Thank You!

Overall, this experience was wonderful! I learned so much about my future profession and myself as an artist. We were challenged to think critically about certain ideas and concepts and form our own perspectives on those concepts. The people we meet really inspired me to work even harder to educate myself further in becoming the best artist that I can be. I was able to view how my actions and decisions affect the world around me and how my presence can affect my career choices. From riding the directing ourselves around the subway, to preforming in a splendid master class; the life shaping experiences were endless! This is a trip where your dreams can be illustrated and start to unfold. Each show, person, and event we meet/attended all taught me different aspects about music and the life around me. I was able to get the confidence that I needed to make large strides in the direction where I want my future to go!

Knowing that there are multiple ways to “make it” in the music industry was very refreshing to learn. Each way mentioned, hard work, humility, persistence, and passion. YOU have the key to the door of your future; all you have to do is walk through it. That was a major insight that I learned and experienced while on this journey. I was able to challenge myself more and more each day. This experience also led me to make life long friendships among the people who I met and the other students who went along this journey with me. I will be forever grateful that I was able to participate on this wonderful immersion experience!

Many Thanks,

Amanda

Reflection

Looking back on this trip and remembering all the wonderful and eye opening things that happened is such a blessing. My personal goal coming into the trip was to not be shy around new people that ultimately want to help you. I feel like I successfully achieved this goal because I tried to put myself out there more than I usually would and even though it felt awkward at times, I got really positive results and learned a lot more than I would have by sitting in the background. One of my main personal goals now is to simply take care for my instrument more. Being a singer, your body is your instrument, and one must take care of it. I want to start eating better and working out regularly, and I feel like that will help with not only my health, but my confidence performing. My ultimate goal is to not just lose a little bit of weight, but do something that is life changing for the better. Ultimately, I just want to be healthy, and be able to be comfortable on a stage.

My professional goal changed throughout the trip, but I think I decided on being able to take direction, and be able to do things out of your comfort zone that you would normally never do in performance. When people have worked with me in the past, I was always very apprehensive to trying new things to make me better because I thought what I did was fine, and my routine shouldn't be changed. Now, I have learned many things that have helped my daily routine, like doing yoga, or focusing on words and what I am actually saying while I am singing. Overall,  a lot of the experiences I had in New York have opened my eyes, and have made me try things that have actually helped me a lot.

Jessica

NY Withdrawls

I still find myself talking about the trip to New York a lot and how much I miss it. It was the greatest feeling in the world to know that there are people (even strangers) who are willing to help you get yourself established in your career. In the sat couple weeks I've started looking into summer internships in Nashville, Tennessee. A lot of music management companies offer summer internship programs, and the big companies have a whole summer program you can do for summer credit. But, during my interview Ana said that if I can I should intern with a small company, because you will learn more about the industry and get more insider information. 

I've been taking this advice to heart and started just emailing small management companies that peaked my interest. A couple didn't get back to me at all, and a couple told me they would look at my resume, and another said that they wanted me to contact them again at the end of March. Without the networking project before the NY trip  I don't think I would have even considered just emailing the company to ask. I'm having a way easier time asking questions and communicating with professionals in the field, whack is so cool! 

I've started researching what the differences are between an artist manager for classical singers and managers for popular music, or country music (since I want to go to Nashville.) I learned a lot about classical singers and what it takes to manage them. A personal goal for me now is to learn more about the popular music world. The problem with this is this industry is only prevalent in certain cities (L.A., Nashville, and NY) So, my mom and I are in the midst of planning a trip to Tennessee to tour some recording studios, and maybe I'll get to practice my networking skills again and meet with more managers. 

I'm getting really excited for my future, and I think sometimes I'm getting a little ahead of myself  because I just want to know what I'm going to do, and what kind of job I'm going to have tomorrow. I need to work on my patience and trust that if I work my butt off it will pay off in the end. Anyways, I'm still really young according to the Drag Queen at "Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812." 

Reflection

Being back in Eau Claire for two months, I've had plenty of time to reflect on my New York experience. The music lessons, great performances, and endless culture I experienced was eye opening and refreshing from a career perspective. I feel very motivated to continue working towards my goals as an oboe player.

While in NYC, I learned important life skills that I will need to be successful in music and adult life. Before traveling to New York, I had never flown on a plane before. Turns out I really enjoy flying! I will need to fly to graduate school auditions and visits, and most likely to accept future jobs. I am now capable of traveling on a plane, which is a major step in my personal development. My New York experience also provided me with chances to learn how to use public transportation. I think it is safe to say that if you can use public transportation in a city such as NYC, that you can figure out how to get around almost any other city. When I'm in new cities for auditions, I can use public transportation and not worry about needing a car to get around. Learning how to navigate was a huge personal and professional goal of mine, and I definitely succeeded in NYU.

As an oboist, this trip has made me more focused and aware of my future. If I want to make it in the world of music, I will have to work hard. While talking with wonderful, successful professionals, and attending world class performances was very inspiring, the experience was also very glamorizing of the whole industry. There are so many opportunities in NYC that simply do not exist in the rest of the country.  Also, there are many musicians and artists who simply do not make it to the top, and have to face 'reality' at some point. I've been thinking a lot about possible alternative career options, just in case things don't work out for me. There are simply too many talented and driven musicians in the world, all of whom deserve jobs--there are simply too few jobs for all of the talented people out there. I feel that in some cases hard work is not enough--luck is a part of getting a  job. I will continue to work hard, but now I realize I must be aware of reality. All I can do is keep my career goals in mind, know what I want, and then strive to achieve. I do not expect a job, and this trip, while showing a variety of great job opportunities, has only made me aware of the amount of work that I will have to put in to be successful.

Jonathan