December 2008 Archives
Greetings from the suspiciously balmy Nutmeg State!
On Christmas, my dad, sister and I were watching The Dark Knight. I was playing with my phone during this blessed event, and decided to do some research on who the next Batman movie villain(s) would be. According to various bloggers, Johnny Depp and Eddie Murphy are both being considered for The Riddler, and Philip Seymour Hoffman will be asked to play The Penguin. Someone also mentioned Angelina Jolie as Cat Woman, meow, and one very eager lad is pushing Guy Pierce as The Black Mask on account of his - Pierce's, not B. Mask's, though who knows - history with director Christopher Nolan.
At what point do these things become self-fulfilling prophecies? That is, in 2008, how powerful is would-be, or potential will-be, audience participation? I'm not going to pretend I know anything about Hollywood beyond what Entourage teaches us, but one presumes casting directors, or at least interns in casting departments, read these blogs and are consequently aware of the casting buzz, true or completely false. And if casting teams learn from blog entries, blog comments and online discussion forums that there is an existing fan base for a certain casting choice, does that affect their decisions, even in the slightest? If Guy Pierce is cast in the next Batman movie, producers know x number of people who believe they are responsible for the decision are guaranteed to go see the movie. That's worth something. Similarly, might a studio "leak" a few casting options and see how the blog-o-sphere reacts before making a final decision? I have no idea, but wouldn't be surprised if that happened all the time.
There was a ridiculously interesting Jane Meyer New Yorker article in October about Sarah Palin's rise to, let's say "fame", in which Meyer describes how Adam Brickley, a young, "self-described 'obsessive' political junkie" started searching for potential female Republican VP candidates:
I've never asked my clients if they read their reviews. I'm sure they do, here and there, but I wonder if they ever take critics'...criticism...into consideration. And do critics, well, criticize, with the intention of change? If a critic comments on the way Eric Owens sings/plays a part on opening night, will Eric read the review and change his performance for the rest of a production's run? (I use Eric as an example, because he is the one opera singer I work for, and thus has more opportunity in any given city to potentially change a performance than the others.) More interestingly, does the critic want Eric to actually change his performance for the remainder of the run based on his/her review, or is the critic offering his/her opinion for readers' sakes, not the artist's sake? It's not so much the result - whether or not the artist will change his or her performances going forward based on reviews - that interests me, it's the goal of the critic. Are performance reviews written with the purpose of actually changing an artist's musicianship, presentation, or style?
Think about all the answer combinations to the question, and then consider the power dynamics, or, more accurately, the perceived power dynamics, that ensue: 1. Critic writes review intending to change an artist's performance; artist reads and changes the way he or she performs. 2. Critic writes review intending to change an artist's performance; artist never reads review, or would never change performance based on review. 3. Critic writes review to comment on, but not actually change, an artist's performance; artist reads review anyway and changes the way he or she performs. 4. Critic writes review to comment on, but not actually change, an artist's performance; artist never reads review, or would never change performance based on review.
That's giving me a headache to think about, so back to which comes first, the buzz or the casting. If the success of American Idol has taught us anything, it's that we-the-people like to be involved, or at least feel like we're involved, in everything. "I voted for that person x-hundred times, therefore I will buy their CD when they win American Idol." It's a very simple formula: if I participated, in even the slightest way, in the casting of Danny and Sandy in Grease on Broadway by calling/texting into the TV show You're The One that I Want (which I always found ree-donk-ulous, by the by, because that song was written for the movie version of the musical), I'm going to buy a ticket to the show. Even my church in New Canaan is running a poll on its website ("Which Gospel should be read in the coming lectionary year - Matthew, Mark, Luke, John"), I learned whilst trying to figure out what time the Christmas Pageant started last week.
Why haven't classical music presenters and orchestras applied this model? It's a bit tricky, because classical musicians are booked so far in advance, but not impossible. Could a presenter talk to managers - it might be best to work within the same management company - and say, "we'd like to consider three pianists from your roster to play x concerto two seasons from now. We'll post a short bio, a photo, and a statement from the artist about the piece on our website, and our community members will vote." To sweeten the pot for everyone involved, perhaps this could be for an organization's gala. This would/could encourage the three artists' fans to launch Brickley-esque campaigns for the artist they would like to see perform at the gala, consequently not only building an audience for the gala itself and the organization going forward, but generating grassroots support in a targeted community for the artists involved.
And speaking of which, don't forget to get out there and VOTE for the Life's a Pitch Best-Of Marketing and Publicity 2008 list.
Also, look for hahnforgrammy.blogspot.com and kingssingersforgrammy.blogspot.com.
On Christmas, my dad, sister and I were watching The Dark Knight. I was playing with my phone during this blessed event, and decided to do some research on who the next Batman movie villain(s) would be. According to various bloggers, Johnny Depp and Eddie Murphy are both being considered for The Riddler, and Philip Seymour Hoffman will be asked to play The Penguin. Someone also mentioned Angelina Jolie as Cat Woman, meow, and one very eager lad is pushing Guy Pierce as The Black Mask on account of his - Pierce's, not B. Mask's, though who knows - history with director Christopher Nolan.
At what point do these things become self-fulfilling prophecies? That is, in 2008, how powerful is would-be, or potential will-be, audience participation? I'm not going to pretend I know anything about Hollywood beyond what Entourage teaches us, but one presumes casting directors, or at least interns in casting departments, read these blogs and are consequently aware of the casting buzz, true or completely false. And if casting teams learn from blog entries, blog comments and online discussion forums that there is an existing fan base for a certain casting choice, does that affect their decisions, even in the slightest? If Guy Pierce is cast in the next Batman movie, producers know x number of people who believe they are responsible for the decision are guaranteed to go see the movie. That's worth something. Similarly, might a studio "leak" a few casting options and see how the blog-o-sphere reacts before making a final decision? I have no idea, but wouldn't be surprised if that happened all the time.
There was a ridiculously interesting Jane Meyer New Yorker article in October about Sarah Palin's rise to, let's say "fame", in which Meyer describes how Adam Brickley, a young, "self-described 'obsessive' political junkie" started searching for potential female Republican VP candidates:
He was running out of options, he recalled, when he said to himself, "What about that lady who just got elected in Alaska?" Online research revealed that she had a strong grassroots following; as Brickley put it, "I hate to use the words 'cult of personality,' but she reminded me of Obama."The rest, as they say, is noise. Incidentally, Brickley's blog is being archived by the Library of Congress as a site of historical significance.Brickley registered a Web site--palinforvp.blogspot.com--which began getting attention in the conservative blogosphere. In the month before Palin was picked by McCain, Brickley said, his Web site was receiving about three thousand hits a day. Support for Palin had spread from one right-of-center Internet site to the next. First, the popular conservative blogger InstaPundit mentioned Brickley's campaign. Then a site called the American Scene said that Palin was "very appealing"; another, Stop the A.C.L.U., described her as "a great choice." The traditional conservative media soon got in on the act: The American Spectator embraced Palin, and Rush Limbaugh, the radio host, praised her as "a babe."
I've never asked my clients if they read their reviews. I'm sure they do, here and there, but I wonder if they ever take critics'...criticism...into consideration. And do critics, well, criticize, with the intention of change? If a critic comments on the way Eric Owens sings/plays a part on opening night, will Eric read the review and change his performance for the rest of a production's run? (I use Eric as an example, because he is the one opera singer I work for, and thus has more opportunity in any given city to potentially change a performance than the others.) More interestingly, does the critic want Eric to actually change his performance for the remainder of the run based on his/her review, or is the critic offering his/her opinion for readers' sakes, not the artist's sake? It's not so much the result - whether or not the artist will change his or her performances going forward based on reviews - that interests me, it's the goal of the critic. Are performance reviews written with the purpose of actually changing an artist's musicianship, presentation, or style?
Think about all the answer combinations to the question, and then consider the power dynamics, or, more accurately, the perceived power dynamics, that ensue: 1. Critic writes review intending to change an artist's performance; artist reads and changes the way he or she performs. 2. Critic writes review intending to change an artist's performance; artist never reads review, or would never change performance based on review. 3. Critic writes review to comment on, but not actually change, an artist's performance; artist reads review anyway and changes the way he or she performs. 4. Critic writes review to comment on, but not actually change, an artist's performance; artist never reads review, or would never change performance based on review.
That's giving me a headache to think about, so back to which comes first, the buzz or the casting. If the success of American Idol has taught us anything, it's that we-the-people like to be involved, or at least feel like we're involved, in everything. "I voted for that person x-hundred times, therefore I will buy their CD when they win American Idol." It's a very simple formula: if I participated, in even the slightest way, in the casting of Danny and Sandy in Grease on Broadway by calling/texting into the TV show You're The One that I Want (which I always found ree-donk-ulous, by the by, because that song was written for the movie version of the musical), I'm going to buy a ticket to the show. Even my church in New Canaan is running a poll on its website ("Which Gospel should be read in the coming lectionary year - Matthew, Mark, Luke, John"), I learned whilst trying to figure out what time the Christmas Pageant started last week.
Why haven't classical music presenters and orchestras applied this model? It's a bit tricky, because classical musicians are booked so far in advance, but not impossible. Could a presenter talk to managers - it might be best to work within the same management company - and say, "we'd like to consider three pianists from your roster to play x concerto two seasons from now. We'll post a short bio, a photo, and a statement from the artist about the piece on our website, and our community members will vote." To sweeten the pot for everyone involved, perhaps this could be for an organization's gala. This would/could encourage the three artists' fans to launch Brickley-esque campaigns for the artist they would like to see perform at the gala, consequently not only building an audience for the gala itself and the organization going forward, but generating grassroots support in a targeted community for the artists involved.
And speaking of which, don't forget to get out there and VOTE for the Life's a Pitch Best-Of Marketing and Publicity 2008 list.
Also, look for hahnforgrammy.blogspot.com and kingssingersforgrammy.blogspot.com.
There's an episode of Sex and the City where Carrie Bradshaw can't come up with a column topic. Apparently, the previous week she had written about her search for the perfect french fry, and that current week she's considering examining "men as socks". One of her gal pals offers, "Socks in the City!"
My biggest fear when starting this blog was not having enough talk about. It probably should have been "getting run out of the industry", but - no matter. Turns out, there is SO MUCH TO TALK ABOUT. Too much, in fact. Here's what has struck my fancy this week:
Tom Service reports on his Guardian blog that Arvo Pärt (( (swoon) )) and his publisher, Universal Edition, have made his first symphony in 40 years - Los Angeles - available online. The piece will be premiered by the LA Phil next year. Here is further proof that 1. everybody loves downloadable sheet music, 2. we are a culture that expects/demands free things, and 3. The Guardian culture blogs are all awesome.
If you haven't seen it already, this is amazing. Apparently, NEW YORK CITY, as in, the entity, I guess, has APOLOGIZED TO CLEVELAND - again, the entity, we think - because a Broadway ad executive said "We hate tourists from Cleveland" in The New York Times on Tuesday. Chicago, as in, Chicago, is getting in on the action by offering free - FREE - tickets to anyone who comes to the show on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday in January with a valid Ohio ID. Nancy Coyne's - the Cleveland hater's - agency will also give away tickets from the 24 Broadway shows they represent on Cleveland radio. One wonders why a theater PR person would turn up her nose at any potential ticket buyers, considering things are so bad that Chicago can just give away tickets. Yikes.
Two new(ish?) trends in advertising:
1. Incorporating the ad into a website's logo:
2. Adding content to the ad itself, as predicted on this blog months ago by Alex Sturtevant:
This is fascinating, and I will deal with it next week. Your homework this weekend is to read the linked-to piece by Dan Wakin.
And because I am in a jolly, holiday mood, despite the fact that it is hemorrhaging snow in the city, I'd like to thank all the lovely readers of this blog for sticking around since we launched in July. I'm having a grand time writing the thing, and have learned a lot from all your thoughtful comments and e mails. Sniffle::sniffle, eye-dry::eye-dry.
My biggest fear when starting this blog was not having enough talk about. It probably should have been "getting run out of the industry", but - no matter. Turns out, there is SO MUCH TO TALK ABOUT. Too much, in fact. Here's what has struck my fancy this week:
Tom Service reports on his Guardian blog that Arvo Pärt (( (swoon) )) and his publisher, Universal Edition, have made his first symphony in 40 years - Los Angeles - available online. The piece will be premiered by the LA Phil next year. Here is further proof that 1. everybody loves downloadable sheet music, 2. we are a culture that expects/demands free things, and 3. The Guardian culture blogs are all awesome.
If you haven't seen it already, this is amazing. Apparently, NEW YORK CITY, as in, the entity, I guess, has APOLOGIZED TO CLEVELAND - again, the entity, we think - because a Broadway ad executive said "We hate tourists from Cleveland" in The New York Times on Tuesday. Chicago, as in, Chicago, is getting in on the action by offering free - FREE - tickets to anyone who comes to the show on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday in January with a valid Ohio ID. Nancy Coyne's - the Cleveland hater's - agency will also give away tickets from the 24 Broadway shows they represent on Cleveland radio. One wonders why a theater PR person would turn up her nose at any potential ticket buyers, considering things are so bad that Chicago can just give away tickets. Yikes.
Two new(ish?) trends in advertising:
1. Incorporating the ad into a website's logo:
2. Adding content to the ad itself, as predicted on this blog months ago by Alex Sturtevant:This is fascinating, and I will deal with it next week. Your homework this weekend is to read the linked-to piece by Dan Wakin.And because I am in a jolly, holiday mood, despite the fact that it is hemorrhaging snow in the city, I'd like to thank all the lovely readers of this blog for sticking around since we launched in July. I'm having a grand time writing the thing, and have learned a lot from all your thoughtful comments and e mails. Sniffle::sniffle, eye-dry::eye-dry.
I went to see the band Letters to Cleo last week. My friend and I had no idea why they were coming to the city; he just saw them listed on a Bowery Presents e mail and bought tickets with-a-quickness. At the concert, the lead singer - no, not "Cleo", "Kay Hanley" - said something from the stage to the effect of, "Well, there's no real reason for these concerts, no new CD or tour. We're not getting back together as a band. We just thought it would be fun."
Hmmm: now when have any of my classical musician friends or clients ever done a concert "just for fun"? Their schedules are planned so far out and venue exclusivity rules are so strict that there really aren't many opportunities to just pick up and play a concert, but presumably, professional musicians consider all performing fun; or do they? Are the NY Philharmonic musicians having fun? Is it work? Is it at least fun work?
How do we know who's having fun and who's not? When an artist - like Lang Lang three years ago, for example - is emotive and passionate on stage, he or she is often criticized for being unfocused, accused of being ridiculous; eyes will roll. When an artist - like Hilary or, say, the pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard - is calm, cool and collected on stage, people comment that they are just that: too cool, emotion-less.
So, assuming everyone is actually having fun on stage - which I'm not entirely sure we can do - how could/should performers show this without being criticized for not taking "their art" seriously enough? That Letters to Cleo concert was fun - no way around it. There was no pressure on the band to sell discs or get press and the fans were all just happy to be there (despite one guy shouting out "I feel old!!", which made us all glance around awk-weirdly). Now, at a classical concert, if We the Audience can't tell if the performers are having fun, how can we have fun ourselves?
I sincerely enjoy (most) classical music concerts, but I'm not so sure I have fun at them. I have fun before the concert, I have fun seeing friends and colleagues at intermission; if it's for work, I have fun going backstage and/or going out to dinner after, but the concert itself? Not really that fun. The last classical concert I did have fun at - and I'm not just saying this because I work for David - was the Bang on a Can Marathon. I sat on the steps with a whole crop of friends, folks were milling around so there was a lot of good people-watching, you could go to the Mexican restaurant next door if you felt like a drink/snack, and it went super late. I had fun! But that wasn't in a concert hall, so I'm not sure it counts for the purposes of this discussion.
Thanks for that, Dictionary.com.
First of all, like hell anyone has ever said "like fun he did." Second, reading the definitions, it seems the problem with classical music being "fun" is the informal connotations of the word; can a concert be fun and serious at the same time? Can artists respect the repertoire, the concert halls, the audiences, and whomever/whatever else they're supposed to be respecting while having a good time?
I'm going to see the band CSS tonight. Here is a photo I took from their concert over the summer:
They have balloons. They're definitely having fun. And so will I.
Hmmm: now when have any of my classical musician friends or clients ever done a concert "just for fun"? Their schedules are planned so far out and venue exclusivity rules are so strict that there really aren't many opportunities to just pick up and play a concert, but presumably, professional musicians consider all performing fun; or do they? Are the NY Philharmonic musicians having fun? Is it work? Is it at least fun work?
How do we know who's having fun and who's not? When an artist - like Lang Lang three years ago, for example - is emotive and passionate on stage, he or she is often criticized for being unfocused, accused of being ridiculous; eyes will roll. When an artist - like Hilary or, say, the pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard - is calm, cool and collected on stage, people comment that they are just that: too cool, emotion-less.
So, assuming everyone is actually having fun on stage - which I'm not entirely sure we can do - how could/should performers show this without being criticized for not taking "their art" seriously enough? That Letters to Cleo concert was fun - no way around it. There was no pressure on the band to sell discs or get press and the fans were all just happy to be there (despite one guy shouting out "I feel old!!", which made us all glance around awk-weirdly). Now, at a classical concert, if We the Audience can't tell if the performers are having fun, how can we have fun ourselves?
I sincerely enjoy (most) classical music concerts, but I'm not so sure I have fun at them. I have fun before the concert, I have fun seeing friends and colleagues at intermission; if it's for work, I have fun going backstage and/or going out to dinner after, but the concert itself? Not really that fun. The last classical concert I did have fun at - and I'm not just saying this because I work for David - was the Bang on a Can Marathon. I sat on the steps with a whole crop of friends, folks were milling around so there was a lot of good people-watching, you could go to the Mexican restaurant next door if you felt like a drink/snack, and it went super late. I had fun! But that wasn't in a concert hall, so I'm not sure it counts for the purposes of this discussion.
fun
[fuhn]
noun, verb, funned, fun⋅ning, adjective -noun
1. something that provides mirth or amusement: A picnic would be fun.
-verb (used without object), verb (used with object)
2. enjoyment or playfulness: She's full of fun.
-adjective
3. Informal. joke; kid.
4. Informal. of or pertaining to fun, esp. to social fun: a fun thing to do; really a fun person.
--Idioms
5. Informal. whimsical: flamboyant: The fashions this year are definitely on the fun side.
6. for or in fun, as a joke; not seriously; playfully: His insults were only in fun.
7. like fun, Informal. certainly not; of doubtful truth: He told us that he finished the exam in an hour. Like fun he did!
8. make fun of, to make the object of ridicule; deride: The youngsters made fun of their teacher.
Thanks for that, Dictionary.com.
First of all, like hell anyone has ever said "like fun he did." Second, reading the definitions, it seems the problem with classical music being "fun" is the informal connotations of the word; can a concert be fun and serious at the same time? Can artists respect the repertoire, the concert halls, the audiences, and whomever/whatever else they're supposed to be respecting while having a good time?
I'm going to see the band CSS tonight. Here is a photo I took from their concert over the summer:
They have balloons. They're definitely having fun. And so will I.
THE NOMINATIONS ARE IN! Thanks to all for your submissions. I had to tweak some of the category labels slightly - forgive me, it being first year of the Life's a Pitch Best-of List and all.
And here - we - go:
Best Publicity Move
Best Review
Best Artist Interview
Best Feature Story
Best Album Art
1. Nico Muhly, Mothertongue (Brassland), for being literal:
2. Franco Donatoni, ALGO IV (Stradivarius), for not Photoshopping...anything:
Best Advertisement
Best New (in 2008) Music Blog
Best Overall Classical Music Coverage in a Blog or Newspaper
Overall Best Moment in Publicity and Marketing in 2008
E mail me here to vote. Winners (" ") will be announced the first week of January.
And here - we - go:
Best Publicity Move
- Jeremy Denk interviews Sarah Palin.
- Hilary Hahn records something unplayable.
- Lang Lang performs at the Beijing Olympics.
Best Review
- Ron Rosenbaum walks out of The Metropolitan Opera.
- Vivien Schweitzer has a two-night-stand with The Emerson String Quartet.
- Anne Midgette admits to not liking Brahms, and then reviews it.
Best Artist Interview
- Angela Gheorghiu goes nuts in Opera News.
- Gustavo Dudamel speed dates.
- Anne-Sophie Mutter discusses shoulder rests.
Best Feature Story
- Alex Ross on Bernstein for The New Yorker.
- Mark Swed on "elitism" for The Los Angeles Times.
- Jan Swafford on why we like The Art of the Fugue for Slate.
Best Album Art
1. Nico Muhly, Mothertongue (Brassland), for being literal:
2. Franco Donatoni, ALGO IV (Stradivarius), for not Photoshopping...anything:
Best Advertisement
- Pink's hot dog stand in LA serves up Dudamel Dogs.
- The Metropolitan Opera's rollover Doctor Atomic ads.
- The Metropolitan Opera's poster campaign for Satyagraha:
Best New (in 2008) Music Blog
Best Overall Classical Music Coverage in a Blog or Newspaper
- The New York Times
- The one-two punch of Opera Chic and Parterre Box.
- Sequenza21
Overall Best Moment in Publicity and Marketing in 2008
- New York City Opera gets back in the game and launches "I am City Opera" video campaign.
- The Washington Post actually hires a classical music critic: Anne Midgette takes over for Tim Page.
- Classical music community rallies against the Cleveland Plain-Dealer's decision to reassign Don Rosenberg after Tim Smith breaks the news on the Baltimore Sun blog.
E mail me here to vote. Winners (" ") will be announced the first week of January.
Every week, I attempt to post an interview with a lass or lad far more knowledgeable than myself on specific marketing and publicity subjects. This week, Violinist.com editor Laurie Niles - whose interviews I'm convinced propelled both Hilary Hahn and Anne-Sophie Mutter's last albums to debut at number one on the Billboard classical chart - on blogging before there were blogs, playing hall monitor, and being a journalist slash teacher slash performer.
Laurie Niles is the editor and owner of Violinist.com, an online community that she and her husband, Robert, founded in 1996. She lives in Pasadena, California, where she also maintains a private violin studio and free-lances in LA-area orchestras. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Northwestern University and a Master of Arts degree in Journalism from Indiana University, where she also studied violin.
How did you originally spread the word about Violinist.com when you launched this site in 1996?
When we put the site up in 1996, we entered it into search engines, but that's all we did. Many of our first readers were violinists who found the site by typing the word "Violinist" into their Web browser and having the browser direct them to Violinist.com.
How has the site evolved since then? Did we even know the word "blog" in 1996??
My husband, Robert Niles, worked in online journalism at that time, and no, no one knew about "blogs" then, there were just "websites."
The site began with one of those "Hi, one day we'll do something" pages, because at first, we weren't really sure exactly what we'd be doing with it. Since I'm a free-lance violinist myself, I saw the value in having a directory, where people could post a resume of sorts online, so that is the first feature we built on Violinist.com, in 1997. After that, we build a discussion board, in 2000. The blogs did not come until 2003.
Has curating and writing for Violinist.com helped or hindered your teaching career? That is, have you gained more students because of it, or does it eat up a lot of time when you could be teaching?
It all goes hand-in-hand. Violinist.com is certainly something of a teaching mission for me: I'd like to help the entire world learn more about the violin, and to fan people's passion for this wonderful instrument. Teaching little people, and big people, how to play the violin is the exact same thing.
Finding the right balance has been tricky. Violinist.com has been taking more and more of my time in recent years, as we've branched out with our coverage and the community has grown. For a while I was teaching a large group of public school children at a local elementary school, and though I loved doing that, it was simply too much work, along with Violinist.com. So I maintain a small private studio; I can't imagine not teaching violin, I enjoy it too much.
This is not unusual for either a musician or a journalist, to wear many hats!
Does Violinist.com have set bloggers, or can anyone with a profile blog?
Any member of Violinist.com can write a blog, and people have different reasons for wanting to write. Some blogs are more outward-focused, offering advise for others and sharing experiences that speak to all. Other blogs are more personal, more of a diary of a person's progress on the violin. I welcome both kinds of blogs. For the convenience of the readers, I tend to feature the first kind on the front page of our blogs section, with the other blog entries hyperlinked from the side of the page.
What I like most about sites like Violinist.com, The Winger, and Sequenza21 is that they all really emphasize community building. There was a Violinist.com post from this weekend that said,
Someone responds,
One way is to set an example with my own posts and blogs, also to occasionally intervene and make peace when things get out of control. Sometimes we've had to weed out trouble-makers.
I haven't found a similar online community for piano or choral music. Has anyone from these genres ever reached out to you to consult for them?
No one has asked for any help in developing those kinds of site, though a number of people have sent me e-mails bemoaning the fact that such sites don't exist!
What have readers said is the most helpful feature of the site? I imagine the "Find a Violin Shop" by zip code is quite helpful. (I need to set up something similar for publicists.)
The discussion board is the most popular feature; it allows people to ask their questions, and it allows people to philosophize, answer, argue, etc..
How closely do you monitor discussions? In your interview with Joshua Bell, you mentioned refusing to link to the discussion about his child because it was too mean. Do you ever cut inappropriate conversations off, or just let them flow whatever the tone?
Over the years, we've discovered that the best way to monitor discussion is to monitor registration. We don't allow anonymous posters, and we don't admit registration from free e-mail addresses. People get very bold, under the guise of a false name, and this lack of accountability is what leads to most problems on discussion boards.
We also point every new member to our Guidelines for Writers, and we notify them that if they fail to follow these guidelines, their membership, and thus their ability to post, will be revoked.
Then we do just that. No warnings.
In 2009, do you think blogs are must-haves for all artists and performing arts organizations? Why or why not?
Certainly I think that mass communication is changing rapidly, and the change is only accelerating as major newspapers and publications cut themselves into irrelevancy. I think we are moving toward more niche communication, and that the most important thing for artists and performing artists is to search for the most effective means of communication. A blog will not work for everyone. Authenticity is "in," I'd say. To me, and I think I can speak for my readers as well, there is nothing worse than a blog that sounds like a sales pitch, and they can spot a ghost-written blog from 5,000 miles.
What's more important is to participate in a vibrant online community, whether you create your own, or whether you join existing ones like Facebook, Twitter....or niche site related to your genre, such as Violinist.com. And by participate, you could write blogs, answer questions, post videos, be the subject of interviews, simply list your events. But it doesn't have to be a "blog," and I wouldn't recommend it for someone who isn't comfortable with writing one. Some of the more effective artist websites I've seen are those of Rachel Barton Pine, who has attended to many different violin genres and web outlets (Twitter, Facebook, podcasts and more) while remaining very authentic; Mark O'Connor, who was on the web early and has made his considerable compositions and transcriptions all downloadable, and your Hilary Hahn, who writes well and is creative with her blog.
When I'm writing a web interview, it's very different from writing a print piece. I find that it's helpful if I'm able to link to an artist's website, to videos, to a discography, to an updated biography, updated performance or events schedule, and to any other interesting things such as compositions and descriptions of projects. It's also good if there are photos available on their website. Basically, if you as the publicist can help the artist document his or her work, and get it up on the web in some way, then when the time comes for an online journalist to turn attention to your artist, everything is readily available so that you can benefit from being linked.
By the way, if your artist posts on YouTube, just check the option to NOT have comments. Though it's a great tool for putting videos online, the community is unmonitored and the comments are often simply destructive. Protect yourself and your client from this. But do allow your videos to be embedded on other websites, because that helps promote them.
Do you consider yourself a journalist? Yes or no, what do you think defines an arts journalist today?
Absolutely. I started out as a newspaper reporter, and in addition to my degree in music from Northwestern University, I have a master's degree in journalism from Indiana University. Of course, those are the non-online credentials that I have to tell people who do not yet understand online journalism.
Creating an online community is an act of journalism. An online community is not the same thing as a blog, or as a directory, or even as a discussion board, although those features can help it come about. Journalists, however, need to wrap their heads around the idea that they don't have control over the "story," and they never did, even if maybe for a time they controlled what went into and stayed out of a print story.
Online is different, and in a lot of ways, it has more potential. My readers are my experts. My experts are my readers. Imagine that: tens of thousands of experts! Of course, they aren't experts in all the same thing, and my job is to help discern that and channel information in the proper direction. Some readers are pedagogues, some are students, some are performers, others amateurs. Some are amateurs on the violin, but experts in another field. For example, we may have an amateur violinist who is also a physical therapist. That's wonderful, when a student with MS needs some answers. These experts, in so many disparate fields, need many different ways to get the word out: to be heard. I provide that: a place for their questions, their answers, their observations, their performance schedules, their announcements, their products, their stories.
What are you top three favorite Violinist.com moments?
One of the things I like best on Violinist.com is the fact that our members have a great sense of humor, and so I have to list as a favorite moment: our incredible marathon of ridiculous limericks, which started in October 2005, kept being resurrected, and resurrected again, until it was archived after 400 responses, in November 2007.
Another moment for me was when Robert, my husband who does all the coding for Violinist.com, gave me the ability to see who was registering every day. I discovered that every day, between 6-24 people register on Violinist.com, and more than that: they are from absolutely all over the world: Atlanta, Melbourne, Tehran, Indonesia, everywhere! I had no idea how far we were reaching, and also that so many extremely well-educated violinists were coming aboard. That's when we decided to include daily, the new registrants on the directory page.
Personally, when I auditioned for the LA Phil and wrote a series of blogs about it, I learned how supportive the community could be. People were giving me very specific practice tips, notes of encouragement, it was just amazing! I think that other people have found that kind of help and encouragement as well: with little technical problems, with choosing teachers and schools, with making career decisions, and sometimes with getting out of a period of discouragement.
If you didn't play the violin, which instrument, if any, would you play?
The piano.
Who is your favorite female violinist performing today? Ahem - there is a right and many wrong answer to this.
Hah!**
**Note from Amanda: I'm sure this is a typo and she's just one letter off - she clearly meant to say "Hahn!".
Laurie Niles is the editor and owner of Violinist.com, an online community that she and her husband, Robert, founded in 1996. She lives in Pasadena, California, where she also maintains a private violin studio and free-lances in LA-area orchestras. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Northwestern University and a Master of Arts degree in Journalism from Indiana University, where she also studied violin.How did you originally spread the word about Violinist.com when you launched this site in 1996?
When we put the site up in 1996, we entered it into search engines, but that's all we did. Many of our first readers were violinists who found the site by typing the word "Violinist" into their Web browser and having the browser direct them to Violinist.com.
How has the site evolved since then? Did we even know the word "blog" in 1996??
My husband, Robert Niles, worked in online journalism at that time, and no, no one knew about "blogs" then, there were just "websites."
The site began with one of those "Hi, one day we'll do something" pages, because at first, we weren't really sure exactly what we'd be doing with it. Since I'm a free-lance violinist myself, I saw the value in having a directory, where people could post a resume of sorts online, so that is the first feature we built on Violinist.com, in 1997. After that, we build a discussion board, in 2000. The blogs did not come until 2003.
Has curating and writing for Violinist.com helped or hindered your teaching career? That is, have you gained more students because of it, or does it eat up a lot of time when you could be teaching?
It all goes hand-in-hand. Violinist.com is certainly something of a teaching mission for me: I'd like to help the entire world learn more about the violin, and to fan people's passion for this wonderful instrument. Teaching little people, and big people, how to play the violin is the exact same thing.
Finding the right balance has been tricky. Violinist.com has been taking more and more of my time in recent years, as we've branched out with our coverage and the community has grown. For a while I was teaching a large group of public school children at a local elementary school, and though I loved doing that, it was simply too much work, along with Violinist.com. So I maintain a small private studio; I can't imagine not teaching violin, I enjoy it too much.
This is not unusual for either a musician or a journalist, to wear many hats!
Does Violinist.com have set bloggers, or can anyone with a profile blog?
Any member of Violinist.com can write a blog, and people have different reasons for wanting to write. Some blogs are more outward-focused, offering advise for others and sharing experiences that speak to all. Other blogs are more personal, more of a diary of a person's progress on the violin. I welcome both kinds of blogs. For the convenience of the readers, I tend to feature the first kind on the front page of our blogs section, with the other blog entries hyperlinked from the side of the page.
What I like most about sites like Violinist.com, The Winger, and Sequenza21 is that they all really emphasize community building. There was a Violinist.com post from this weekend that said,
I don't think I've ever quite felt this disenchanted with violin. Right now, I don't even want to play anything at all. Orchestra music doesn't thrill me, quartet music is boring and I find my solo material music to be avoided at all costs. I just have so much to do and I can't stand to play the violin.
Someone responds,
My only thought is maybe you are just plain overloaded, and the violin is very conspicuous in how much time it takes and such. I have seen times when my son , who absolutely loves the violin, wanted to chuck it because he was so stressed out from other commitments and facing the practice and such with the instrument physically and emotionally wasn't possible.That kind of thing is so positive, and I know there are similar posts about help finding an instrument or teacher, as well as launching one's professional performance career. How did you develop the positive, helpful spirit of the site?
One way is to set an example with my own posts and blogs, also to occasionally intervene and make peace when things get out of control. Sometimes we've had to weed out trouble-makers.
I haven't found a similar online community for piano or choral music. Has anyone from these genres ever reached out to you to consult for them?
No one has asked for any help in developing those kinds of site, though a number of people have sent me e-mails bemoaning the fact that such sites don't exist!
What have readers said is the most helpful feature of the site? I imagine the "Find a Violin Shop" by zip code is quite helpful. (I need to set up something similar for publicists.)
The discussion board is the most popular feature; it allows people to ask their questions, and it allows people to philosophize, answer, argue, etc..
How closely do you monitor discussions? In your interview with Joshua Bell, you mentioned refusing to link to the discussion about his child because it was too mean. Do you ever cut inappropriate conversations off, or just let them flow whatever the tone?
Over the years, we've discovered that the best way to monitor discussion is to monitor registration. We don't allow anonymous posters, and we don't admit registration from free e-mail addresses. People get very bold, under the guise of a false name, and this lack of accountability is what leads to most problems on discussion boards.
We also point every new member to our Guidelines for Writers, and we notify them that if they fail to follow these guidelines, their membership, and thus their ability to post, will be revoked.
Then we do just that. No warnings.
In 2009, do you think blogs are must-haves for all artists and performing arts organizations? Why or why not?
Certainly I think that mass communication is changing rapidly, and the change is only accelerating as major newspapers and publications cut themselves into irrelevancy. I think we are moving toward more niche communication, and that the most important thing for artists and performing artists is to search for the most effective means of communication. A blog will not work for everyone. Authenticity is "in," I'd say. To me, and I think I can speak for my readers as well, there is nothing worse than a blog that sounds like a sales pitch, and they can spot a ghost-written blog from 5,000 miles.
What's more important is to participate in a vibrant online community, whether you create your own, or whether you join existing ones like Facebook, Twitter....or niche site related to your genre, such as Violinist.com. And by participate, you could write blogs, answer questions, post videos, be the subject of interviews, simply list your events. But it doesn't have to be a "blog," and I wouldn't recommend it for someone who isn't comfortable with writing one. Some of the more effective artist websites I've seen are those of Rachel Barton Pine, who has attended to many different violin genres and web outlets (Twitter, Facebook, podcasts and more) while remaining very authentic; Mark O'Connor, who was on the web early and has made his considerable compositions and transcriptions all downloadable, and your Hilary Hahn, who writes well and is creative with her blog.
When I'm writing a web interview, it's very different from writing a print piece. I find that it's helpful if I'm able to link to an artist's website, to videos, to a discography, to an updated biography, updated performance or events schedule, and to any other interesting things such as compositions and descriptions of projects. It's also good if there are photos available on their website. Basically, if you as the publicist can help the artist document his or her work, and get it up on the web in some way, then when the time comes for an online journalist to turn attention to your artist, everything is readily available so that you can benefit from being linked.
By the way, if your artist posts on YouTube, just check the option to NOT have comments. Though it's a great tool for putting videos online, the community is unmonitored and the comments are often simply destructive. Protect yourself and your client from this. But do allow your videos to be embedded on other websites, because that helps promote them.
Do you consider yourself a journalist? Yes or no, what do you think defines an arts journalist today?
Absolutely. I started out as a newspaper reporter, and in addition to my degree in music from Northwestern University, I have a master's degree in journalism from Indiana University. Of course, those are the non-online credentials that I have to tell people who do not yet understand online journalism.
Creating an online community is an act of journalism. An online community is not the same thing as a blog, or as a directory, or even as a discussion board, although those features can help it come about. Journalists, however, need to wrap their heads around the idea that they don't have control over the "story," and they never did, even if maybe for a time they controlled what went into and stayed out of a print story.
Online is different, and in a lot of ways, it has more potential. My readers are my experts. My experts are my readers. Imagine that: tens of thousands of experts! Of course, they aren't experts in all the same thing, and my job is to help discern that and channel information in the proper direction. Some readers are pedagogues, some are students, some are performers, others amateurs. Some are amateurs on the violin, but experts in another field. For example, we may have an amateur violinist who is also a physical therapist. That's wonderful, when a student with MS needs some answers. These experts, in so many disparate fields, need many different ways to get the word out: to be heard. I provide that: a place for their questions, their answers, their observations, their performance schedules, their announcements, their products, their stories.
What are you top three favorite Violinist.com moments?
One of the things I like best on Violinist.com is the fact that our members have a great sense of humor, and so I have to list as a favorite moment: our incredible marathon of ridiculous limericks, which started in October 2005, kept being resurrected, and resurrected again, until it was archived after 400 responses, in November 2007.
Another moment for me was when Robert, my husband who does all the coding for Violinist.com, gave me the ability to see who was registering every day. I discovered that every day, between 6-24 people register on Violinist.com, and more than that: they are from absolutely all over the world: Atlanta, Melbourne, Tehran, Indonesia, everywhere! I had no idea how far we were reaching, and also that so many extremely well-educated violinists were coming aboard. That's when we decided to include daily, the new registrants on the directory page.
Personally, when I auditioned for the LA Phil and wrote a series of blogs about it, I learned how supportive the community could be. People were giving me very specific practice tips, notes of encouragement, it was just amazing! I think that other people have found that kind of help and encouragement as well: with little technical problems, with choosing teachers and schools, with making career decisions, and sometimes with getting out of a period of discouragement.
If you didn't play the violin, which instrument, if any, would you play?
The piano.
Who is your favorite female violinist performing today? Ahem - there is a right and many wrong answer to this.
Hah!**
**Note from Amanda: I'm sure this is a typo and she's just one letter off - she clearly meant to say "Hahn!".
It's that special time of year: you can't swing a dead cat without hitting a "Best of" something. So let's add to it!
E mail me with your nominations for the following in classical music and opera:
Best Marketing Campaign (describe)
Best Publicity Pitch (describe)
Best Feature Story (please include link)
Best Review (please include link)
Best Artist Interview (link, if applicable, or describe if coming from a journalist)
Best Album Art (link or jpeg)
Best Advertisement (please include screenshot, scan or jpeg)
Best New Music Blog (that would be "new" as in, new in 2008, not "new music" as in, contemporary classical music)
Overall Best Moment in Publicity and Marketing in 2008
Nominate yourself/your artist/your organization, I don't care. We'll do "official" voting throughout the month and the winners will be UNVEILED in January!
I have no idea what to do about prizes. I will think about it.
Have fun!
Update - 12/11, 10 amish: a new category has been suggested, and I am adding it:
Best Overall Performing Arts Coverage in a Blog or Newspaper
Much as I know you all desperately want to, you cannot vote for this blog!
E mail me with your nominations for the following in classical music and opera:
Best Marketing Campaign (describe)
Best Publicity Pitch (describe)
Best Feature Story (please include link)
Best Review (please include link)
Best Artist Interview (link, if applicable, or describe if coming from a journalist)
Best Album Art (link or jpeg)
Best Advertisement (please include screenshot, scan or jpeg)
Best New Music Blog (that would be "new" as in, new in 2008, not "new music" as in, contemporary classical music)
Overall Best Moment in Publicity and Marketing in 2008
Nominate yourself/your artist/your organization, I don't care. We'll do "official" voting throughout the month and the winners will be UNVEILED in January!
I have no idea what to do about prizes. I will think about it.
Have fun!
Update - 12/11, 10 amish: a new category has been suggested, and I am adding it:
Best Overall Performing Arts Coverage in a Blog or Newspaper
Much as I know you all desperately want to, you cannot vote for this blog!
Gawker reports that Mark Pinsky from The New Republic wants Obama to bring back the Federal Writer's Project:
Other solutions for the lack of journalists problem - correction, lack of jobs for journalists problem - are being explored by Joe's Pub and The Brooklyn Museum. As mentioned here before, Joe's Pub has added a comments feature to all of their concert pages, essentially skipping (or, attempting to skip?) the need for listings on music blogs like Brooklyn Vegan:
And here is the Joe's Pub site:
The problem is that the Joe's Pub site is less-visited than a lot of music listings blogs, so a concert getting a mention with users' comments on Brooklyn Vegan will drive new audiences to Joe's Pub, whereas the comments on the Joe's Pub site presumably drive folks who are already there to other/additional concert options.
Along similar lines, when I was at the Gilbert & George exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum a couple weekends back, I was thrilled to see that they had a computer comment kiosk in the gallery space!
The Federal Writers Project operated from 1935-1939 under the leadership of Henry Alsberg, a journalist and theater director. In addition to providing employment to more than 6,000 out-of-work reporters, photographers, editors, critics, writers, and creative craftsmen and -women, the FWP produced some lasting contributions to American history, culture, and literature. Their efforts ranged from comprehensive guides to 48 states and three territories to interviews with and photos of 2,300 former African-American slaves. These are preserved in the seventeen volumes of Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States from Interviews with Former Slaves.I wonder how our numbers compare to those 6,000 from seventy years ago.
Other solutions for the lack of journalists problem - correction, lack of jobs for journalists problem - are being explored by Joe's Pub and The Brooklyn Museum. As mentioned here before, Joe's Pub has added a comments feature to all of their concert pages, essentially skipping (or, attempting to skip?) the need for listings on music blogs like Brooklyn Vegan:
And here is the Joe's Pub site:The problem is that the Joe's Pub site is less-visited than a lot of music listings blogs, so a concert getting a mention with users' comments on Brooklyn Vegan will drive new audiences to Joe's Pub, whereas the comments on the Joe's Pub site presumably drive folks who are already there to other/additional concert options. Along similar lines, when I was at the Gilbert & George exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum a couple weekends back, I was thrilled to see that they had a computer comment kiosk in the gallery space!
It's a bit hard to read, because I took the faux toe with my friend's trusty iPhone, but it says, "The Brooklyn Museum wants to hear from you. Comments left here about Gilbert & George will be visible to others in the gallery and on our Web site." Sparkling comments include, "the guy with the glasses looks like a cat", and if that doesn't make undecideds cruising around the Brooklyn Museum's website jump on the 2/3 to see Gilbert & George, then I don't know what will!
I think what both Joe's Pub and the Brooklyn Museum are doing is great. What better way to sell concerts and exhibitions than to show potential buyers what average Joes/Janes like themselves thought of the exhibition, or think of a venue's programming choices. And, if a classical presenter had a computer(s) in their lobby for comments before the concert, at intermission, after the concerts, potential future buyers who weren't there could get a sense of the concert experience. Maybe someone was excited about the concert before it started, didn't like the first half, and then loved the second half. To me, those reports are as interesting as the official reviews. But are they only valuable when balanced with professional opinions? Can they stand alone?
What's your verdict? Should the federal government subsidize journalism again, or do online comments from the people = a new journalism?
[And, yikes, will your answer be along "party" lines?]
What's your verdict? Should the federal government subsidize journalism again, or do online comments from the people = a new journalism?
[And, yikes, will your answer be along "party" lines?]
The venerable Jean Sibelius would have turned 143 years-young on this cold day of 8 December. Birthday wishes - what I've been told is her "best reference to the final movement of the Sibelius concerto" - from Hilary Hahn can be found here. I can't say for sure, but I'm fairly to moderately certain that all Jean wants for his birthday is for the Violin Concertos of Schoenberg and Sibelius on performed by Hilary Hahn released on Deutsche Grammophon to win two (2) Grammy Awards. Don't quote me on that, though; he could very well want something entirely different.
Now, if his relatives surface and send me family birthday party photos like Larry and Randy Schoenberg did, free S/S discs for all!
First, let me express my sincere condolences for friends and colleagues who have lost their jobs, and artists who have lost performance contracts, in this financial mess. I joked when Lehmans closed shop that finally the economics of the arts and the rest of the world had evened out, but...it's all gotten progressively less funny.
Though we never had much money to spend in the arts anyway, these months have been especially tough. I touched on some of these ideas back in July here, but, in honor of the recession, let's think about arts marketing on the cheap.
Marketing your album.
Marketing your concerts.
Increasing your donor base: not my specialty, but a form of marketing nonetheless.
Surely there are many, many cheap marketing ideas I haven't thought of, so comments are encouraged here, as always. If someone steals (" ") your great, money-saving idea across the country or across the street, WHO CARES. We certainly all can't afford marketing consultants and branding firms, so let's start sharing some ideas.
Though we never had much money to spend in the arts anyway, these months have been especially tough. I touched on some of these ideas back in July here, but, in honor of the recession, let's think about arts marketing on the cheap.
Marketing your album.
- Have a local artist or student artist donate the album art. Credit them on and in all press releases and ads concerning the album. Cross-promote the showcasing of the original art at a gallery (or even their/your apartment) with an album release party. Take out ads for both prints of the artwork and the CD together.
- Identify sure-thing audiences and advertise to them and them alone. For example, if you're releasing a contemporary classical music disc, advertise on new music blogs like Sequenza21, a site that gets thousands of hits per day from people already interested in what your selling. Advertising on Sequenza21 is the deal of the century, too: $150 per MONTH for smaller ads (45x145) and $300 per month for larger ads (145x400). ArtsJournal, where you are now, is also very reasonable, as is Violinist.com.
- Send your disc to college radio stations.
- GIVE YOUR MUSIC AWAY. Not all of it, but a lot of it. Find an artist who has the audience you aspire to have, and offer your disc as a free gift along with the purchase of their album. No, you won't make any money, but consider it an investment - like, opening for someone on tour. Give away a free track in exchange for signing up for your mailing list. Make sure you get names, e mail addresses and zip codes, so you can target future e mail blasts to areas in which you are performing. Reach out to music blogs with high readerships and pitch exclusive free track downloads. Bands have been doing this for years, and there are a lot of classical music blogs out there.
Marketing your concerts.
- Get on the horn with other arts presenters in your area and work out media exchanges. That is, X Choral Society gets advertising in Y Chamber Orchestra's playbills and, in exchange, Y Chamber Orchestra gets advertising in X Choral Society's playbills. This is not the time to think of other presenters in your town/city as competitors, but rather as colleagues for broader strokes of audience-building for the performing arts. Think about some kind of joint discount program, for example, if you go to ten performances in one city of participating organizations, you get an eleventh free anywhere you chose. Co-promote "your perfect weekend" packages on various organization's websites. If the Choral Society has a Christmas concert on Friday night, and the Chamber Orchestra has a concert on the Saturday night, joint-encourage community members to buy both.
- Advertise concerts on Facebook.
- Work with local restaurants. Their business is bad, your business is bad. Offer 10% off all meals (excluding booze or whatever) when people show their tickets or ticket stubs from that night. Restaurants and performing arts organizations alike can advertise the deal. Beyond a boring but effective 10% off, think creatively about fun promotions: folks who produce their Nutcracker tickets get a free coffee, fruit platter, gingerbread cake or cookie, marzipan candy or torte, candy cane, or cheese platter. (The cheese platter, of course, would be an homage to The Mouse King. Come on people, keep up.)
- Embrace recession terminology. Instead of offering "discount" tickets, advertise "sales". That's what we're all getting used to seeing everywhere, so why not send e mails to your lists highlighting the sales, that is, discounted, badly-selling concerts, for the week.
- Connect with national service organizations like Chamber Music America and Chorus America. They have members across the country and, I assume, are always looking for membership perks. Set up ticket discount programs in exchange for them blasting out about your concerts to their members in your area.
- (I'm not sure how much money this will save, and I always keep my programs, but maybe) print the evening's program on posters in your lobby and e mail it (along with program notes) to all ticket buyers. That way, you can encourage audiences who would leave their programs on their seats not to take them, and start printing less. If you're concerned about losing program advertiser dollars, include banner ads in the "program" e mail you send out.
- Stream all concerts on your website live and for free. Let your community know that they can still see performances even if they can't afford tickets at this moment. When they can afford tickets again, they'll remember your organization's gesture, as well, presumably, as how much they enjoyed the performances. If you don't want to stream live concerts for free, offer a reasonable monthly subscription or pay-per-view for all concerts streaming online a la the Met Player.
Increasing your donor base: not my specialty, but a form of marketing nonetheless.
- Let people know how little they can donate. I recently became a MOMA member for just $75 - I spend at least that in museum admission every year, and previously didn't know membership was so reasonable. Pull an Obama campaign on your community - $20 makes a difference, $50 makes a difference. Advertise donor perks on Facebook.
- Pay-what-you-want dress rehearsals. Open up all dress rehearsals to the public, but ask for a donation - can be $1, can be $50 - at the door.
- Think creatively about new work commissioning and concert-sponsoring. I've spoken of this before here, but reach out to your community to create new works. $100 buys you 30 seconds of a new piece, and you're credited for that just like a major donor would be for an entire piece, along with all the other donors who made the piece possible. Create a new series that's entirely sponsored by donations under $100.
- Create a matching gifts program with one of your (remaining) major donors. That is, said major donor will match the amount raised by exclusively new donors to an organization in a week's time. Reach these potential new donors through local colleges, public schools, churches, restaurants, libraries, stores - everywhere you can think of - with a cheap but expressing-the-urgency flyering campaign. Neon paper, big black letters, and an under-$100 photocopying bill. Have your entire organization - from intern to artistic director - take an afternoon off and cover the community with the flyers. (...and get local press to cover that.)
Surely there are many, many cheap marketing ideas I haven't thought of, so comments are encouraged here, as always. If someone steals (" ") your great, money-saving idea across the country or across the street, WHO CARES. We certainly all can't afford marketing consultants and branding firms, so let's start sharing some ideas.
Oh, noooo:
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE. Our very own ArtsJournal has a daily newsletter with arts headlines and mini article summaries pulled from publications around the world neatly organized into categories. Plus, you get highlights from scintillating blogs such as this one. Musical America also sends out a newsletter on Fridays with headlines from their site. Unfortunately you have to pay to read the full articles, but it's still convenient to be able to tick-tick-tick skim through the headlines.
Other suggestions to fill the "In the News" hole in my life are welcome.
In an effort to reduce the numerous emails the League of American Orchestras sends its members, early in 2009 we will launch The Hub, the go-to source for orchestra news. Media View (formerly known as In the News) will cease as an e-newsletter and move to The Hub, a new page on the League's website, where it will be updated daily. The Hub will also contain everything you need to know about what is happening in our field, new appointments, and the essential information and services the League provides.As previously stated, I lurve The League's "In the News". I'm sure surveys told them they send too many e mails, but maybe there could have been opt-out/opt-in boxes: I want "In the News", but I don't want "From the Field". I'm not going to remember to go to "The Hub" every day; I want to pay for the headlines to come to me! Ah well, the people have spoken.
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE. Our very own ArtsJournal has a daily newsletter with arts headlines and mini article summaries pulled from publications around the world neatly organized into categories. Plus, you get highlights from scintillating blogs such as this one. Musical America also sends out a newsletter on Fridays with headlines from their site. Unfortunately you have to pay to read the full articles, but it's still convenient to be able to tick-tick-tick skim through the headlines.
Other suggestions to fill the "In the News" hole in my life are welcome.
I'm flattered/horrified that so many people e mailed and asked what I thought of the YouTube Symphony project. It doesn't exactly BLOW MY MIND, but it's not a bad thing.
Some thoughts:
Some thoughts:
- The London Symphony Orchestra Master Classes are amazing. I am so impressed that all the musicians took the time to tape them. This is something I've been trying to get my artists to do for a while, but I could never figure out the format. Should the master classes be sold on iTunes, should they be subscription podcasts? Given away for free on an artist's site or on YouTube? Should they be based on technique elements - here's the class on bowing, here's the class on dynamics - or set-up like general, all-encompassing master classes? How do you deal with ability levels? So on, so forth. Anywho, this is great. As are the "personal conductor" videos. I'm going to set-up my not-dusty MacBook Pro next to my very-dusty harp in Connecticut over Christmas and see how Tan Dun and I do. Wendy Kerner Lucas would be so proud.
- I received a press release from the the ADORNO Ensemble about their ScoreXchange website yesterday with the subject, "Press Release: YouTube for the Rest of Us". It got my attention because, of course, with all the YouTube Symphony buzz, I knew what they were referring to. This is an interesting point that did not come up in our What Can Publicists Do Better discussion: writing subjects and press releases that reference current events and trends in the industry. I like this idea because it proves that your artist/organization/project does not exist in a bubble and gives you and the person you are pitching a common ground from the start. Side note, though, ADORNO were a bit heavy on the snark (and I never think people are heavy on the snark!) for a press release: "It is a YouTube project, not for the classical masses, but for the rest of us that may not fit into to the formal 'Carnegie Hall' contingent." As a general rule of thumb, let's all strive not to sound bitter in our missives, although I realize the comedy potential is appealing.
- The fact that the selected orchestra is going to perform live at Carnegie Hall cracks me up a little. The web was good for auditions, but we need a "real" concert at the end of it all to legitimize the project? I mean, I get it, I just hope the end result will also be live on YouTube.
- I asked this at the launch event but didn't get a straight answer: will audition-ees who accept comments on their videos be given an advantage, and will those comments be taken into consideration by the "international expert judging panel consisting of representatives from the London Symphony Orchestra, and other musical experts and organizations"?
- My friend James Holt pointed out the logos on the YouTube Symphony channel. Sure, we have Carnegie Hall and the LSO, but Lang Lang and Michael Tilson Thomas?
I just worked on Measha Brueggergosman's new website, and we definitely created a logo for her:
Will that logo be used outside of the website, though? I don't know. Should it be? Stamped on her Deustche Grammophon discs, included in her concert programs, put on her merchandise? Not surprisingly, I say sure, we are a culture who likes brand recognition so why not take advantage of that, but I see the other argument and could probably be convinced of it: these are people, not products. We should recognize their style and artistry because of their performances and personality, not visual aids.
Artist logos: friend or foe?
Will that logo be used outside of the website, though? I don't know. Should it be? Stamped on her Deustche Grammophon discs, included in her concert programs, put on her merchandise? Not surprisingly, I say sure, we are a culture who likes brand recognition so why not take advantage of that, but I see the other argument and could probably be convinced of it: these are people, not products. We should recognize their style and artistry because of their performances and personality, not visual aids. Artist logos: friend or foe?
The big news from my colleagues in Europe who wake up before me is that both The King's Singers and Hilary Hahn are nominated for GRAMMIES. We have Hahnda Accord in Best Classical Album and Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with Orchestra), and All The King's Singers' Horses and All the King's Singers' Men in Best Classical Crossover Album. Now let's see...six Singers plus one Hahn times two tickets each minus four managers minus one mother minus wives and children...yeah, there's no way I'm getting to that ceremony. (((Sigh.)))
Awards are funny. David wins the Pulitzer and suddenly presenters who didn't love his music before are banging (on a can) down his door. When a friend of mine's client didn't win a Grammy last year and he was upset about it, I said, come on, she's unbelievably successful: what would a Grammy really do for her career at this point? Legitimize her as an artist? Hardly. Well, he said, I would have liked to add "Grammy Award-winning artist X...." to the first line of her bio.
I have found that the Grammies are a point of reference for the "outside world" about classical artists, that is, a way to let people who haven't heard of a certain artist know he or she is "that good". Sometimes, I'll meet someone and the conversation will go like this:
What do you do? Classical music PR.
Oh, that's cool. Name someone you work for. Is it? And...Hilary Hahn?
Mmmm...don't know her. She's a violinist. Mmm.... She played for the Pope's 80th birthday. Weird, OK.... She played on 'The Village' soundtrack. I loved 'Sixth Sense'. She won a Grammy. Oh! Cool, great, yeah.
So the Grammies are a cultural touchstone - is this the right use of that phrase? - or, perhaps more accurately, a popular culture mile marker of success. What is that worth, though, monetarily speaking, slash, what does winning a Grammy mean for an artist's overall profile?
Both The Kings Singers and Hilary have won Grammies before, so I already get to slap "Grammy Award-winning..." next to their names in their bios and pop-culture-mile-marker-of-success name-drop "Grammy" to folks outside the industry.** BUT - would Grammy wins this year result in, oh, what's the word - "album sales"? Does a shiny Grammy sticker on an album make the difference (it might), or is there more we can do to channel the win of a mainstream award into recording and concert revenue?
**Not that this means we should "give someone else a chance" (boo, ridiculous) and that all seven Life's a Pitch readers shouldn't vote for my British lads and all-American girl! Also, for changing record industry sales and marketing forever by virtue of "getting it out quickly", Radiohead's In Rainbows is the official Life's a Pitch choice for Album of the Year.
Update, 12/4 like, 10:18 AM - Grammy voters vote on all categories, no matter what their particular genre of choice, correct? So, let's say voters who know classical music are reading this blog/will read the press release I'm about to send out - that's great. But how do I reach voters who are super psyched to get out there and vote for "N.i.*.*.e.r (The Slave and The Master)" in Category 31, Best Rap Solo Performance? They might be sleeper King's Singers fans! You-never-know. And anyone who doesn't think someone voting for "Back to Back Hall of Fame Polkas" in Category 76, you guessed it, Best Polka Album wouldn't vote for the Schoenberg if they had heard it is simply incorrect. I want those votes!
Awards are funny. David wins the Pulitzer and suddenly presenters who didn't love his music before are banging (on a can) down his door. When a friend of mine's client didn't win a Grammy last year and he was upset about it, I said, come on, she's unbelievably successful: what would a Grammy really do for her career at this point? Legitimize her as an artist? Hardly. Well, he said, I would have liked to add "Grammy Award-winning artist X...." to the first line of her bio.
I have found that the Grammies are a point of reference for the "outside world" about classical artists, that is, a way to let people who haven't heard of a certain artist know he or she is "that good". Sometimes, I'll meet someone and the conversation will go like this:
What do you do? Classical music PR.
Oh, that's cool. Name someone you work for. Is it? And...Hilary Hahn?
Mmmm...don't know her. She's a violinist. Mmm.... She played for the Pope's 80th birthday. Weird, OK.... She played on 'The Village' soundtrack. I loved 'Sixth Sense'. She won a Grammy. Oh! Cool, great, yeah.
So the Grammies are a cultural touchstone - is this the right use of that phrase? - or, perhaps more accurately, a popular culture mile marker of success. What is that worth, though, monetarily speaking, slash, what does winning a Grammy mean for an artist's overall profile?
Both The Kings Singers and Hilary have won Grammies before, so I already get to slap "Grammy Award-winning..." next to their names in their bios and pop-culture-mile-marker-of-success name-drop "Grammy" to folks outside the industry.** BUT - would Grammy wins this year result in, oh, what's the word - "album sales"? Does a shiny Grammy sticker on an album make the difference (it might), or is there more we can do to channel the win of a mainstream award into recording and concert revenue?
**Not that this means we should "give someone else a chance" (boo, ridiculous) and that all seven Life's a Pitch readers shouldn't vote for my British lads and all-American girl! Also, for changing record industry sales and marketing forever by virtue of "getting it out quickly", Radiohead's In Rainbows is the official Life's a Pitch choice for Album of the Year.
Update, 12/4 like, 10:18 AM - Grammy voters vote on all categories, no matter what their particular genre of choice, correct? So, let's say voters who know classical music are reading this blog/will read the press release I'm about to send out - that's great. But how do I reach voters who are super psyched to get out there and vote for "N.i.*.*.e.r (The Slave and The Master)" in Category 31, Best Rap Solo Performance? They might be sleeper King's Singers fans! You-never-know. And anyone who doesn't think someone voting for "Back to Back Hall of Fame Polkas" in Category 76, you guessed it, Best Polka Album wouldn't vote for the Schoenberg if they had heard it is simply incorrect. I want those votes!
From The Boston Globe last week:
I think we can all agree that some presenters are careless with their marketing materials. While I was at IMG, I saw everything from a joint Edgar Meyer/Bela Fleck show with Edgar billed as "the bassist in the Bela Fleck Trio" (n.b. there is neither a Bela Fleck Trio, nor would Edgar Meyer be its bassist) to The Eroica Trio being called "The Erotica Trio" in a press release. The most frustrating presenter move is using photos from ten...twenty...years ago. Just this week I've laid the smack down on presenters for using King's Singers photos with the wrong group members and a Hilary photo when she was circa 14. (She's 29, it's time to move on.) Things like this are inexcusable.
Not the case with Maestro Rozhdestvensky. His name was not highlighted in a season brochure, and he did not get top billing on the poster. There was no presenter mistake; this was a conscious marketing decision. Is name placement in marketing materials in his contract? Of course not! Nor should they be, in my opinion. The Boston Symphony Orchestra knows how to market their concerts to their audiences. The fact that the BSO's marketing team did not think Rozhdestvensky's name would sell tickets is a problem he should take up with his management, not with the orchestra. (Re-)Raise your US profile, and your name gets on the poster.
The 90 commenters on Jeremy Eichler's Globe piece were split down the middle. Some rallied to Rozhdestvensky's defense: "I am saddened that he walked out, but I understand it. Clearly, the BSO screwed up here. And it isn't even a close call," wrote blizzard November 24, 5:04 PM. reindeergirl November 22, 9:35 AM offered the following insight: "Fire the marketing department, and get musical scholars in there who also can write and design." Okee dokee - those should be easy to find. We can assume, I think, that neither blizzard nor reindeergirl is responsible for selling symphony orchestra tickets in an economic recession.
PJ1 November 22, 2:35 PM offered, "Welcome to PC Boston. If an accomplished woman is part of an event, the media (including BSO's marketing) is likely to feature the woman; no matter how accomplished a man is, like in this case. Rozhdestvensky, in the view of the presiding PC culture here, is almost a DWM."
One gathers that the "accomplished woman" PJ1 is referring to is in fact the scheduled soloist, cellist Lynn Harrell, who, as Wikipedia tells us, lives with "his wife, the violinist Helen Nightengale, and their children, Hanna and Noah" and "has twin children from his first marriage to the journalist and writer Linda Blandford." An accomplished lady indeed!
But I digress. Let's say The King's Singers are walking around my former place of employ, McCarter Theater, this February, and they say to me, hey, why weren't we on the cover of the McCarter News or on the homepage of their website? First, I would say your concert is selling well/out, so what's your damage? If the concert was selling poorly, however, I would say, well, did we have new and interesting photos to give the design team at McCarter? Did we provide A/V content for their website? Did we offer exclusive interviews? Free tracks for download? Did you make yourselves available for press interviews? If not, the problem is with us, not with the McCarter marketing department. (The King's Singers are fantastic about all this - I'm just using them as an example.)
Marketing and PR are a two-way street. Things like having a variety of press photos to offer a presenter - with/without instrument, headshot/full-body shot, black and white/color - can make the difference in brochure, website and poster placement. Living legend or not, if Rozhdestvensky's name alone would not sell tickets, what could he and his team have done to help promote his BSO concerts? The fact that his name was not prominent on marketing materials should have been a wake-up call, and the response should have been, "how can we help each other sell these shows and raise my US profile at the same time," not, this is a "moral insult."
Epilogue: Because of this episode, the younger generation of classical fans knows who Gennady Rozhdestvensky is! When you Google him, the heading "Douche of the Month: Gennady Rozhdestvensky" is above the e-fold. Good work. That's public relations at its best.
In an extremely rare public flare-up in the outwardly genteel world of major symphony orchestras, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, the 77-year-old maestro who is one of the last living links to a golden era of Russian music, has pulled out of the entire run of four concerts he was scheduled to conduct with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, which began on Thursday...I think we learned a valuable lesson, here: never let your guest artist and/or their spouses out of your sight!
The trouble began on Wednesday during a rehearsal break, when the conductor and his wife took a stroll around Symphony Hall. They came upon a promotional poster that gave the week's soloist, the cellist Lynn Harrell, top billing, both with large print and a photograph. Rozhdestvensky's name appeared in smaller print as part of the program announcement.Soon afterward, the conductor came across a copy of the orchestra's season brochure, a marketing tool designed to entice potential subscribers. He found a page with the heading "Artists who inspire" and a smaller section devoted to "Distinguished Conductors." That section, while including the names of two little-known conductors, did not mention his name. It appears only in a third section on the page under the heading "The Cello Shines," in connection with Harrell, this week's cello soloist.
"I felt insulted by the actions of the administration," he explained, "I feel not only slighted but I suffered what is called in Russian a moral insult, and I'm free to take any actions to defend myself in public."
I think we can all agree that some presenters are careless with their marketing materials. While I was at IMG, I saw everything from a joint Edgar Meyer/Bela Fleck show with Edgar billed as "the bassist in the Bela Fleck Trio" (n.b. there is neither a Bela Fleck Trio, nor would Edgar Meyer be its bassist) to The Eroica Trio being called "The Erotica Trio" in a press release. The most frustrating presenter move is using photos from ten...twenty...years ago. Just this week I've laid the smack down on presenters for using King's Singers photos with the wrong group members and a Hilary photo when she was circa 14. (She's 29, it's time to move on.) Things like this are inexcusable.
Not the case with Maestro Rozhdestvensky. His name was not highlighted in a season brochure, and he did not get top billing on the poster. There was no presenter mistake; this was a conscious marketing decision. Is name placement in marketing materials in his contract? Of course not! Nor should they be, in my opinion. The Boston Symphony Orchestra knows how to market their concerts to their audiences. The fact that the BSO's marketing team did not think Rozhdestvensky's name would sell tickets is a problem he should take up with his management, not with the orchestra. (Re-)Raise your US profile, and your name gets on the poster.
The 90 commenters on Jeremy Eichler's Globe piece were split down the middle. Some rallied to Rozhdestvensky's defense: "I am saddened that he walked out, but I understand it. Clearly, the BSO screwed up here. And it isn't even a close call," wrote blizzard November 24, 5:04 PM. reindeergirl November 22, 9:35 AM offered the following insight: "Fire the marketing department, and get musical scholars in there who also can write and design." Okee dokee - those should be easy to find. We can assume, I think, that neither blizzard nor reindeergirl is responsible for selling symphony orchestra tickets in an economic recession.
PJ1 November 22, 2:35 PM offered, "Welcome to PC Boston. If an accomplished woman is part of an event, the media (including BSO's marketing) is likely to feature the woman; no matter how accomplished a man is, like in this case. Rozhdestvensky, in the view of the presiding PC culture here, is almost a DWM."
One gathers that the "accomplished woman" PJ1 is referring to is in fact the scheduled soloist, cellist Lynn Harrell, who, as Wikipedia tells us, lives with "his wife, the violinist Helen Nightengale, and their children, Hanna and Noah" and "has twin children from his first marriage to the journalist and writer Linda Blandford." An accomplished lady indeed!
But I digress. Let's say The King's Singers are walking around my former place of employ, McCarter Theater, this February, and they say to me, hey, why weren't we on the cover of the McCarter News or on the homepage of their website? First, I would say your concert is selling well/out, so what's your damage? If the concert was selling poorly, however, I would say, well, did we have new and interesting photos to give the design team at McCarter? Did we provide A/V content for their website? Did we offer exclusive interviews? Free tracks for download? Did you make yourselves available for press interviews? If not, the problem is with us, not with the McCarter marketing department. (The King's Singers are fantastic about all this - I'm just using them as an example.)
Marketing and PR are a two-way street. Things like having a variety of press photos to offer a presenter - with/without instrument, headshot/full-body shot, black and white/color - can make the difference in brochure, website and poster placement. Living legend or not, if Rozhdestvensky's name alone would not sell tickets, what could he and his team have done to help promote his BSO concerts? The fact that his name was not prominent on marketing materials should have been a wake-up call, and the response should have been, "how can we help each other sell these shows and raise my US profile at the same time," not, this is a "moral insult."
Epilogue: Because of this episode, the younger generation of classical fans knows who Gennady Rozhdestvensky is! When you Google him, the heading "Douche of the Month: Gennady Rozhdestvensky" is above the e-fold. Good work. That's public relations at its best.
Who wants to buy Time Out (New York AND Chicago, 2-for-1 recession special)?
One clever commenter on Gawker writes, "and too late for inclusion in their cheap holiday gifts issue, too. what a shame."
One clever commenter on Gawker writes, "and too late for inclusion in their cheap holiday gifts issue, too. what a shame."
My college roommate was in town this weekend and informed me about the completely nauseating Wal-Mart stampede incident. "I read it on the Times site this morning," she said. "It was in the 'Most E mailed' column; that's how I get all my news." Now, this is a girl who's getting her PhD in East Asianist History at Yale, so I strongly doubt the "Most E mailed" column is her one source of current event intel. That said, I see a "Most E mailed" list and I generally read through those articles/blog entries first, whichever site I'm on. Most presenter and orchestra websites already have "Send to a Friend" buttons on their concert listings, so why not have a "Most E mailed" section on their homepages? Other tabs could be "Most Blogged", "Most Read" and "Most Commented" concert pages, although Joe's Pub is the only presenter website I've seen that allows comments on their concert listings.
The New York Times Arts Section:
Pitchfork:
Perez Hilton dot com:
(It seems the most commmented posts on Perez Hilton are the ones with the most punctuation in their titles. A marketing thought for presenters? "Eric Owens at Carnegie Hall?!!!")
The New York Times Arts Section:
Pitchfork:Perez Hilton dot com: (It seems the most commmented posts on Perez Hilton are the ones with the most punctuation in their titles. A marketing thought for presenters? "Eric Owens at Carnegie Hall?!!!")
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Rebuilding Gulf Culture after Katrina
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For immediate release: the arts are marketable
For immediate release: the arts are marketable
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No genre is the new genre
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Paul Levy measures the Angles
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Greg Sandow performs a book-in-progress
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Harvey Sachs on music, and various digressions
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Bruce Brubaker on all things Piano
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Kyle Gann on music after the fact
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Greg Sandow on the future of Classical Music
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Norman Lebrecht on Shifting Sound Worlds
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Wendy Rosenfield: covering drama, onstage and off
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Regina Hackett takes her Art To Go
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