Help: performing in schools

Subject: performing in schools
From: Charcloth
Date: 02 Feb 00 - 06:03 PM

I know alot of folks are performing in schools but how do you go about getting asked to come & perform in them?

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: Sorcha
Date: 02 Feb 00 - 06:52 PM

How about: Write up a short synopsis/prospectus of what you want to do and take it to the Superintendent,Principal, or Music Teacher. Be sure to include ages targeted, time span and what you expect to earn and accomplish. If they (can't) pay you, most states have an Arts Council that does grants for this kind of thing. I do a lot of school programs for free, just because I want to. Once the word gets out that you are willing, the TeacherNetwork will kick in and they will call you. St. Pat's is a great time of year to do this, or most any holiday--you can tie the holiday theme at school to your program.

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: AllisonA(Animaterra)
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 11:17 AM

I am a music teacher and for me the best way is to send a brochure, then follow it up with a call. If I'm interested, I may ask you for a tape or for the phone number of someone who has seen you play for kids before. If you're not a known local performer, you could offer to do a free performance, and you would invite parents from other schools, other principals, the newspaper, etc., to come to my school performance, and then get me to write a short blurb about how wonderful you were, which you can include in your promo packet. If you want to make a living or at least some money out of this, don't do it for free as a rule- why should I pay you if you played last week for free at my friend's school? If you are performing elsewhere and people know you, the arts council is definitely the way to go. And some schools have a policy to only go with schools on the official arts council list. I'm lucky- I get to invite whomever I want! Right, Sandy and Caroline? *grin* (they were a hit!) Good luck- and let us know how you do!

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: Vixen
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 11:29 AM

From the "lessons learned" department:

Children's voices are more comfortable in keys that adults might find difficult. Be sure you check the keys of any material you want them to sing along with, to be sure it's in a key appropriate for the majority of voices in the age group you're playing for. (Little kids seem to do best in C and D, as I recall)

V

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: AllisonA(Animaterra)
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 12:15 PM

YES- thanks, Vixen! And sometimes C is a little low- I use F a lot. But kids also can hear and listen to any key, just be aware of what you want them to sing.

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: Marymac90
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 01:08 PM

In the Philadelphia area, the Phila Folksong Society has a program-it's called the Odessey program, where they fund musicians' visits to schools, kids' hospitals, etc.

One thing that may help you get gigs in schools is if you connect the songs you sing with some history lesson, some culture kids are learning about, etc. Kim and Reggie Harris have done a program on songs of the underground railroad. Somebody has done a program on the Vietnam war, and protest songs. I know somebody who does songs of the sea from the era of sailing vessels. I have seen a slide show on labor history, and instead of having a recorded sound track, one or more singers accompanied it, live.

I have also seen musicians who got gigs as sort of "visiting music teachers" in private schools or preschools.

Good luck!

Mary McCaffrey

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: InOBU
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 02:57 PM

If you are in the NYC area, I might be able to hook you up with the folks who get me to play in the schools. Larry

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: Molly Malone
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 03:06 PM

Day care centers are pretty good spots to start as well. It also helps if you know a teacher or parent, and they have heard you before. If you are willing to do so for free at first, they are more likely to want you to come out. (School's are way underfunded, and the arts are truely suffering!) This is a good time of year to talk to people about St. Patrick's Day.

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: Rick Fielding
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 04:11 PM

Don't know if this is much help at all, but one of the mistakes I made when I first started playing in schools was to "think of the kids as not as sharp as adults". Wrong, wrong. I gradually realised that I could do (almost) the same repertoire I'd do for an adult audience and the kids would enjoy it. Me too.

Rick

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: MMario
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 04:22 PM

Isn't it strange how quickly most people forget what it was like to be a kid?

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: Forrest
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 05:29 PM

I'm a music teacher too, and Animaterra is absoulutely right. Know what you'd like to rpesent and sell yourself. Beware... music teachers don't have a lot of time for "phone tag".

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: Charcloth
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 07:13 PM

thanks all. Isn't there a book on performing in schools? When my kids were in gradeschool I did alot stoty telling & singing & such ( my kids used to brag alot to their teachers-poor decieved lot they were) but since that has been along time & my grand kids aren't in school yet i sort lost a contact of sorts. Of course I did those gigs for free but I can't continue that practice

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: harpgirl
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 08:56 PM

...when I performed in Arkansas schools, the kids wanted to discuss the songs...especially the older kids responding to such songs as Omie Wise and Rye Cove ...they also like to hear about the history of the instruments...being listed with the arts council is an excellent idea. In Florida connecting with the Dept of State,Division of Historical Resources and the Dept of Education is a good idea...the speaker's bureaus like musical history programs...harpgirl

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: Art Thieme
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 09:28 PM

For 22 years I was booked through the artist/entertainment agency called URBAN GATEWAYS out of Chicago. I had to go through an acceptance process (audition?) of my performance which was called The Traveling Folksong. By being available through the Urban Gateways catalogue, I was able to secure work in the schools of all 8 counties around Chicago including Cook County. I never had to leave the home area unless I wanted to. (That made supporting and being with my family possible.)

What I'm saying is, get with an agency. They do all the contacting and booking (for a %) and send you a list of where to be and when and who to contact. It might cut the amount of cash you can ask for for a performance but you can most assuredly make up for that with massive quantities of bookings. Think of it as a quantity discount of some kind. It would be a great way to insure that the poorest schools would be able to afford your work. (That was always important to me---I thought what I had to show was valuable precisely because the students had not been exposed to it in their rather insulated lives.)

And school work is daytime--- through-the-week--- work that leaves plenty of time for adult shows and bar gigs and folklore societies and festivals and concerts on the weekends and at night. If anything, with a bit of luck, you'll have too much work. That way you can quote higher for the weekend gigs you really want to do.

The best of luck to you.

Art Thieme

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: harpgirl
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 09:38 PM

you da man, my friend!!!

Subject: RE: Help: performing in schools
From: Sorcha
Date: 03 Feb 00 - 09:54 PM

I think we've all forgotten to add Be Sure You Have Several Programs, age/grade specific. The late Stuart Mossman did a Granpa Guitar/Arts Council program sponsored by a radio staion in Wichita, KS, and appeared near me in WY, so my daughter and I went. S.L. was instrumental in getting me to play fiddle, and was a good friend. We were both very dissapointed in the program, all he did was brag on himself, how much $$ he had made from guitars, movies, etc. Wasn't much about THE MUSIC or THE INSTRUMENT. This was in a middle/high school. If it had been in an elementary school, it would have been more disastrous than it was.!