regarding whether authenticity is lost the moment one recognizes and tabulates the economic value of art.

I'm not going there, right now anyways, but it is a fact of life that we as artists DO have to juggle these kinds of value judgements on a day-to-day basis. For example, I am not above learning to play different styles of music from within the 'Popular' (yet another problematic label) realm, but when I'm asked to play one hour of Elton John at a wedding reception, I can't help but feel as though I'm doing that gig just for the money. There IS certainly a danger in using a purely economic metric when we measure the success or failure of a project, performance, or the creation of a new work of art.

So how do we reconcile such a paradox? I mean, we have to eat, right? After all, not ALL the creative work by 'the greats' resulted exclusively in masterpieces. Take Beethoven's Wellington's Victory, Op. 91 as a case in point. Written as a benefit piece for wounded soldiers, and to commemorate Wellington's victory over Napoleon (payback for the Third Symphony episode?) this widely popular work brought money and additional work for Beethoven during a time when he desperately needed it (this was the beginning of what noted Beethoven scholar Lewis Lockwood calls "The Fallow Years," 1813-14). Today nobody (OK, I take that back....almost nobody: http://www.battleproms.com/) talks about Wellington's Victory - but we do talk about another work on that same program: Symphony No. 7, Op. 92, which is acknowledged as perhaps one of Beethoven's great symphonic works. This anecdotal example is meant to show simply that the 'greats' weren't completely opposed to getting paid for what they to, and, despite both a common economic impetus and forum for display, two works with the same advantage (here, Beethoven's name attached) found vary different pathes through history. The case could be made, then, that, at the end of the line, great music will stand the test of time. But does great art always outlast mediocre art?

In fact, therein lies one of the core messages of New Music advocates: stop praising the 'canon', simply for being in the 'canon.' How many concerts have you sat through, in which you can't help but wonder why piece X, Y, or Z has been programmed yet again? Well, first off, there is always the prestige factor of going to see a concert with works by 'famous' composers, which give these works a bit of leeway not shared by works by new, often obscure composers. But more often than not, especially in tough economic times, musical institutions are pressured to pack the house to make the bottom line. This often means programs laden with works sure to satisfy the public, often to the exclusion of New Music. While I agree that we cannot ignore New Music if this art is to survive, what is more troubling is that nobody seems to be talking about how artists miss opportunities to find creative ways of leveraging their skills and artistic integrity to create a better chance for their art to make it's statement - and thus have a shot at standing up to the ultimate judge, history.

This is no easy line to walk. But then, no one said it would be easy. We can't forget that, like those before us, each artist has the responsibility to find a way to make our way through his or her economy (real, creative, entrepreneurial or however you choose to define it) so that they CAN make meaningful art. It's hard to do that while working at Wendy's.

Let me close by posing three questions that (and I write this hopefully) will inspire thought and debate on our mission as 21st Century artists. Here goes:

1) What does it mean to be an artist today?

2) How can we more accurately determine where we fall on the commercially-focused spectrum?

3) What can we do to balance our economic livelihood with artistic integrity, in a socially-impactful way?

Ultimately we have to find the treacherous path between the pillars of artistic authenticity and economic value, and somehow walk it, or better yet, bridge the two. Mr. Kahane is a great example of someone who does just that, acknowledging first and foremost that today one must make opportunities and seek out new inspiration, yet always wary of where those opportunities may lead us. It is this very introspection that may lead not only to creative success, but, more importantly, to a sustainable use of creativity that puts our art into central focus.

Check out Gabriel Kahane's website to read more about him, http://www.gabrielkahane.com/. Also, see http://www.lewishyde.com/ for more information on Hyde's interesting work.

Arts Roundup: September 2009

2009-09-11T11:50:00.001-07:00

This is the Arts Roundup for September 2009. After perusing many pages, I've found a whole bunch of events that might appeal to those interested in Arts Enterprise. Again, please post comments with events that I've missed, or update us if the information I've found has changed:

9/13/09: Live at the Chazen: Featuring UW Faculty Stephanie Jutt, Christopher Taylor, and Felicia Moye (FREE!)

Location/Time: Chazen Museum of Art, 12:30-2:00pm

This afternoon concert series is set in the galleries of the Chazen Museum of Art on the UW-Madison campus. Simulcast on WPR, it's always a fun and relaxing way to spend a Sunday afternoon! Plus, it features some great music (Martinu, Piazzola, Bach and Mozart). Plus there's free refreshments afterwards, and you can take the opportunity to check out the interesting collections.

Check Out: http://www.wpr.org/sal/ for more information.
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9/14/09 AE Madison Guest Artist Series: featuring Gabriel Kahane (FREE!)

Topic: "Sustainable Creativity" Part 1: Making it in the Real World
Location/Time: Morphy Hall, UW Humanities Building, 6-7:30 p.m.

This FREE and open Q&A with NYC-based composer/singer/songwriter Gabriel Kahane will explore how the independent artist working today can create and sustain a viable career in the arts. This event is free and we'll provide dinner, refreshments, and a door prize!

Check out: http://www.artsenterprise.wisc.edu/student.html and http://www.gabrielkahane.com/
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9/18/09 Visiting Guest Speaker: Nathaniel Zeisler (FREE!)

Topic: Mind Mapping
Location/Time: 2120 Grainger Hall, 8:50am-12:00noon

Nate (Assis. Professor - BGSU and Executive Director, Arts Enterprise Central) will be here to talk to the 'Art as Business as Art' seminar on the topic of Mind Mapping, an exercise in planning creatively for your artistic future. We're looking forward to having him back here in Madison, and although this class is full, email Dr. Stephanie Jutt if you're interested in attending as a guest (spots are limited!): sjutt@wisc.edu

We might even get an interview with Nate, and, if so, will post it here in the coming weeks!

Check out: http://www.uw-artsenterprise.com/ to read more about this groundbreaking course, and http://artsenterprise.com/ for more on what Nate has been up to.
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9/23/09 Special Guest Lecture by Elizabeth Streb (FREE!)

Topic: “Where Art and Audience Collide:Smashing Assumptions About Arts Venues”
Location/Time: Promenade Hall, Overture Center for the Arts, 7pm

One of dance's great dynamo choreographers and true aesthetic innovators, the founder of “PopAction,” Elizabeth Streb will present a public lecture on Wednesday, September 23, as part of the Public Forum series of the Art Enterprise Initiative.

Check out: http://www.uw-artsenterprise.com/?page_id=38 for more information.
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9/24-9/26 Michael Pollan Residency

Topic: "In Defense of Food: The Omnivore's Solution"
Location/Time: several locations and times

Author of bestseller "The Omnivore's Dilemma", Professor of Journalism at UC-Berkeley, and a sharp social critique, Mr. Pollan will be at UW-Madison for a series of events, including open (and FREE!) lectures at the Kohl Center and a WPR interview with Steve Paulson.

Check out: http://www.humanities.wisc.edu/pollan.html for more details.
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9/25 Pro Arte Quartet (FREE!)

Location/Time: Mills Hall, UW Humanities, 8pm

The first quartet in residency at any University or College in the U.S., the Pro Arte is one of the most famous and respected String Quartets in the world. Come see them, comprised of UW-Madison faculty, play Brahms, Beethoven, and Grieg. With special guest, violist Victoria Chiang (faculty, Peabody Conservatory of Music).

Check out: http://music.wisc.edu/calendar for more details.
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That's it for now, but I know there are probably many more! Please fill in the gaps, and, if YOU have an event coming up....please post it here!

Til next time....

Starting Fresh: Update for 2009-10

2009-09-04T14:11:00.001-07:00

Well, we are done with the first week of classes here at UW-Madison, and I'm happy to say it's been a productive and exciting summer! First and foremost, let me just say that the AE Summit was a huge success! Thanks to the wonderful work of Nate Z. and crew, Charles Workinger and I were able to get a strategic plan for 2009-10 designed and now, after brainstorming with Rachel and Morgann, we are ready to rock with several programs designed to facilitate innovative, empowering, and collaborative arts projects.

I've posted some pictures throughout of our fruitful and action-oriented weekend. In addition to the fun times, we also set the foundation for the launch of our NEW Guest Artist Series. For 2009-10 we've decided to explore the topic of "Sustainable Creativity", through a series of interactive Q&A's workshops, and panel discussions. We're bringing in artists and entrepreneurs from across the country to talk to students about what it means to create and sustain a viable career in the arts!

We're starting off with an open Q&A featuring NYC-based composer/singer/

songwriter Gabriel Kahane, who is best known for his work Craigslistlieder

(2006), a song-cycle which sets text from anonymous Craigslist adverts (check out Mr. Kahane's websiet for more info: http://www.gabrielkahane.com/index.php). This exciting event, FREE as always, will be held in Morphy Hall in the UW Humanities building on September 14th starting at 6pm. Don't miss it!

On that note, this blog will also serve a renewed purpose for the coming year, as I'll try my best to 'stay on the wagon' and post regularly not only about about exciting arts events, but also to talk about current issues that affect art and art-making. We'll also be adding (hopefully) some interviews with our guest artists, so that you can continue the dialogue after they've left Madison. Remember, we're eager to hear from you about what a 'creative and sustainable career' could mean for you...so please post comments!

Next, let me say with great excitement that VIBES, our flagship program, is about to launch. What, exactly, is VIBES? Vital Instrumentation with Big Ensemble Sound (VIBES), the brainchild of our very own Charles Workinger and Rachel Felton, is a partnership with several Madison-area high schools and the UW-Madison School of Music, that will facilitate several events to promote small ensemble music. Through VIBES, UW student chamber musicians will mentor and coach emerging high school chamber ensembles in order to revitalize chamber music for younger audiences. You can read more about this amazing program here: http://vibes.rso.wisc.edu/.

OK, thanks for reading all the way through this epic post. I promise two things: 1) that's it for now, and 2) future posts will be more frequent and shorter in length! Speaking of which, I'll be posting an Arts Roundup soon for the coming weeks arts events, so keep checking for that in the next few days. For now, have a great holiday, and remember, if you have something you'd like to pitch that I've missed, please do so!

Til then....

Summer Update: NCKP, AE Summit, and more...

2009-08-01T18:17:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

I'm writing today from the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy (just outside Chicago, IL). It's been fun to participate as a poster presenter here for the first time, and I'm happy to report that, finally, the importance of arts entrepreneurship is becoming more recognized in the realm of piano pedagogy: all three keynote addresses were positioned to tackle particular facets of the issue.

Particularly of note was the talk given by Prof. Jose Antonio Bowen, Dean of the Meadows School of the Arts at SMU, who called upon artists to make their art relevant to the community, locally oriented, and innovative in concept. Both his professional experience and message epitomize the issues Arts Enterprise is striving to achieve. I'd highly recommend checking out his website: http://www.josebowen.com/.

I also had the chance to meet Reno Lovison, a true entrepreneur and the author of the fun, easy-to-read, and informative book "Turn Your Business Cards into a Business." He came by to check out my poster presentation, and we got to talking about the necessity of building interpersonal connections to funnel potential clients/partners/collaborators to your Website or network (a major topic of his book). By the way, afterwards I picked up his book and would recommend it any artist who is developing a press kit or Website! Check it out his site here: http://www.businesscardtobusiness.com/. There you can read more about his multi-faceted career, read his online blog, and listen to various podcasts (they are short and, to this ear, present an interesting point-of-view about personal marketing in the 21st Century).

One more note: the AE Summit is close upon us (August 14-16) and it promises to offer AE Madison and the other participating schools an exciting opportunity to develop a more diverse, innovative, and inclusive program offering for the coming year. To read more about that, check out the article at the AE National Website: http://www.artsenterprise.com/ (click on Events).

For now though, I'm off to Montreal tomorrow, and then to the Orford Arts Academy...Summer is flying by and before we know it Fall (and school) will be upon us again. Until then, I hope you all are having a wonderful break...and look for a list of upcoming AE Madison events for 2009-10 coming soon!

Cheers....

May 2009 News Roundup

2009-05-07T14:50:00.001-07:00

Well the semester is winding down finally and I think it's safe to say we are all happy for the summer, and for the coming academic year. Arts Enterprise Madison had a whirlwind opening year, and one which boasted (in this completely unbiased opinion) many successes. We're well on our way towards establishing a more active network of collaborative rtists, entrepreneurs, and aspiring scholars in the Madison area but there is still so much left to do!

We plan to continue our Panel Discussion series for the 2009-10 season, but even more exciting is the VIBES program, designed by the 2009 Arts Venture Challenge Winners (and UW music students) Rachel Felton and Charles Workinger! They are on-board as group leaders for the forthcoming year, and we are immensely excited for their fresh, inspiring, and creative ideas... more on that to come.

Another exciting development is a new course being offered in conjunction with the UW Arts Institute, UW School of Music, and UW School of Business entitled: Arts Enterprise - Art as Business as Art! Co-taught by Profs. Stephanie Jutt and Andrew Taylor this promises to be an incredibly useful course for anyone interested planning on pursuing a career in the arts, and especially for those who identify with the concepts and vision behind Arts Enterprise!

For more information, check out: http://www.arts.wisc.edu/artsinstitute/IAR/artsenterprise/

With that note, all the best of luck for the summer and for the coming year! I'll be updating this blog over the summer months with a concrete list of events and activities for 2009-10 - and remember, feel free to post comments with any ideas, suggestions, or venturesome activities that might enhance the student experience here at UW-Madison.

Cheers....

Musicians' Wellness Day Wrap-Up and Upcoming Events

2009-02-06T21:16:00.000-08:00

Note: I will be compiling events which (I hope) will help students from various arts disciplines connect with business students to form innovative opportunities to collaborate and build creative knowledge. While my goal is to list as many resources as possible, I realize that many Madison area events may slip through. Please feel free to post a comment with amendments and/or additions to my Arts Enterprise Madison Arts Events Roundup post. Occasionally, I will include some regional and national events as they pertain to feedback I have received from students.... if you have anything to add, please don't hesitate to add to our list! Enjoy!

Musicians' Wellness Day, UW-Madison, 1321 Humanities

This past weekend saw a fantastic new event at UW-Madison in the School of Music titled 'Musicians' Wellness Day'. Sponsored and hosted by the UW-MTNA Collegiate Chapter, this interactive event saw over two dozen participants engage with faculty, staff, and student leaders from the music, dance, recreation/fitness, and nutrition departments!

We explored creative ways of defining musical movement through out own physical instrument, delved into a lecture/demonstration of the Feldenkrais method (if anyone is not familiar with this technique, check out the following site: http://www.feldenkraisinstitute.org/), and closed the day off with forty-five minutes of yoga. Oh, and I almost forgot the healthy, home-made treats afterwards which proved a satisfactory reward for all the effort.

After four-plus hours of physical activity we were all exhausted, but also invigorated with a renewed energy and awareness of the physical link between our bodies and music-making. I hope everyone who attended enjoyed the day as much as I did. Please post a comment about what you enjoyed about the event, and anything you'd like to see added or investigated again in future events. You can also check out the UW-MTNA page at: http://www.uwmtna.com/.

Looking ahead to the next few weeks one will find a wide range of events in the Madison arts calendar; I have a goal to create an AE Madison Events Roundup, with a full schedule of our upcoming meetings and sponsored events. This would ideally be a collaborative effort, so if you have arts events in Madison you'd like AE Madison to keep up with, please let me know!

Keep on the lookout for that as we develop our projects and event offerings. For now, though, check out these two exciting regional events which promise more opportunities for exploring the fun stuff that we all got a glimpse of at the AE Symposium earlier this month.

1) SEA North Conference, North Central College, Lisle, IL Feb. 27-28th 2009

This sounds like a great conference, one which is both highly student-centered and offers valuable opportunities to meet, mingle, and receive feedback. Artists, musicians, and entrepreneurial-minded students will have the opportunity to engage in a series of activites including: Inside the Industry Panels, Artist Led One-on-One Sessions, Performances, Art Show, Journal Blog, Jam Sessions, and more. For registration information, check out the website at: http://www.seasource.org/register.php

2) Springboard on the Road, Beloit Arts Incubator, Beloit, WI March 13-14th 2009

Springboard will present two workshops including one on "Marketing for Artists" and another for "Pricing Your Work: Getting Paid for What You Do." Don't miss these exciting events literally on Madison's doorstep! Springboard was here for the AE Symposium and people were raving at how helpful, knowledgeable, and creative the staff is. Springboard Website: http://www.springboardforthearts.org/Workshops/Workshop.asp

2009 UW-Madison Arts Enterprise Symposium: The Future of Music is Here!

2009-02-02T19:17:00.000-08:00

It seems strange to open the first entry of a new blog with a statement about past events, but I'm going to do it anyway. I'm currently recovering from witnessing one of the greatest arts events in Madison's history. This is a bold statement, I know, for at least two reasons: 1) I haven't been in Madison forever and 2) My opinion is somewhat shaded because I'm a musician, so I'd say I'm partial to events that promote the arts.

That being said, The UW-Madison Arts Enterprise Symposium was quite simply the most exciting cross-disciplinary event that the city has perhaps ever seen - a weekend of workshops, seminars, passionate keynote addresses, and a student Venture Challenge competition that brought together the best and brightest of Madison's past, present, and future.

John Roach (the Emmy-winning filmmaker) was here. So was Leon Fleisher - yes, that Leon Fleisher. A head writer from the Colbert Report talked about his long, unexpected journey from the Onion to show business. Prominent Madison-based figures like Madison Symphony Orchestra conductor John DeMain and Andy Abrams (Director of the Four Seasons Theater) chimed in. UW Alum J.J. Sedelmaier outlined his path to survival as a cutting-edge independent animator in the age of 'Shrek' (his did the first season of Beavis and Butthead, by the way). Gary Beckman and Angela Beeching - pioneers in the world of arts entrepreneurship - gave impassioned, inspired, and revealing keynote addresses, and graciously took the time to give advice to students in the midst of a schedule which could have left even the most geared-up arts advocate exhausted.

Some of the most respected UW Professors from the arts gave perspectives on everything from the cross-pollination of art and business, to the various challenges the 21st century poses to artists, to how handle success when you finally 'get there'. This is just the beginning, but you can check out all the details at http://www.artsenterprise.wisc.edu/; in the coming weeks you'll see recaps about everything that happened over the blistening two and a half days. I hope you'll see the same in our local print media.

I want to move on to something else, though, because this literally groundbreaking event in the history of Madison is just the beginning of a movement which will quite literally shake the foundation of art as we know it. And I say this from the perspective of an admittedly awe-struck (but still marginally realistic) perspective. I should not be so shocked, after all, since I knew about the event and the people involved, and, as I've been lucky enough to share in some of this project through my role as a founding member in the UW-Madison Chapter of Arts Enterprise I should have expected that Stephanie Jutt and her partner Samatha Crownover would pull off something incredible (check out the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society). The thing is, I did have high expectations - they were just blown away. This seems like a really self-centered rant, but believe me these comments are meant as a statement about the event's impact from a humbled participant, one that was echoed time and again by those in attendance.

What is truly remarkable about what the Symposium accomplished is not that it brought these talented, fascinating people together. It is not due to the fact that students and community members (and there were lots and lots of both) had the chance to meet, mingle, and pick the brains of these generous and talented professionals. The true success of this event lies in the way it seamlessly brought together artists from all walks of life, from all over the country, behind a common ideal: the creation of a cutting edge forum for forging new ideas about the world of art, the renegotiation of art as a cultural and economic force for good, and the role and responsibilities of artists within the new social landscape of the current economic crisis. In the process we all had the unparalleled chance to collaborate in a truly entrepreneurial venture: the awakening to a new creative idiom through artistic empowerment, one which is flourishing as we speak across the country in events that are driven with the same passion and vision that made this Symposium so successful.

And as I started with a somewhat overblown statement about the past, let me just conclude with an (overly) optimistic stab at what I believe this experience means for the future: it is from the gestation of ideas that were formed this past weekend that you will see events launched which have never been seen before, and which will pay unrivaled dividends for Madison, the State of Wisconsin, and beyond for years to come.

But please don't take my word for it, get back to me about what you thought about the Symposium, or what you think we can do to keep the incredible buzz going!

http://www.artsenterprise.wisc.edu/
http://www.artsenterprise.com/
http://bachdancinganddynamite.org/