In many fields where competition is stiff, one must figure
out a way to stand out. This especially true in the arts where there are many
talented and creative people expressing themselves at a high level of
competence. It is not enough to be good and hope that someone will discover
you. The artist must create methods of getting their work known. In this essay,
I will discuss three programs that I created that have been instrumental in
fostering my career as a composer and at the same time benefit the performers
with whom we interface.
Early in my
composing career, I was exposed to a win-win idea by tenor saxophonist, James
Houlik. Houlik is an excellent musician who performs on an instrument that does
not have a large body of literature. In order to expand the literature and to
build his reputation as an artist, he contacted several composers and asked
them to write a composition specifically for him. In exchange for the
composition, he promised to perform the work at least a half dozen times. He
contacted me because I had started a co-operative publishing company for
composers in 1972 where the music was printed on demand as orders were
received. Houlik was impressed with our offerings and my music, and the
connection was made. I composed two pieces for Jim and I received copies of the
programs and recordings of his performances.
I never
forgot my experience with what he referred to as a “performance commission”. When
I retired from teaching to devote more time to composing, I began to offer a
Commission Grant through my publishing company, Co-op Press, that is modeled
after Houlik’s “performance commission”. The Co-op Press Fund was established in 2000 as a means of encouraging
performers to experience the excitement of collaborating with a composer to
premiere a composition written especially for them and to share that excitement
with their audiences by having the composer in residence. This is a competitive
program that is available to individuals and performing groups living in the
contiguous United States. The applicants can range from elementary level
through professional and must demonstrate through the submission of a recording,
their level of competency within their grade level. No money changes hands as
the program is designed to provide benefits for both the performers and myself.
To date, forty-one grants have been awarded.
While there are many highlights resulting
from my creation of this grant program, a few stand out as being career
changers. At least a dozen of these commissions have resulted in a performance
at national and international conferences. Many other musicians, therefore,
heard my music and either purchased my compositions and performed them. Some
have decided to apply for a commission grant themselves.
As an illustration of what can
happen when one thinks outside the box and creates win-win situations, I would
like to refer to a commission grant we awarded in 2002 to Shelley Jagow of
Wright State University. Jagow applied for and receive a grant for me to
compose a composition for alto saxophone and violin in honor of the hundredth
anniversary of the Wright Brothers first fight in December of 2003. The
resulting composition was called “Celebration of Flight” and consisted of three
movements, Inspirations, Experiments, and Triumphs. The premiere performance
was scheduled for January 2003 to kick off the centennial year. After receiving
an excellent performance and recording, I decided to send the recording to NPR’s
Performance Today to see if they would broadcast it. It wasn’t until
mid-November that I heard from Performance Today informing me that they would
you use the recording during their program on December 17, 2003, the
anniversary of the Wright Brothers historic flight. I was honored that my music
was selected as the composition used by Performance Today for this occasion and
that it was broadcast over the 250 NPR affiliate radio stations.
The success of the Commission Grant
Program inspired the establishment of our Recording Grant Program in 2005. The Recording
Assistance Grant enables talented performers to produce a professional quality
CD in collaboration with my recording label, Emeritus Recordings. Emeritus
Recordings designs the cover, tray card and insert, obtains and pays for
mechanical licenses, manufactures the CD, and commercially distributes the CD
through storefront, web-based, and download retail outlets. The artist must
include at least fifteen minutes of my music on the CD. The performers also
provide us with the digital recordings of all the compositions included on the
CD and contribute $600 towards the cost of producing and marketing the CD. The
artist also receives 100 CDs that they can sell at their performances and keep
the profits. Emeritus Recordings keep the profits from the digital and physical
sales we make through our affiliates. This win-win program has enabled us to
award twenty grants and manufacture seventeen CDs thus far.
While the income from sales of our
products and airplay on radio stations generate some income that is used to sustain
the grant programs, the major benefit comes from knowing that there are people
enjoying the CDs, downloads and broadcasts. Reviews of Emeritus Recordings
products have been very positive. For example, James Wegg of James Wegg Reviews
writes that our “Collage” CD is “a delightful smorgasbord of textures and
tones.”
In 2010, I established our Fundraising
Program for Musical Organizations and Schools. Once again the thinking was to determine
the needs of performers and align them with the needs of my publishing company
in order to create a win-win situation. Schools and musical organizations are
always in the need of funding and Co-op Press desires to offer quality
recording samples of our music in order to provide potential buyers with a
realistic rendition of the music they are considering buying. The cost of
hiring professional musicians to record all our music is prohibitive, but by
making a financial contribution to a school or musical organization to record
our music is both financially reasonable and assists the groups in carrying out
their mission. About two-dozen works of mine have been recorded through this
program and we have contributed around five thousand dollars to musical
organizations and schools.
The establishment of a professional
recording portfolio for a composer is an essential step in obtaining
commissions and grants. The Recording Assistance Program and Fundraising
Program have enabled me to apply for and receive grants and commissions
otherwise unobtainable without these excellent recordings. It is a lot of work
to administer and promote these programs, but at the end of the day, I can sit
back and enjoy listening to performances by top-rate artists performing the
music that I have composed under these programs. This is an accomplishment that
always brings a smile to my face.
Please feel free to leave a comment.
Dr. B
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