Small audiences, small venues

Performing for a small yet supportive audience

Upside: I had a successful performance this past Saturday at Moonstone.

Downside: I had 6 people show up. My online audience that tuned in via Ustream was larger than my in person crowd.

Some might be devastated by this, and this detail consumed me for most of Sunday as I tried to take the day off. I've chosen to put things in perspective though and I'm regrouping. I'm not sure what my next performance project will be. I'm interested in self-producing because I want to maintain creative control of what I'm doing. And I still feel that smaller, more intimate venues make my music more accessible; however, I cannot afford to finance my own concerts. I want to play to generate income. 

Was my program too niche? It was still a flute and piano recital and although I undertook huge promotional efforts online and via social media, did I only just appeal to a small group of people? I have some ideas brewing. I wouldn't be moving forward and asking these questions if I hadn't undertaken this project.

There are no regrets. Just brutal honesty that in spite of our best efforts to get people to show up, we're not going to get the numbers we'd expected. If people come out for live music, they want it in an intimate, accessible setting. As a performer, I'm sharing in the experience with my audience. I don't want it any other way.

Can a show at a small venue be self-sustaining with income generating potential? It's a question I'm pondering now so that subsequent shows that I play or any future concert I help someone else produce will have favorable results.

On to the next one.

I'm ready for Moonstone!

I've been consumed this week with lots of last minute preparations for my first ever self-produced concert in Philadelphia at Moonstone Arts Center! This wouldn't have happened without a lot of help and support from friends and colleagues, notably Sharon Torello, Local Arts Live founder. Add to this the World Premiere of Museum Triptych by composer Peter Amsel and this will be an unforgettable experience.

This is a huge moment for me because it's my first full length concert as a professional flutist and I've never felt more excited about the future. I am taking control of my career and creating my own opportunities. I really do feel like after all the years of talking, writing and dreaming, I'm arriving into a new phase of my career. 2012 has been claimed as the #yearoftheflute and I'm excitedly staking my claim.

I have learned so much about all aspects of producing a concert and although I'm still very much in favor of accessible and affordable events, I have a better understanding of the factors that go into ticket pricing and that is valuable information for future concerts. Given my recent day job experience at a newspaper, I developed a better understanding of the media and it has renewed my focus as a columnist and blogger to highlight smaller local concerts that don't garner coverage. With that experience, I spent a lot of time publicizing and submitting my events to numerous online sites and again coordinating with Sharon to get my concert featured on Local Arts Live.

If you're not in the Philadelphia area and want to tune in via the live internet stream, please visit Moonstone Live. The show starts at 8 PM Eastern Time. I promise that you won't be disappointed.