Tools for Tunes
- Details
- Published on Wednesday, 15 February 2012 14:40
- Written by Matt Robinson
Arts & Business Council offers new help for musicians
In an effort to support these often struggling stars of the future, the Arts & Business Council of Greater Boston (www.artsandbusinesscouncil. org) is joining with Berklee and Ernie Boch, Jr.’s Music Drives Us organization to launch a new professional development program aimed at helping Boston’s many deserving young artists reach their goals by reaching more fans.
Known as the Musician’s Professional Toolbox (MPT), this condensed MBA-style program (which is modeled after ABC’s successful Artist’s Professional Toolbox) will take place on Mondays from February 13 through April 28. Each element of MPT will serve to improve musicians’ business sense and also their vital marketability. In addition to speakers and seminars, participants will be able to enjoy and benefit from one-on-one advice and emerge not only with new information, but also with an actionable marketing plan, promotional materials, and the support of an ever-widening group of musicians and other key industry contacts.
“With the launch of this program, Boston’s aspiring musicians can benefit from the knowledge of business leaders and musicians who have tapped into their entrepreneurial spirit to flourish professionally,” says A&BC Executive Director Jim Grace. “We believe participants will gain valuable skills and insights that can translate into immediate benefits as they rise to the challenges of their careers.”
At the official launch event, participants will be invited to a series of workshops and will also be given the opportunity to hear a kickoff keynote address by Peter Spellman, director of Berklee’s Career Development Center. “I think the series is promising as musicians seek to find their legs in the new music economy,” Spellman says. “It’s a trying time for the whole music community and this workshop series is designed to provide tools, resources and strategies to help musicians set their sails on these turbulent waters.”
Another participant will be author and consultant Angela Beeching, who mirrored Spellman at the Career Services Center at New England Conservatory for many years before moving to direct the Center for Music Entrepreneurship at the Manhattan School of Music. As Beeching has taken APT courses in the past, she has sen first-hand how effective it can be for artists of all kinds. “The APT programs has been running successfully now for a while,” she observes, “so I’m very glad the stars were all aligned in 2012 to make this happen for musicians.” As the sessions will be limited to groups of 30, Beeching looks forward to working with each artist individually. “I am hoping that this program will be a fascinating exploration,” she says. “Each musician [will come] with his or her own set of goals, concerns, opportunities, and challenges.”
The series will culminate wit h the Rethink Music conference which will take place April 23-4. From business models to copyright challenges to new means of distribution, this Berklee-based conference will bring the ABC’s of music to the A&BC program. “I am so glad to see what the Arts & Business Council is doing - both with this program and in partnership with Rethink Music,” says MPT participant and Michelle Conceison, who is the head of the music marketing firm Market Monekys. “Boston has always been a thought-leading city. We have such a vibrant and collaborative music community, and a long heritage as a launchpad for new talent.”
So if you are a musician who has been at it at least five years who needs a bit of support to take that crucial next step, it is as easy as A&BC.
“We’ll address the question every musician today must answer,” Beeching says. “It’s a brave new world, what’s the future you want to create?”
