The best concert I have ever been to.

By the time I even get half way finished with this post it will be out of date, but I'm going to write it anyways.


I witnessed something incredible tonight.  The Philadelphia Orchestra was supposed to be performing in Carnegie Hall tonight.  Due to a stagehand strike, the show was cancelled and they decided to put together a last minute free concert to the public.  In less than 12hrs of marketing via the internet they PACKED Verizon Hall.

For those of you who don't know, Verizon Hall is huge.  I mean really huge.

There was some serious spreading of the word (marketing!) going on today.  Unfortunately the hash tag (#philorchpopup) is a little clunky so it's not even close to being a fair representation of how much buzz was going on today about this concert.  I would venture to say (quite confidently) that this was hands down the most buzz about a concert they've ever had.  This orchestra is over a hundred years old.  That's wild.

What caused it?

I can't say for sure, but I have a hunch it had a lot to do with the fact that the orchestra was providing tremendous value to their community tonight.  They could've just gone home after hearing the concert was off in NYC, but they didn't.  Instead they slapped together a concert filled with favorites that everyone would enjoy.  Their world class conductor, Yannick Nezet-Seguin was talking to the audience the entire performance.  They had a little girl conduct William Tell.  The audience had out their cellphones and were encouraged to film and share the concert with the world!  They did all of this in casual clothes.

Everyone was having a blast and it shows online.  There are hundreds of posts going on around Twitter and Facebook.  Musicians were even filming from the stage.  Some of the posts I've seen have hundreds of shares, likes, and retweets.  If the hash tag were a little better I think we could track it even closer!

Like most businesses, organizations tend to try and buy the attention of their audiences.  Tonight happened all because it was exciting, a phenomenal product, and it was all for the audience.  They probably didn't spend anymore than a little staff time today getting the word out.

The time has come for organizations to rethink how they connect and engage with their audiences and I hope tonight starts a dialogue in every arts marketing depart across the country about what they can be doing to better serve their communities.

Also, just an FYI, Carol Jantsch's video from the stage has gained like 50 Likes and the shares have over doubled since I wrote this.  Just think about how many people The Philadelphia Orchestra reached tonight.  It really is amazing.

4 Steps to Jump Start Your Freelancing Career.

Well, folks.  It's that time of year again.

Many of you might be starting a new year of school or even moving to a new city.  Whatever you're doing this Fall and beyond, I bet you've got high hopes for what you're going to achieve in this upcoming year.  I know I do!

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately about what has proved effective in helping me get my freelancing career moving and I decided to write a little bit about it.  As most of you know, we musicians (and many other careers) depend a lot on freelance work for extra income.  So I decided to give my spiel on what has worked for me thus far.  I'm a big believer that by defining and measuring what works, you can not only achieve success, but replicate it by applying those principles over and over again.  The following have worked wonders for me (and many of my most successful friends) and I hope that you'll give them a try a let me know how they work for you.

1.  Acknowledge that it takes effort.----I know a ton of people that sit around moaning and groaning about how they never get gigs.  Some people seem to think that it will just magically happen someday.  Wrong!

This may seem super obvious, but it is amazing how many people will never take the time to put in the work it requires to really get yourself out there.  It takes some time and energy, but it's all a matter of making it a priority.  We've all got the same amount of time, it's just a matter of how we decide to use it.

2.  Reach out to others for guidance.----The only way to ever get hired for anything is for people to know that you exist.  You can spend hours everyday in a practice room perfecting some random 8 bars of some random symphony, but if nobody knows you're around, you'll never get called for anything.  Anywhere you go, there is someone who was in your same position at some point.  Reaching out those people for advice can go a long way.  Nobody starts out on the the top of the freelance scene, but everyone has experiences they can share that will shed some light on what might help you along.

I am still very close with some of the people that took time to sit and talk with me several years ago.  One of them has passed along countless gigs to me, I currently work for two of them, and another one hooked me up with my current teaching position.  Once you've started making these connections, you'll be in the perfect position to put the next step in to action.

3.  Create opportunities to hire other people.----Being in a position to hire other people is a very powerful networking tool.  Find the people that you want to work with that can and will return the favor.  Before you know it you'll have a nice little circle of people that are totally willing to help each other out as much as possible.  A huge chunk of my freelance work comes from my friends that referred me to a contractor or conductor.  The more opportunities you have to help others, the more opportunities you'll be presented with.

From my own experience, starting your own group is the most effective way to kick start this process.  If you're constantly generating opportunities to hire others on your own, that means that you always have the ability to expand your network.  This can take a lot of effort on your end, but again it's all about prioritizing what's actually important enough to you that you'll make the investment to get started.

4.  Be a good colleague.----All of these steps are useless if nobody wants to work with you.  Make sure you've got your shit together when you venture out in to the world of freelancing.  No one wants to work with someone that has a reputation of being difficult to work with, unprepared, or irresponsible.  In my opinion, the best people to work with are the ones I'm friends with.  Most people would rather hire someone that is totally awesome to work with over someone that is an amazing player, but a pain to deal with.  Again, this may seem like common sense, but I can think of a lot of people that I will never call just because I don't enjoy working with them.  It's nothing personal, but we all want to spend time around people that we enjoy being around.  I think we can all agree on that.

In closing, I think it's worth saying that the freelancing biz is very much a relationship business.  People want to work with people that they enjoy being around and that add value to their lives professionally and personally.  Like anything worth doing, developing a freelance career is a lot of work, but extremely rewarding.  I hope that all of you that have been looking to break in to your local freelance scene will take this formula and really give it a whirl.  From talking with a lot of my friends that are infinitely more successful than I am, I've found that these steps are universally used in everyone's career.

Take some time and really think about if you're where you'd like to be in the freelancing part of your career.  What could you be doing better and what can you change to improve?

Take a moment to leave me a message or make a comment.  I'd love to hear your thoughts.

3 Reasons Why Everyone Should Learn to Sell (and what they mean to you).

I don't know about you, but I often find myself getting really frustrated when I know I have ideas that can  ake a change for the better for something/someone, and I just can't seem to successfully project my thoughts and ideas in way that makes anyone care.  This seems to happen to me in all aspect of my life from my social relationships, professional settings, and in my own projects that I'm working on.  I recently ran across a book that has totally changed my entire perspective and approach to moving others.

In Dan Pink's book, To Sell is Human, he argues that the ability to sell is universally necessary.  The idea that sales is sleazy and only belongs on the used Subaru lot is totally ridiculous when you really think about it.  According to Pink, selling is about more than getting someone to buy something, but more importantly it's about moving others.  This point about moving others is where I really got hooked and my mind starting running wild with ideas.  The whole time, I was thinking of ways that I could others excited about this concept and how potentially useful it is to anyone and everyone.

Here's some of the three big points I took away from the book:  

1.  Learning to sell, means learning to articulate the value of what you have to offer in a compelling way.

When you try to sell someone on an idea of yours, it's absolutely critical that you can clearly articulate the value of what your proposing and why they should care.  This may sound easy, but when you sit down and really try to define why exactly someone should care about your idea, it gets tough.  It's really telling when you speak with someone and ask them to explain why anyone should care about their idea and they can't tell you.  Try it sometime.  You'll be amazed at how often people draw a blank.  I mean, seriously if you don't believe me just look at most orchestra's mission statements.

2.  Learning to sell, means learning to effectively communicate.

Whether you're trying to sell someone over the phone, through a Facebook page, or through any other form of communication.  Selling is all about being to communicate your ideas to anyone through a variety of outlets.  I don't know anyone who couldn't stand to improve some aspect of their communication skills with others.  Getting out there and trying to articulate the value of your ideas in any medium is a great way to learn communication.  You'll learn tons about how to adapt your communication to make it effective with anyone. 

Who couldn't benefit from that?

3.  Learning to sell, means learning to help your ideas spread and influence others.

This is the big one.  We all have ideas that we want to spread and learning to sell will help anyone be more effective in their quest to make some kind of difference.  Whether you want to help your kid become more motivated to fill out their college applications, start a business, or win anyone to your way of thinking, investigating sales will help you accomplish that.  

Being able to sell doesn't just mean getting people to buy things with money, it means getting people to part with resources in exchange for something that will add value to their life.  These resources could be anything from time, attention, money, or virtually anything else.  Coordinating these various resources to help you accomplish your goals is what selling your ideas is all about.

Think about it.  Everyone has a friend or family member they'd like to influence in some way or maybe some big idea they'd like to implement at their job.  It's all a matter of coordinating the resources necessary to make it happen.  Whether you're a freelance horn player (like myself), a parent, teacher, or anyone looking have some kind of influence (which is everyone), the skills involved in sales will make you more effective.  

If you're interested in doing some research, I would highly recommend Dan Pink's book To Sell is Human.  It's probably the most "un-sales-y" book on sales you could possible find.  It's an extremely engaging read that is filled the brim with fascinating psychology to learn about.

If you're interested in what the book is about, but don't want to read the book yet, take a look at this interview with Dan Pink talking about the idea in the book.

The image up top is by artist Hugh Macleod, a favorite cartoonist/author/marketer of mine that totally gets it.

-Seth

Doing stuff for free.

Well, it's been a few weeks since I've written, but it has certainly been very eventful month!  This past weekend my quintet had the great opportunity to perform in Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center here in Philly.  We got to play for about half an hour on stage with (I think) the largest concert hall organ in the country.  Yes, it was totally bad ass, and no, we did not get paid.

Doing gigs for free is something that I've noticed can be a tender subject for a lot musicians (especially young musicians).  Personally, I have no beefs with doing things for free and I think people need to be a little more open to things before making judgments because it's "free".  Obviously you don't want to waste your time on a crappy gig that doesn't have anything to offer you, but I can think of a lot of examples in my own short freelancing career where a volunteered gig has led me to paying work.

Here are a few factors I take in to consideration when asked to volunteer my services:

• Who is contracting?  
• People understand that doing free gigs isn't always ideal and I think most people will look at it as a favor.  Having people owe you a "favor" is a good thing if it could lead to paid work in the future.
• Who will I meet there?
• Whether it's the conductor, other musicians, or someone totally different, it never hurts to get out and meet people.  Even if it's free, show up prepared and play well.  You'd hate to sit next to someone that could help you out and make a bad impression because you're playing poorly. 
• Do I have anything else going on?
• I have a confession to make that most other freelancers can relate to.  If I only played when I was getting paid to do so, I wouldn't be playing very much.  Sound familiar?  If it doesn't cost me more than a few bucks to travel and I'm not missing anything important, I'll always consider doing things.

I know some people (a lot more than you would think) that only want to show up and play when they're getting paid.  That's fine and dandy, but I think people are a little delusional about starting out careers in music.  I'll say it again, if I only played when I was getting paid, I would not playing much at all.  That would be totally lame.

Obviously every situation is unique, but I really think people should open up a little more to the idea of volunteering their talents.  For example, if you're a wanting to start a group that does wedding ceremonies, you'll find that it is incredibly tough to cut through the mobs of ensembles doing the same thing.  Would it be worth the time to volunteer your group to play at a local wedding showcase?  

Absolutely.  If it means an opportunity to prove yourself and legitimize your abilities to someone who could potentially pay you, then it is absolutely worth doing.  Keep an open mind with this and always be on the lookout for the next opportunity.

I'll leave you with a quote from my friend, mentor, and former teacher Jeff Lang that I think is an important thing to keep in mind:

"It's not about being in the right place at the right, but being some place all the time."

3 Biggest Lessons Learned This Year

In the past few weeks, Philly has been abuzz with countless graduation ceremonies and other festivities that have caused me to sit and reflect on what I have learned since I have officially been in the "real world" for over a year.  I hope this list helps some of you who are facing the unknown of what's next in your life.  I've got a lot to learn, but these are just a few things have really made a huge difference in my life that I wanted to share with you all:

1.  Asks LOTS of questions.

If there is one thing that has directly benefited me more than anything else this past year, it has been my fearlessness in asking lots of questions.  No question is too dumb to ask.  In this day and age, you can get in touch with virtually anyone if you know where to look.  Find people that inspire you and reach out them for guidance.  I do this ALL THE TIME, and it has led me to some really great relationships with people I would've never dreamed of meeting.  In the last year alone, I have met business executives, world famous conductors, non-profit CEOs, legendary performers, and so many more interesting people that have offered me some kind of advice or guidance.  I have actually stayed in touch with many of these people and now consider them to be mentors that I can reach out to for guidance.  Not only can these mentors offer guidance to me, but they also act as a connection for me to reach out to infinitely more people that would have never been in my circles otherwise.  Emerson said it best here:

“In my walks, every man I meet is my superior in some way, and in that I learn from him.”

Truer words have never been spoken about learning from others.  Don't be afraid to ask for help.

My recommendations for learning how to connect are:  Never Eat Alone, by Keith Ferrazzi, and How to Win Friends and Influence People, by Dale Carnegie.

2.  Put yourself out there.

It is can be extremely difficult to take risks.  If you never audition, apply, or try anything, you'll never get turned down.  However, unless you're actively putting yourself out there, you will never actually be doing anything.  If I hadn't been actively trying to create my own opportunities this year, it would've been a very sad year of horn playing for me.  Constantly putting myself out there and always looking for the next opportunity to learn has really served me well.  

Seth Godin refers to this as "shipping", and I think it's something that everyone should get used to doing.  I generated well over half of my performing income this year from things that I created myself.  It only takes a little bit of legwork to get started and I can promise from my own experiences that it's incredibly rewarding work.  Getting in the habit of being proactive (and staying proactive!) is one of the key distinctions between people that people that make waves and the others that just bob in the pool.

3.  Pursue other interests.

Not only does this keep me sane, but I have actually learned more about how to create a career as a musician from reading books on totally different topics than in four years of music school.  (It's cheaper too.)  For me, reading has been a great outlet and has introduced me some people and ideas that have changed my entire perspective on careers and life.  Find what excites you and invest yourself in it.  Like I said, the most obvious benefit is that it keeps you sane, but it also develops entire new skills that you can bring to your career as a creative.  Having something unique to offer is so important in the crowded world we live in.  

Personally, the interest I pursued this year was business and entrepreneurship.  I can't even begin to describe the benefits my freelancing career alone has seen from me looking at the music business from a totally different perspective.  Not only has it helped me be more effective in my efforts, but it has even helped give me clarity as to what direction my professional life is headed.  Perhaps it can do the same for you too.

Anyways, so that's my top three list for the year.  I could blabber for days about this stuff, but I will spare you all from that.  I would love to hear your thoughts on all of this and even what you hope to accomplish in the coming year.  

Peace out, folks.

Quick wins.

This past weekend my group, New City Brass, had our first official concert performance.  For those of you that are interested, you can check out samples from the performance HERE.  Now that we've got our first recital under our belts, I can say with confidence that it feels like a "legit" group!  Following this performance, I just had a few thoughts that I think are worth sharing with those of you out there interested in getting your own stuff started.

First off, I think the most important thing anyone should do when starting something from scratch is focusing on getting your first win.

What do I mean by "win"?

Well talking to people I meet, everyone always seems to have a list of things they are "eventually" going to do.  Very few people ever get around to actually trying these things, but the few that do often give up within a few weeks because what they envisioned is actually way harder to achieve than they originally thought.  The best way to combat this feeling of defeat is focus specifically on getting your first opportunity to do what you set out to do.

For me, I was trying to get a brass quintet hired to do weddings and other ceremonial music gigs.  It's actually funny, because I have yet to actually get the group hired for a wedding.  However, the minute that first response came from a church offering to hire us for Easter, I knew this could work.  Immediately following that email, I got that extra boost of motivation I needed to keep pressing on.  About 700 emails later, I have gotten more offers for Christmas and Easter than I could have ever possibly imagined six months ago.  In addition to that first Easter gig, I managed to get us a handful of other opportunities along the way, which have continued to open more doors for myself and the rest of the group.

The point I'm trying to make is that it's a huge ego booster to get that first opportunity.  You shouldn't be shooting for the top of the world starting out.  If you do, you're going to be totally bummed when you don't get any opportunities.  Even if it means doing things for cheaper than you want, it's worth it to start building legitimacy for yourself.  Delivering a high quality product will help you start building a pool of references that could help lead to other opportunities.

Yesterday alone, I sent out over a hundred emails to concert presenters all over PA and NJ.  I only got 2 responses so far, but one of them was an offer to do a Christmas concert at a church in December.  Will it be the most amazing gig ever?  Probably not.  However, just getting that opportunity and connection is a huge win for the group.

Peter Seymour said it best in the interview I did with him:

"The first gigs were all very random and spread out, but very important.  I have always believed the perception of something happening is something happening.  If you’ve got a CD, shows, a website….you’ve got an ensemble!  Once you’re doing gigs and getting out there, it leads to more gigs and more opportunities."

Dealing with haters.

First off, I want to say that while I have my own opinions on dealing with the haters of the world, Julien Smith laid it down better than anyone HERE.  For those of you that are uncomfortable with "profanity", I would not recommend you read what he has to say.  Everyone else, go read it!

As I've mentioned a few times in the past few posts, I think one of the biggest things that holding most people back is fear.  There are oodles of things to be afraid of out there, and trust me, I have my fair share of things I fear.  To be quite honest, one of the biggest fears and obstacles I have dealt with while getting my group a little bit more legitimized, is worrying what other people will think about it.  

I have been working really hard on getting this group running this year, and it wasn't until like a week ago that I finally made a Facebook page for us.  Mind you, there was very little reason until recently to have a page on Facebook, but I seriously told myself I would make this page at least ten times since January.  I realized recently that what I was most afraid of was what the hundreds of music friends I have would think about what I was doing.

How dumb is that?

I was sitting here worrying about what they'll think about my website, what the group sounds like, who's playing in it, where we are playing, and all kinds of other stupid stuff.  Seriously, this is what was holding me back from making something as petty as a Facebook page that most people will never even pay attention to. I know for a fact that I have "friends" and colleagues that will look at the website I made for my group and judge it.  But it took me a little bit to realize that the people that are the most judgmental are often the ones that have the least going on.  Honestly, I don't care at all what those people think.

The website I created was to give people a place where they could learn about and hear the group play.  I'm not trying to impressive my friends that have graduate degrees in music performance.  My audience is people that are genuinely interested in learning more about the group.  It's just place for me to host information, not somewhere to impress people that will never hire us for anything.

It such a silly thing, but I think worth mentioning that people will always have something to say and everyone is always judging someone about something.  There is no reason I should give a shit about what other musicians think because they're not my audience.  So anyways, that is what's holding me back, what about you?