Freelancing

The word brings an unprecedented level of uncertainty to life. Looking for work becomes a full time job in itself, never guaranteeing any measure of success, income, stability, or future. There is no light at the end of the freelance tunnel. No welcome party. No farewell dinner. Just a constant bombardment of not knowing where the next paycheck is going to come from.

You see, most freelancers are unhappy people until they land the dream job they've been after since that first tragic idea popped into their innocent heads, "I'd like to be a musician!"

The reality of these people: they know how to work hard with little reward and understand such a career move (if you even want to call it a "career") can end personal relationships at the expense of, well, expenses.

Not having a steady income is not worth "doing what you love." Whoever first put that phrase into print probably died a pauper - something I'm not willing to become for art's sake. Performing music for beans is the reward of a bachelors, masters, or doctorate degree.

Here are a few things I learned about freelancing based on my experience.


The Practical Knowledge of Auditions:

1. You must be invited to audition. They are not open to everyone.
2. You must have a master's degree, celebrity status, or an insider to get the call.
3. On average, 150 applicants compete for one orchestral spot.
4. Don't be disappointed.

The Practical Knowledge of Entry-Level Freewhatevering:

1. You are a product.
2. Musicianship is secondary.
3. Build and edit your resume daily, follow up on calls, and learn to spell.
4. Shake hands, meet people, and act like a musical entrepreneur.
5. Be prepared to spend a lot of money LOOKING for work.

So, if you're sitting there reading this, thinking "Ah, I will be the ultimate musician, find my dream job after graduation, travel the world performing in exotic concert halls, bowing before thousands in thunderous applause," friend, you're in for a harsh reality.

Take my advice.

Become a lawyer.

New Decade

Hard to believe two years have gone by since I first started this blog. Since then, thankfully, I've made forward progress on my music endeavors. And now for a brief update:

- composed a new piece, "Audacity," for concert band
- composed "Symphony No. 1" for orchestra
- finished all music for "Rogue Tyger" space drama pod-cast!
- co-founded a music media company "MxCo Music" in DC
- applied for countless internships, apprenticeships, and other music related jobs
- started teaching private drum lessons (7 students and counting)

And now for a very short story in lieu of Superbowl XLIV:


Take a walk down Bourbon Street and you’ll hear some of the most talented blues guitarists in the world. His fingers calloused and dry from years of playing on rusted strings. The smell of cigarettes and beer waft out his dilapidated alligator case. Follow him home to a one-room apartment on top of a whore house where tourists throw money at cheap hookers sporting beads around their necks like some sort of prison chains. You’ll hear stories of Muddy Waters and Buddy Guy on those old strings and if you sit quietly enough, BB King before he was one. One more shot of bad fluorescent tequila from a half naked waitress with too much eye shadow; behind those flirtatious glances begging attention lurk time’s great accomplice. But his weather-worn skin and gritty smile make room for a final shot from this character - because when those vibrating wires fill the room, money objectifies itself. Hamilton looks up, with his pompous little grin, and reasons, “My dear young man, the frugal triumph of this night rests upon your willingness to accept a common truth: if you value your life, then you can spend me.” The waitress cracks a smile. The blues man sends a wink from the hot humid stage and stomps his heel into the wooden floorboards a little harder.

Understanding the Traditions

Istanbul, Turkey
Sydney, Australia
Beijing, China
Paris, France
New Orleans, USA
Phoenix, USA
Tokyo, Japan
New Delhi, India

Places I would like to live and learn traditional music.

*Blog in Progress

The world of composition is really not a world at all - its more of a universe of sorts, dotted with galaxies, empty space, and really unlimited amount of possibilities. The quest for finding life, or what I like to say, writing good music, is the job of the composer. In the universe, because it is so big and completely up to our imagination to say seek something new, the greatest discover of music is not a new element (we have a good handle on all the various elements of 'classical' music), but the real excitement is mixing the elements to see how they'll react to one another. We know about dust and various gasses interacting to make up planets of all kinds of weird natures - the same holds true to music - we know about sound, the nature of instruments, and try to keep up with the latest technology. These elements interact by the discretion of a composer.

There are hundreds and hundreds of classical composers out there all trying to write music that speaks, says something, or move a listener to a place where they forget they're actually listening to music altogether. When the audience shuts off all other senses (with the exception of hearing) and promptly falls into a state of near hypnosis, in my opinion, the music is a success. I don't know of any normal concert goer to says, "Man, I can't wait to hear a Neapolitan 6th chord" or "Oh boy, I can hear all the rules of Renaissance counterpoint being followed flawlessly" - sorry. Doesn't happen. I see listeners falling asleep, or sitting on the edge of their seat, or tilting their head (body language for zoning out and simply listening) when attending a concert. A good composer can control those reactions seamlessly.

Post-Graduation

Done, done, done, done! I am finished with school and have a degree in Music Composition and a minor in Communications. I have no idea what kind of job this will help me land, but I have until 2011 (I think) to make 13k, my student loan amount. Now, this may not seem like much to you doctor/lawyer types, but to a musician fresh outa school, 13k is a good chunk o' money.

So, loyal reader, here is what happened thus far:

I almost took a job in Arizona's Navajo country teaching music to kids at White Cone High School, but that fell through, even after a good interview. I almost took a job teaching piano at Downtown Piano Works in Frederick, but that also fell through. Got turned down by a bunch of Hollywood composers not needing assistants and was told, "Sorry, good luck elsewhere" by a music teaching company around DC. Bullocks!

The solution: Swallow one big dose of pride and move back in with the parents until jobs start to roll in. As of now, I'm scheduled to teach percussion lessons at Spencerville Academy in Silver Spring once a week, sign a contract with Rogue Tyger (pod cast production people) in the near future, and arrange a song for mixed choir tomorrow. In the long run, this will not suffice heaping amounts of wealth, but its a start...

One of these days, when I'm a gazillionaire, I would like to open a music conservatory in Frederick and name it Maestri Scuola di Musica. Until then, doors will open and close on a daily basis.

P.S. Iceland was way cool; literally and figuratively speaking.

Happenin's

Sorry, fans. It's been a while, hasn't it? Phew!

NEWS UPDATE: John Maestri adapted, survived! The spring semester nearly kicked his slender musician arse into oblivion.

Two additional Carnegie Hall performances were added to the list - not the greatest performances of my life, but performances none-the-less. With percussion, the simplest rhythms on the page can quickly turn on you, becoming arduous tasks with little remorse for a second chance.

Eamon and I are still recording our feature length album and posted two songs on myspace for you to check out. We keep on writing new material that begs us to be played out for the masses.

The Washington Adventist University (formally known as Columbia Union College) jazz combo sensation, Portmantau, blasted onto the scene with a handful of gigs, a stint in the recording studio at the Art Institute, and a few more positive prospective gigs lined up in the future. We're polishing our jazz combo by playing standards and writing some new stuff - the upside is that people genuinely appreciate our music even while we're still in the beginning stages. Ha! Wait until we get REAL tight, Newport Jazz Festival.

Needless to say, with all the playing going on lately, I still haven't finished school, but plan on graduating this summer (Julyish?). One more transferable course at Hood College to WAU followed by a brief composition recital (remember I'm a composition major?) should do the degree trick.

Fall prospects are as follows, but not limited to:

Film Composition at USC
Shooting a documentary film about Facebook
Teaching music in Denver or Phoenix
Rogue Tyger (the pod-cast) internet DEBUT!

Oh yes, and a two week tour to Iceland with the New England Symphonic Ensemble.

Winter Updates

Hmm...I've been feeling productive lately and notated a few short piano pieces I sketched out a while back. Also corrected the Psalm 13 choral piece and sent a copy to Dr. Bingham and Dr. Frank. On the downside, I lost The Finch (alto/tenor/piano) because of software issues with Finale and will have to rewrite it - at least I kept a copy. It's just a major pain in the arse.

In other news: Rogue Typer podcast is underway and the music is coming together thanks to Jason at Blue House Productions.

I managed to talk with Esperanza Spalding about arranging/transcribing her jazz pieces - which is a load of notation when you listen to her and her trio. We'll see how that ends up...EXCITE, YES?