Tag Archives: concerts
Impasse or interruption?
Classical music can be daunting in terms of how to survive as a musician. Anne Ku has created and produced concerts without a budget. Is it a mountain that cannot be changed or a rock that supports an existence? Continue reading
Filed under audience, composer, composition, concert, fundraising, personality, piano, planning, sight reading, travel
How to book a concert tour (part 1): a peace of mind and the sizzle
How do you book a concert tour for yourself? If you are a classical musician who is not internationally famous, how would you get someone to book you for a concert where you have to travel a great distance to? And when you’re there, you don’t want to just give one concert. A concert tour is a journey of more than one concert. Here are the first two steps to the dilemma. Continue reading
Holiday greetings: the multi-part e-mail saga
There are four steps in everything: content, method, delivery, recipient. Compare holiday greetings to concertising. Example of multi-part e-mail holiday greeting of a high school friend with five kids. Continue reading
Filed under personality, photos, travel
San Francisco Conservatory of Music
A visit to San Francisco Conservatory Continue reading
Getting to Heerlen and Valkenburg
What happens if you can’t get to a concert because the earliest train gets you there after the concert begins? Continue reading
Zeeland tour: 5 concerts in 3 days
Zeeland (pronounced zay – land) is the southern-west-most province of the Netherlands. This 3-day concert tour was arranged for us by Stichting Muziekinhuis, the foundation that places musicians in places where the residents are unable to travel to concert halls. It was a treat to have everything taken care of: concert venues, publicity, payment, accommodation, meals, etc. Continue reading
Life in the USA vs that in Europe
Now that I’ve lived outside the USA for more than a decade, and in particular, on continental Europe for most of the past decade, I daresay that I have absorbed some of that European attitude, especially when compared to the way I was. I’m not sure if going to the USA will bring it all back. I notice the differences when I converse with newly arrived Americans. Continue reading
How to get to concert venues in Amsterdam during “Dam tot Damloop”
I am sure Amsterdammers know the back streets of Amsterdam by bicycle. I am sure they will figure out how to bypass and circumvent the roads that are blocked for cars and buses on Sunday 19th September 2010.
Ironically, a marathon as large as the annual “Dam to Dam” can cause the central part of Amsterdam to come to a standstill. Luckily all metro and trams should work. [Metro map of Amsterdam and other maps of public transportation in Amsterdam.
Walking is possible. Cycling is possible. Even taking a boat on the canals is possible. Just don’t drive to Amsterdam in your car on Sunday 19th September 2010. Continue reading
Concert in Oosterkerk, Amsterdam
On Sunday 19th September 2010, we classical musicians will once again compete with the famous “Dam to Dam.” I say we will compete WITH not compete IN this “Dam tot Dam” because we are competing for the attention of the audience and the logistics of getting to the church on time. The Oosterkerk, like other central attractions, will not be reachable by private car or bus. Thus it’s vitally important that anyone what wants to attend our concerts know just how to get to these two concert venues with respect to the marathon. Continue reading
Concert economics: ticket price as a function of time
I read an account of an economist’s ordeal in buying last minute concert tickets. It’s a fascinating tale of the way economists think and analyse scarcity and opportunity. here is never a truly sold out concert. There will always be incentives for ticket holders to sell. In this case, scalpers or touters get hold of extra tickets with the expectation that the concert will sell out and there will be people wanting to buy last minute tickets.
With plenty of time to transact, these touters ask for high prices. Continue reading
