Taxi

Hey, everyone - does anybody out there know anything about Taxi? I've read a bunch of stuff online, but I'd prefer to get any info or feedback from somebody I know and trust. No anonymous comments, please.

Thanks, world.

Flozell vs. Ochocinco

I know, I know... I've been writing a lot about NFL football this season.

Chad Ochocinco, wide receiver on the Bengals, was fined for what seems like the 50th time this week, this time for a personal record of $30,000. His offense? Wearing a poncho and sombrero on the sidelines after scoring a touchdown. I'm sorry - that's hilarious.

Flozell Adams, tackle for the Dallas Cowboys, was fined for the fourth time this season. This penalty, worth a notable $50,000 to Flozell, was for shoving Giants defensive end Justin Tuck from behind while the teams were trotting into the locker room at half time. Flozell's other infractions - unnecessary roughness (is there any other kind?), tripping, and kicking.

The difference? Ochocinco (he'll always be Johnson to me - that's what she said!) was having fun on the football field. Yeah, maybe a little too much fun, but nobody's the worse for wear, nobody got hurt, and we all have something to talk about for a week. Flozell has once again risked seriously injuring an unsuspecting fellow football player by playing like a barbarian with no regards to rules, the benefit of his team, or the safety of others. Flozell has shown no remorse or willingness to change his behavior. Ochocinco, thank goodness, has also insisted that he has no intention to curb his antics. BTW - note that every dime Chad pays to the NFL in fines is given to charity at the end of the year.

We had the immense pleasure of having flutist and piccolist Jeanne Wilson perform at our music store on Tuesday night. After the show, Jeanne was talking about a couple of the pieces she performed and almost sheepishly mentioned how she loves "corny" music. I told her that what she referred to as "corny", I refer to as "fun".

I wish more musicians felt like Jeanne and were comfortable enough in their own skin to perform corny music. I wish more musicians weren't afraid to have fun with music because, after all, music should be fun. I sure had fun listening to Jeanne, Laura George, and Ron Levy perform here the other night.

The penalty musicians like Jeanne have to pay is the disdain of stuffy, pompous, insecure musicians using words like "corny" to describe fun music. Those are the Flozells of the music world - Jeanne, Laura, and Ron are the Ochocincos. The penalty for the Flozells is being bad colleagues who don't get hired back.

Jeanne, Laura, and Ron had a bevy of prescient nuggets to offer after the concert. Stay tuned to www.facebook.com/elefantemusic for excerpts of my sister Michele's roundtable discussion and video of the Flute Mania recital.

What's Going On

First of all, Flute Mania @ Elefante Music was a huge success last night. Many thanks to Jeanne, Laura, and Ron for helping to make it such a fun event. But, mostly, thanks to the many people who showed up throughout the evening to listen to the recital, sample some upgrade instruments, and talk shop about the flute. It couldn't have gone better. I'll have some video up in the next couple of days at The Elefante Music Facebook page.

Rudolph @ The-PAC last weekend was also a great time. We can't tell you how much we appreciate all the members of the Voiceactors' Orchestra coming out on a nasty Saturday afternoon to grace us with their awesome performance. Check out some great video at The-PAC's Facebook page.

This spring I will conducting my wife Caryn's production of 42nd Street at Madison High School. The auditions were last week, and the kids seems really excited about getting started. I can't wait to seem them bring this show to life in March.

I will also be heading back to NJCU to finish up my degree (that's right: my bachelor's). I am not looking forward to the workload, as I have six classes to take this semester. They sure seem interesting, though - I'm taking a World Art class, a U.S. History after 1865 class, a computer programming class, a math class, a civilizations class, and a jazz arranging class. I guess it's kind of ironic that after my modest success leading my own big band for five years it's time to head to back to school to study arranging. But I can't wait to study with Pete McGuinness again. Pete taught me so much the first time around, I'm really excited to learn even more with him this time around.

If you can, stop by The-PAC/Elefante Music/C & J Costumes/Zita's Ice Cream/Zita's Trees on Saturday, December 20th from 2-3pm. We'll be singing holiday music and drinking hot chocolate - plus you procrastinators can pick up your Christmas tree from my cousin Pete.

As always, thanks for reading.

Flute Mania!

Tuesday, December 8th, 6-8:30PM is Flute Mania at Elefante Music. At Flute Mania we will offer discounts on our already low prices on Powell Sonare, Selmer, Yamaha, Gemeinhardt, Armstrong, Vito, Jupiter, Azumi, and Dean Yang flutes. We will also be showcasing our extensive collection of flute music and accessories. In addition, our expert repair staff will be on hand to diagnose your flute's condition and perform on-the-spot regulation and adjustments.

Flute Mania will also feature a recital by Hartford Symphony flutist Jeanne Wilson. This performance will also feature our own flute instructor, world-class flutist Laura George. The performance will take place at 7PM in the Elefante Music recital room.

Jeanne Wilson

Laura George

Your Unfriend, Joe Elefante

The New Oxford American Dictionary yesterday declared the 2009 Word of the Year - "unfriend". I can't begin to tell you how much this delights me. First of all, the fact that there is an actual legitimate process for ceasing a social relationship with someone is just bizarre. Second of all, I find it hilarious yet creepy that this process is so widely recognized Oxford University Press legitimized it even further with the Word of the Year nod (although it hasn't legitimized it enough yet for Blogger to stop putting a red squiggly line underneath the word every time I type it).

Lastly, check out the OUP blog. Internet speak is dominating the OUP's selection process, and some of these words are just as ridiculous as "unfriend". Don't get me wrong - I'm not trying to fight the future. But "hashtag"? Seriously?

BTW - my favorite words up for consideration this year:

intexticated – distracted because texting on a cellphone while driving a vehicle

sexting – the sending of sexually explicit texts and pictures by cellphone

funemployed – taking advantage of one’s newly unemployed status to have fun or pursue other interests

birther – a conspiracy theorist who challenges President Obama’s birth certificate

death panel – a theoretical body that determines which patients deserve to live, when care is rationed

deleb – a dead celebrity

tramp stamp – a tattoo on the lower back, usually on a woman

and, my personal favorite:

teabagger -a person, who protests President Obama’s tax policies and stimulus package, often through local demonstrations known as “Tea Party” protests (in allusion to the Boston Tea Party of 1773

Opening Night of "Side Show" @ Drew U.

I am really proud of how the cast at Drew has put together a very, very challenging production of Side Show. If you get a chance, stop by and see for yourself. The show runs tonight through Saturday night, with a 2pm matinee on Saturday.

click for more info

Thank You, Rodney Frelinghuysen!

I thought it was interesting that I happen to live in the 5th happiest congressional district in the U.S., according to AHIP's Well-Being Index. I must admit - I am pretty happy.

Michele's Article in Prolong Magazine

Not because it mentions me (and for some reason my name is in the title) but because it's really good, check out my sister's article for Prolong Magazine. It's about her ambivalent relationship with jazz music - a relationship I'll bet many of you can relate to.

Texting while Driving.

I can't take credit for finding this... Seth Godin had a link in today's post to the article below. Please read it - for the good of everyone on or near the road.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/driving/news/article4776063.ece

What Has Inspired You?

Often I get into a self-involved frame of mind and wax poetic about whatever's going on in my head (as per yesterday's post). But I truly want to know: what has inspired you recently?

Stevie @ Borgata

On Saturday night, I had the infinite pleasure of seeing Stevie Wonder perform at the Borgata in Atlantic City. This was far and away the greatest night of music I have ever experienced. Those of you who know me probably know I'm a little biased. To say Stevie Wonder is one of my heroes is actually and understatement. In truth, he is not only one of the reasons I am a musician, but of one a small group of living people who remind me what is possible for humanity.

Stevie's voice not only sounds as good as ever, but his keyboard and harmonica playing absolutely demand groove and soul from his bandmates (who were exemplary as well!). The span of work covered was awe-inspiring - the band performed material from the Little Stevie Wonder years to fantastic newer material I was less familiar and everything in between. His joy was infectious. The audience was just great - the room was at turns awe-struck, groove-infested, and moved to tears. His banter and obvious love for music and his audience were apparent at every turn. There was a rawness, a clunkiness, and almost even a sloppiness to the presentation, which made it feel even more human and intimate.

We often throw around words like "hero", "living legend", or "genius" far too liberally. I pride myself in my ability to exercise caution using those words. I do not hesitate to use any of those words to describe Stevie Wonder. I was equally entertained, inspired, and reminded why I not only love music but chose to make music the most important part of my life (other than family).

If Stevie tours anywhere near where you live, you must see him perform. Trust me.

A negative side note - the sound at the Event Center at the Borgata is absolutely atrocious. The room is not built for sophisticated, quality music performed by masters of their art. It is built for rock concerts, and poorly built at that. Although Stevie's voice sounded great, there was no clarity in the instrumentalists or background vocalists whatsoever, the sound was muddy, and all you could hear was low-end, but with no depth, warmth, or articulation. Thank goodness the sound didn't ruin the performance.

My Squidoo Lens

My Squidoo Lens

Google Music Search

Check out this new service from Google...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DV24RBmy-2I&feature=player_embedded

Where Do They Find This Stuff?

Yeah, I've done it. Like so many narcissists of my generation, I've done a Google search of my name. Although I'm always surprised to find certain things that I've forgotten that I've been involved with forever stamped onto the World Wide Web, luckily there's not too much intimate information about me floating through the blogosphere.

This morning was the first time I've ever done a Google Image search of my name. I found a picture of me playing at the State Theater several years ago from an article written just this past spring. Again - where do they find this stuff? And with all the great performers who have worked the State Theater, why would they this pick this performance from who knows how long ago? Tne internet is funny...

A Day in My Reading Life

I know - you're dying to know what I read every day. Here is an amalgam of some of the interesting things I've read about just today:

http://kogibbq.com/ (My favorite discovery of the day - def. check this one out!)

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/10/some-people-are-better-than-others.html (Seth always seems almost cynical and uber-positive at the same time. He's a must-read every morning.)

http://www.creativeclass.com/creative_class/2009/10/27/the-prosperity-of-nations/ (Richard Florida's Creative Class is all over the map (literally) with its content. But his regard for the significance of the arts carries across most of his work.)

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/10/26/twitter-finds-growth-abroad-with-58-4-million-global-visitors-in-september/ (I may have been wrong about Twitter... let's see if it lasts.)

http://paulgraham.com/really.html (A brief essay by start-up guru Paul Graham)

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/27/opinion/27herbert.html?partner=rss&emc=rss (The Left)

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/27/opinion/27brooks.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss (And the Right)

Writing on T.V.

Does anybody else feel like the writing on T.V. is very bad? Even some new shows I like ("Flash Forward", "Modern Family") are victims of really poor, immature writing. Please comment.

BTW - the worst television I've seen recently is a reality show called "The New York Jets".

Staging a House

Have any of you ever sold a house? If you have, read on and commiserate with me. If you haven't, trust me - it's just terrible. It's especially terrible in the current market, but I imagine it's pretty darn terrible in the biggest of real estate booms.

One of the things we learned about the first time we listed was "staging" our house. Apparently it's not enough to keep your house clean and tidy. You have to remove all pictures from the walls, appliances from the kitchen counters, toothbrushes from the bathroom sinks, and even rugs from under the dog's bowls. I mean - really?

The first time we listed we decided to go hard core with the staging. We removed furniture, hid all of our toiletries, and even put away our toaster oven every morning after we were done using it. This time around, Caryn and I are being lazy about the staging. We sort of implicitly agreed that other things would be more beneficial towards the eventual sale of our home. We put a fresh coat of paint on the walls, steam-cleaned the carpet, and even got new windows. Expensive? You bet. Worth the cost? Only time will tell.

Staging a home is one thing. There are very concrete, established techniques for making one's home look spacious, clean, and appealing. There are fewer concrete techniques for making one's aptitude as an artist seem worth hiring. But the concept is exactly the same. You want to emphasize the positive aspects of your artistic self in a concise, crisp, and amiable way.

I've discussed the problem I've had with my inability to network effectively. But what about the opposite? What about the artists who are constantly on display, gushing and prodding their ways into everyone's conscious at every turn? I find this strategy to be more offensive, less effective, and anathema to the soul of the artist.

You know the artist that sends out an e-mail twice a week about what is going in their careers? Or the artist who is caught name-dropping at every social event? Or the artist who always seems to have their business card out before you've even met them?

I never hire these people. These people are not artists. These people spend too much of their energy trying to further their careers and too little of it trying to create something special and worthwhile. What's worse, this type of phony affability is not only ineffective - it's annoying as hell.

I may need to work on getting myself "out there" a little more, but at least I go to bed at night knowing I am a sincere and respectful person. I choose to establish relationships and gain trust over time with my naturally affable personality, hard work, and musical talent. Expensive? You bet. Worth the cost? Absolutely.

Moody Takes Us to School (at a School)

Jazz musicians are arrogant, glib, distant, and intimidating, and yet somehow come across as nerdy and reclusive at the same time. All in all, these traits don't generally make for a riveting performance, especially to the majority of jazz listeners who can't hear a tritone substitution or a hemiola.

Which is why it was so great to hear (and see) James Moody perform at my alma mater NJCU last night. Moody, for those of you who don't know, is probably a top-five living jazz saxophonist and a living legend of the music. Moody is a great alto and tenor saxophonist and flautist who came up with Dizzy Gillespie's big band in the 40s and still sounds great to this day at age 84. His solo on "I'm in the Mood for Love" which was transcribed, given lyrics, and renamed "Moody's Mood for Love" by Eddie Jefferson, is arguably the most iconic work in the Vocalise idiom made so popular by Jefferson, Jon Hendricks, George Benson, Al Jarreau, Bobby McFerrin, and Manhattan Transfer.

Moody was playing so much music last night it was unbelievable. The man is 84, partially deaf, and has been playing since the invention of bebop, but he sounds as fresh and original today as he did in 1949 when he played "Mood for Love". Moody creates melodies and rhythms interesting and engaging enough to satisfy the most discriminating and trained jazz ear, and yet, more importantly, creates music exciting and visceral enough to entertain the untrained lover of good music.

Moody accomplishes all of this with a grace, wisdom, and showmanship that today's jazz musician seems incapable of channeling. He makes jokes, he raps, he writes funny lyrics, he plays multiple instruments, he plays recognizable tunes along with obscure modern ones, and he sings! I am quite sure most modern jazz musicians consider singing "selling out". I am sure that Moody considers it fun and challenging. I am even more sure that the human voice is the most natural, raw, and passionate instrument ever invented, and people love to hear a performer sing.

Moody is equally comfortable with the heady arcana of modern jazz as he is with the raunchy fun of "Bennie's from Heaven"(about a love-child his fictional wife claims was born by immaculate conception). I was thoroughly entertained and challenged last night watching this legend perform as well as he did 50 years ago. My guess: he is even better now. And that's saying something.

BTW - the NJCU Jazz Program has risen to a level beyond that which I could have imagined. The Brecker Brothers Ensemble which opened the program was absolutely out of control, and the big band sounds just great. What a pleasure.

Life Is Football (Part III)

And just when you think football bears no resemblance whatsoever to real life, it just gets more ridiculous when you talk about the actual work. Who do you know that basically has January-July off? Believe me, if my starting salary was $310,000, I would love to have an "offseason" for half the year.

That being said, these guys work their butts off for half the year - way harder than almost anyone I can think of. The hours, the travel and, obviously, the physical punishment are very difficult to endure, I'm quite sure. This is where football players earn their money - on the field, being tackled by a 290-pound defensive end, or blocked by a 320-pound tackle, or hit in mid-air by a 220-pound safety who can run a 4.4-second 40-yard dash and bench press 300 pounds. And, by the way, this happens for pretty much 6+ months straight, if you count training camp.

We mortals will never understand what this feels like. Have you ever endured this type of torture for 5 months, taken a day off, practiced for four days, gotten on a plane, traveled 3000 miles, slept in a hotel, gotten up at dawn, and engaged in intense physical competition with 300-pound professional athletes?

I didn't think so. Nor will we ever feel the way these guys do after doing this for 10, 12, even 15 years straight. Can you imagine the long-term impact on the knees? The back? The shoulders? The brain?

So we (or at least I) staple our butts to our couches on Sunday afternoons to watch freaks of nature perform physical tasks that shock and awe us real-lifers. I do it with pride, mostly... a little shame, because I am doing nothing other than drinking beer and constantly checking the scores of the other games while these guys are working harder than I'll ever understand.

But is that why we root for them? I don't think so... More to follow.

Life Is Football (Part II)

So, where was I...

The players who are lucky enough to survive beyond the average 3.5 years are able to negotiate a second contract. Typically the second contract pays a good deal more than the first. In this respect, too, football has no bearing on real life. Imagine a 26-27 year-old contracted employee in the "private sector" signing one deal for five-six years, then immediately signing a second contract for double the pay. It's unheard of.

My favorite correlation between football and the real world is probably the concept of free agency. I'm trying to imagine a contract worker ending a deal with one company, then being the target of a bidding war among rival companies. I actually think this happens (although unfortunately it's never happened to me). I remember hearing the anecdote about Johnny Hodges being offered some crazy sum to play lead alto for Lawrence Welk, and Duke Ellington offered to match the price, so Johnny stayed with Duke. This sounds more like football to me - players will sometimes even take a little less to stay with their team in order to stay with players or coaches they like, stay in the same system, and not move their families.

So free agency in football, although more prevalent and more expensive, acutally correlates somewhat to free agency in real life. In fact, in real life there's more freedom - few employees are actually bound by contract to an employer.

Now - imagine trades in the real world...

Life Is Football

For those of you who enjoy the occasional football game (or staple your butt to the couch on Sundays and stare at the TV like Caryn and I do), you might get a kick out of some observations I've made about the game over the years. And, yes, I'm writing about American football, not soccer, which, in all fairness, is what "football" means to the vast majority of the earth.

Full disclosure - I've never played organized football. But anecdotal evidence leads me to believe that football is taken more seriously at a young age than other extra-curricular activities. This disparity only grows as the player grows older, culminating in the college game, where the student's life is essentially ruled by his coach. As it should be - a high-level college athlete is being paid by his school, which makes him more of an employee than a student.

This does not exist in any other field of study. The student scientists, writers, businesspeople, and artists do not experience this. Sure, there are scholarships in other fields, but there is no field in which academic success is not a requirement for maintaining one's scholarship.

So the exceptional student athlete is drafted into professional sports, often based solely on a scout's assessment of the student's athletic potential, as opposed to actual accomplishment in the sport. The top draft picks make a small fortune (well-deserved, in my opinion). Those in the latter part of the draft make the league minimum - a measly $310,000. Now, I'm not sure who's reading this blog right now, but I can virtually guarantee that none of you made $310,000 this year.

Well, the player is making money for the owner, right? Actually, the average NFL player plays 3.5 seasons and never starts a professional football game. But, if he starts his career in 2009, he will have made $1,200,000 dollars over those three years. Not bad for a 25 year-old kid.

I've been thinking about how to correlate football to real life. The more I think about it, the more I realize is that there is no correlation.

Tomorrow - the salary cap and free agency

Friday - on the field

New Programs/Students

I'm really excited about the new programs we're offering through The-PAC. I truly believe we will provide a unique service to the northern New Jersey area, and I'm looking forward to doing that exceptionally well.

I'm also excited about all my new (and returning) students at Elefante Music. Yesterday was our first day of lessons, and I couldn't be happier with my pleasant, talented, and enthusiastic roster of kids. Here's to a new school year of growth both personally and musically for all!

Ummm, duh....

This blog by Richard Florida outlines the growing disparity between real income and real college tuition. We didn't need Richard (who is brilliant, and I read every day, by the way) to tell us that. Those of us whom have gone to college (or paid for someone to go) know this fact all too well.

I am shocked when people from New Jersey (or most states, for that matter) show disdain for attending public universities. Rutgers is an outstanding school in nearly every discipline, and for most high school seniors, most of whom may think they know exactly what they want to do but are probably sadly mistaken, a quality state college is exactly where they need to be. I wish someone had taught me that lesson before I wasted 3 semesters and tens of thousands of dollars at a private university.

The Best and Worst of Humankind

The Best: Jack Jones: An Aging Lion Reflects on His Glory Days

Jack Jones is one of the greatest singers that ever lived (that you probably never heard of). The reviews of his set of Alan & Marilyn Bergman classics at the Algonquin are, no surprise, glowing. He is performing through Saturday - check it out if you can. I know I'm going to try to.

The Worst: Kayne West Outburst Mars MTV Video Music Awards

Look, I'm no Taylor Swift fan, but Kayne West's tirade at the VMA's was cowardly, embarassing, and self-indulgent. I hope the industry remembers this the next time someone wants to throw him a ridiculous sum of money to make a record - by the way, they won't.

Side Show @ Drew

So it turns out I'll be musically directing Side Show at Drew University this fall. (Just between you and me, my fall was looking kinda slow, so I'm glad this came up at the last minute...) I must admit, I was very pleasantly surprised at the quality of auditions I saw this weekend. Drew, which is not known for its musical theater program, sure serves as a home for a bevy of talented, versatile, and driven young people. I'm excited for rehearsals to start, and even more excited for the performances in November.

Between that, The-PAC, Elefante Music, and the freelance stuff that always seems to pop up when I least expect it, things are actually looking up this season. What is everybody else up to?

BTW, it's my dog Gunther's birthday today. He's seven.

First Day of School

I could tell by the hordes of children crowding the streets of Morristown this morning. The school bus in front of me on Meyersville Rd. was stopping every 1/4-mile, reminding me to start leaving earlier for work in the morning. Today, for most people, is the first day of school. Sure, some started last week, but for all intents and purposes...

A new school year, even more than January 1st, always seems to bring to me a renewed sense of purpose. Call it a leftover from childhood. Caryn and I have made good progress on the Christmas album, and I feel pretty confident it will be ready in plenty of time for winter. This is my first full school year working at the music store, and I actually kind of understand what's happening around here this year.

Also, my goal this year is to do more writing for schools. I had music performed by Scotch Plains, Chatham, Morristown, and West Orange, NJ this past year. I'd love to see that number go up this year. So, if you are a school teacher or a student, please keep me in mind. My website has plenty of sound clips and songs available for download.

Thanks again for reading. Talk to you soon.

Ellie Greenwich

Wednesday we lost Ellie Greenwich, one of the great pop songwriters in American history. Those who know/read me know how much respect I have for the great unknown, behind-the-scenes giants of our art form. Greenwich was certainly one of those.

Her collaborations with Phil Spector are beyond legendary. "Be My Baby" alone absolutely turned the world on its ear when it hit. It's one of those songs that gives me chills every time I hear it. Can you even imagine what this must have sounded like to people in 1963?

Those of you who are not familiar with her work (probably most of you), check out this list of songs Greenwich wrote and/or produced.

Grand Opening of The-PAC @ Elefante Music

Grand Opening Party of The Performing Arts Conservatory @ Elefante Music will take place on Wednesday, Sept. 2nd! Open House begins @ 10:00am with special guests, events and performances all day and night.

10am – Sing Along with Grandma Mary Ann (ages 3-6)

11am – Introduction to Dance (ages 3-6) w/ Ruthann Lanni

3pm – Acting for Beginners (ages 8 and up) w/ Suzanne Hevner

4pm – Shakespeare for Fun (ages 8 and up) w/Susanna Baddiel

7pm – Premiere of Rocks in the River, an independent short film shot entirely in New Providence, NJ

7:30pm-- Musical performance - Joe Elefante & Friends

Plus films featuring PAC performers running all day and plenty of other surprises!

Visit www.The-PAC.com for more information.

The Other Three

Okay, so yesterday I outlined what I feel to the be the five most important qualities w/r/t to being hired as a musician. Two of them I have written about in detail - networking, yesterday, and in May, talent. The other three are a little bit harder to define or quantify, but here goes.

Likeability - ??? Your guess is as good as mine. All I can tell you is that I know it when I see it. I imagine you do too. DON'T FORGET THIS ONE. It's just too easy to be likeable. Besides, you'll enjoy your life more, I promise.

Reliability - this one's easy. Just don't mess up. Sometimes you overextend yourself, or you just feel lazy, and it takes a little bit of extra work to be reliable. Just do the work. I've learned this lesson the hard way in my life. The big trick with this is to not bite off more than you can chew. Unless you live to work. Myself, I work to live.

Versatility - harder to define still, but again, you know it when you see it. There is someone on every gig who know hows to play piano on breaks or fix the PA system, or has the number of every bass player in the Philly area... Take it from someone who hires and refers people all the time - we remember this stuff! This is what employers in the new music industry are looking for. Just being a good jazz tenor saxophonist doesn't cut it anymore. You have to bring more to the table.

Try thinking of being a musician as if it was any other career. All the skills you bring to your job make you that much more valuable to a potential employer. Being bilingual helps. Being good with electronics helps. Being able to play multiple instruments helps. Being able to sight read, play by ear, or make up background parts on the fly helps. Being able to write arrangements helps. Being able to teach helps. Knowing computers helps. Being a good writer/speaker helps.

In other words, saying that being versatile is important is just like saying that the more skills you have, the more indispensible you are. And being indispensable is good for business. It means people can't imagine not having you around.

Networking

My wife and I had a long car ride to Long Beach Island this weekend, and we spent a good deal of time talking business. At some point in the humid, traffic-infested journey, I finally spoke aloud the words that I have heard in my head for my entire adult life. I realized that my Achilles' heel in this industry has been my introversion. I am so concerned with not bothering anybody and self-conscious about my value in others' eyes that I go out of my way to stay couped up in my own private musical cave.

I don't necessarily consider this a flaw in my personality, but let's face it - it's a serious detriment as a freelance musician. I've been thinking a lot about the skills that are required to work consistently at a high level in this business, and I've prioritized at least the first five:

1) Likeability

2) Reliability

3) Versatility

4) Social Networking

5) Talent

I know what you're thinking - talent is too low. Well, I've worked at a very high level in this business, and take my word for it, talent is easily less important than the first four.

Likeability is paramount - without this, only the luckiest and most freakishly talented will survive in the long run. Anecdotal evidence leads me to believe that this is the same in every other industry as well.

Reliability is a close second to likeability. People that pay cash money for a service that you provide like to know that you will provide exactly the service you promise (or more) of exactly the quality you promise (or higher) at exactly the time you promise (or sooner!).

Versatility has probably moved up a few slots in the past couple of decades. As the commercial viability of quality music becomes less and less, well, viable, musicians hired to provide a service are often asked to provide many services for the same modest fee, or as my friend Leo says, "medium bread".

Which brings me to the point of this whole rant. Contrary to what pop culturists would have you believe, social networking does not refer solely to Facebook and Twitter (although they can be important aspects of networking). Networking is so important because it's how potential employers and referral sources find out who the heck you are and, hopefully, why the heck they should hire or refer you.

Like I mentioned earlier, this has always been the weakest aspect of my musical career. But I'm trying to improve. Recently I found a great source on the subject. I regularly read Entrepreneur magazine online, and just last week discovered a great blog by Ivan Misner called "Networking Now: Growing Your Business Through the Power of Relationships". Misner has walked the walk, and now he talks the talk very eloquently.

One of Misner's most recent posts was about how introvents can use their strengths to improve their networking skills. This was one of his shorter and more general posts, but it really struck a chord with me, as it exactly the type of advice I was looking for. Some of his other notable posts recently have dealt with how to get referrals, the importance of business cards, and how to compile a list of your connections (you'd be surprised how many quality contacts you have, and how useful they can be - especially non-musicians).

I don't mean to get on a soapbox about Ivan Misner. I just mean to remind everyone, including myself, how important it is not to let this muscle go unused. Mine has become flimsy and weak. It's time to get back on a workout regiment.

Seeking

I think this article from Slate is super-interesting. Although the article focuses on our obsessions with technology, I believe it is an apt analogy for the development of jazz music (and many other musics). Either way, give it a read.

How Does One Become an Expert?

This may be the easiest question of all to answer. It's the same answer as how you get to Carnegie Hall. And, no, the answer is not "The N-R-Q-W line". It's "Practice".

Those of you who read my post on May 1st, 2009 know about how far I think natural talent and/or intelligence will take you. I'm living proof of my hypothesis, by the way. I was blessed with a great amount of natural intelligence and curiosity, and as a result have required a decent (in my opinion) amount of knowledge of many subjects. But because I was lazy, misdirected, distracted, and did not take school very seriously while I was there, I never did finish college. Many with less natural intelligence than me have graduate degrees from presitigious schools and high-paying jobs because they worked hard for them. On the other hand, many people with much more natural aptitude, particularly as performers, have not achieved the same amount of success as me as musicians. I have taken music more seriously, and as a result I almost sound like an actual piano player sometimes!

My point is that becoming an expert has more to do with how often you do something than what your DNA dictates. Seth Godin is an expert because he has been successful at many jobs for many years for many successful organizations. Matt Drudge is an expert because he is incessantly reporting the news (regardless of his spin, you have to admire the sheer volume of information). Oprah is an expert because she still pays attention to every detail of every enterprise in her arsenal, even after twenty-something years.

You are an expert at "you" because you live it. So there's my simple answer to a simple question. If you want to be an expert at something, live it.

What's an Expert?

Last Monday I posed the question: "What is a songwriter?". That question is not quite as easy to answer as it seems. The one I pose today is measurably harder: "What's an expert?".

Web 2.0 is full of 'em. It's just too easy to find or build a soapbox. Good communication skills, strong opinions, and perserverance get them an audience. That's all the validation you need in the internet age - an audience. The gatekeepers of information are losing their grip over the masses, and they don't get to decide what is worthwhile anymore. The audience does.

I've touted the benefits of this new model for months. The truth, however, is that there is something to be said for having respected gatekeepers discern, value, and distribute information to the people. The internet is bound to create gatekeepers - in a way it already is. Internet gurus such as Matt Drudge, Seth Godin, and Perez Hilton have established reputations so strong that they have acheived a certain gatekeeper status. When icons such as these speak (or write), the web takes notice - and, more importantly, does not question.

Okay, maybe there's no Oprah or Walter Cronkite in this new model (yet). That's because the experts have become the gatekeepers. How fitting that in a world of "do it yourself" the individual has eclipsed the conglomerate as the gatherer and disseminator of value.

I am certainly not an expert in this subject. I'll leave that up to Godin, Chris Anderson, and Henry Jenkins. But I think it's important that we try to do our due diligence in determining who is and isn't an expert. And it's equally as important that we know what we ourselves are and aren't experts at (and make it clear to others, as well).

Elefante Music Rock Project

Check out a clip of the Elefante Music Rock Project's final performance at Crossroads on July 31st. Illness rendered me unable to finish out the camp, but Joe DeVico filled in expertly (as usual). At any rate, the performance was an outstanding success. Congralutions to the students, who really put on a great show.

Week 2

OK, now apparently I may not have had the swine flu... at any rate, as you've probably noticed I was out of work and out of commission again for most of last week. Ugh.

Anywho, I promise to try and stay healthy (at least as healthy as I am now) and maintain more consistent communication. Word.

Swine Flu - What Is a Songwriter?

Okay, so those of you that check in with me from time to time know that I've been curiously absent from writing. Believe it or not, I contracted the swine flu, and I've been bed-ridden for a week. It was terrible... I'm back at work today and feeling much better, although I'm exhausted and can't seem to maintain a comfortable temperature. All in all, a huge improvement from a week ago.

Lots of stuff has been happening in the world, and I have been more oblivious than usual to goings-on. One thing seemed to grab my attention - check out this article in the FT. It reports on an interesting case in which the keyboardist for Procol Harum successfully won publishing rights for the song "Whiter Shade of Pale". It seems he claimed to have written the organ interludes, which are undeniably such an important part of the song. A judge agreed and granted him 40% of all future royalties.

It brings up an interesting question - "What Is a Songwriter?". I happen to agree with the judge in this case that creating an instrumental passage that is integral to a song is just as important as composing the melody and/or lyrics to that song. What are "Layla", "Kashmir", "Enter Sandman", or "Baba O'Reilly" without their trademark instrumental figures? Are they the same songs? My guess is that those songs are more easily identified by those instrumental passages than they are by their melodies or lyrics.

I'm thrilled that this decision was reached in this case, and I hope that it sets a precedent for similar decisions in the future. In the meantime, I think I'll grab a nap.

Another Great Link

I'm in heaven! Check this out. I don't think I'm secure enough in my coolness to actually attend one of these, but it sure sounds like fun!

Spotify in the U.S.

Here's a very interesting article from Wired about the potential of Spotify in the U.S. Do you think P2P file-sharing can become a legitimate business in this country?

Ask and You Shall Receive

I'm the first to admit that our president has made some questionable decisions. But I think it's important to give credit where it's due. One of the most intriguing things he was speaking about on the campaign trail was accountability in government. A few months ago I railed against his administration's inability to make this happen.

Patience is a virtue, my friends. Check out http://www.usaspending.gov/index.php.

Twitter, cont.

See? I'm not the only one.

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/07/20/trent-reznor-ends-twitter-legacy-by-deleting-account/

Joe & Caryn - on a Greeting Card?

"Here I Am", the song Caryn and I wrote for the American Idol Songwriting Competition last year, is now being used in conjuction with a thank you card. It's pretty wild... check out http://withacardandasong.com/audio/thanks-to-you.htm.

By the way, Caryn were all excited about putting together a new song for the competition this year, until we discovered that it wasn't taking place. Instead they let Kara DioGuardi write a sappy, dense, acrobatic, unsingable, and unmusical piece of garbage.

At any rate - check out the With a Card and a Song site!

Interesting Thought

"Anonymous" brings up a great point yesterday. I've been so enamored with the idea of doing a nationally-oriented organization, I refused to acknowledge the benefits of starting locally.

Does anybody have any suggestions about ways this project could be inclusive and worthwhile?

Speaking of Unrealistic Dreams

I want to create a broad-based music industry trade organization. I firmly believe that in we in this business tend to get pigeon-holed in whatever it is we specialize in. We forget or are unable to make connections or inroads in other aspects of this business.

As we have discussed here many times, the musician of the future is a versatile, highly-skilled, and well-connected entity. He/she needs to know about performing, composing/arranging, recording, publishing, booking, management, technology and education. If we could somehow bring together these disparate branches of the music industry, so many more artists will be able to figure out ways to forge a career out of this god-forsaken art form. Maybe some will even be inspired to collaborate with each other, or learn a new craft, or create something new and unique.

I don't have the time, money, resources, or connections to make this dream happen. But I feel if I write it here, maybe someday somebody will call me to task on it. That's your job.

Glory

One more thing...

Caryn and I were watching Glory last night, which I hadn't seen in years. I was really moved by the scene where the men tore up their paychecks. They were protesting the fact they were being paid less than the white soldiers.

Artists - what if we demanded a certain amount of money for our services, and wouldn't work for less? It's just a thought, and not a very realistic one. (I'm always telling Caryn I want to rally all the musicians in the world to hike prices for music services - romantic, isn't it?). But maybe, on a local or regional level, this is somewhat possible.

I think it's important that we think about this. Too many great artists are trying too hard to make a living.

Live Music in NJ

It seems everyone I talk to is losing his/her regular gigs... clubs are closing, and those that are not are cutting back or terminating live entertainment. I love hearing stories about new venues for live music in Jersey - anybody got any?

A Great Marketing Post by the Founder of CDBaby

http://sivers.org/barking

Check out this post from Derek Sivers, founder of CDBaby. This is an important point for us to remember as artists and entrepreneurs (after all, all artists are a small business, right?) .

Caryn's Post about MJ

So, I know we're all tired of the Jacko thing, and it's overplayed, over-analyzed, and over-dramatized. But I think the human stories, like Magic Johnson's at the memorial service (and unlike Brooke Shields's self-absorbed ramblings) are still moving and prescient. That's why I linked to Caryn's post yesterday, and why I think it's such a fascinating take on MJ - MJ the human being, and how much more special the life, career, celebrity, and lasting impact of MJ become when you remember he's just a stupid, confused, insecure mortal just like us.

MJ the man, myth, and legend are truly an anomaly to be experienced once in a long while. Celebration of his humanity is inspiring - it reminds us that we can accomplish more than is intended for us, and certainly more than we expect of ourselves. Thanks, Caryn.

A Personal Story about Michael Jackson

Check out this post by my wife, Caryn, on the Elefante Music blog. It's really insightful, entertaining, and special.

A Personal Story about Michael Jackson

Elefante Music Jazz Camp

Hey, all...

If you're interested in seeing some of our best young musicians perform in a real live jazz club, come see the Elefante Music Jazz Camp performance at Crossroads in Garwood, NJ. They'll be playing on Friday, July 17, @ 6:00pm. The 45-minute set includes music by Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Herbie Hancock, Sonny Rollins, and Horace Silver. I'm quite certain you'll be impressed with how well these students handle some very challenging music.

The Elefante Music Rock Project performance will be @ Crossroads on Friday, July 31, @ 6:00pm. We'd love to see you at either show (or both)!

The Memorial

Can I just say that Stevie sounded ridiculous at the memorial service yesterday? (By the way, "ridiculous" is good.)

Selective Memory of Michael Jackson

I was talking to my wife and a friend last night about the Gloved One, and an interesting debate surfaced:

Do you think the media is doing a disservice by essentially ignoring Jackson's legal issues? Or do you think that because he was not convicted that the issue should be muted? Or do you think that he didn't do it? Or do you think that none of this matters right now, we should just be celebrating his music and impact on culture? Or do you not give a hooey about Michael and wish we should stop talking about it all-together? (Newsflash - that's not happening, but feel free to voice your opinion.)

I have a strong opinion about this (obviously). But I'll let you guys have the first word.

PAC/Songwriting/Jazz History

Auditions for Advanced Scene Study & Technique and Advanced Musical Theater Workshop at the Performing Arts Conservatory have begun. Make sure you check out the-pac.com and get signed up for fall classes before they fill up.

Speaking of filling up, get to elefantemusic.com to sign up for Songwriting & Arranging (Tuesdays 7-7, 7-14, & 7-21). On Wednesday, 8-26, I will be giving a three-hour lecture in Jazz History for only $25.00 (No music experience necessary).

Creative Class

I've really been getting into this blog, which is not about music, but it kind of is. (Pardon my colloquial grammar.) Its insight into my generation and "how we live, work, and play" is fascinating.

Is there anything out there you just have to read (besides me)? :o)

A Christmas Album for Today

So my wife and I have been throwing around the idea of putting together a Christmas record, and it's got me thinking about some stuff (what else is new, right?). It seems like almost everyone puts out a holiday record of some kind 'cuz they're money in the bank, everyone loves them, and the market reopens every winter. The problem is that most of them stink out loud. Come to think of it, that's often my problem with things, isn't it?

I think the problem with most holiday records is that they are too traditional. I mean sure, people expect to hear certain songs done a certain way, and if you stray too far from that, you might as well not even be doing a holiday record. (By the way, that's my problem with a lot of standards-themed jazz records. If you stray too far away from the original song, what's the point of doing it in the first place?)

Another problem, of course, is that not enough of them have original content. Occasionally you'll find a holiday record with an original song or two, but more often than not these songs don't work. It's not because they're bad songs. It's for the same reason I mentioned before. I think composers feel they have to write holiday songs that fall into a prescribed template of what holiday songs are supposed to sound like or be about. The problems with this philosophy are several. First, those traditional holiday songs are already perfect - you can't do better yourself, trust me. Second, any uniqueness you have a composer/artist is severely diluted by your desire to create what you think people want a holiday song to be.

So, my dilemma - how to create a unique, original, exciting Christmas album that respects the wonderful tradition of Christmas albums. Not as easy at it sounds, folks.

100 Posts Later

So 100 posts later I want to take another opportunity to thank you for following and/or reading. In the past six months I've learned a lot about the new economy, web 2.0, the new music industry, and even a little(very little) HTML. I've learned more about piano tuning, the politics of school music, and how to start a business. I've done far more reading than writing, 'cuz I've also learned that the more I learn the less I know. I know that makes no sense, but it does to me.

Again, feel free to drop some comments, let me know what you're up to, and what you'd like to talk about. Especially those readers I don't know (or are hiding from me).

In the meantime, check out the new websites at www.elefantemusic.com and www.the-pac.com and see what I've been working on. Also check out www.joeelefante.com/calendar to see what I'm doing in the non-virtual world.

Money & Music

I am being graceful by presenting a thorough, scholarly paper by Robert D. Austin and Lee Devin for Harvard Business School. Although I agree with the basic tenet of the paper (that it's okay for artists to make money), I disagree that this is the idea that we should be promoting right now. That being said, this paper is superbly well-written and researched, and it would be disingenuous of me not to respect a quality argument for an opposing viewpoint.

Those of you that read this blog regularly know my opinions on this subject. Those that don't and have no interest in reading a scholarly paper (and really, who can blame you), check out some of these earlier posts.

http://joeelefante.blogspot.com/2009/05/times-article.html
http://joeelefante.blogspot.com/2009/05/no-no-no-youve-got-it-all-wrong.html
http://joeelefante.blogspot.com/2009/05/i-thought-all-night-and-morning-about.html

I apologize for my lack of posts recently. I have no excuse other than being busy. Which, thankfully, shouldn't be changing any time soon. Check out my website to stay tuned to what I'm up to.

Let Go...

The idea that Twitter will change the world. People already don't care anymore.

Jammie Thomas-Rasset

Can you believe the levy laid on Jammie Thomas-Rasset? $1.92-million? The Minnesota mom's ex-boyfriend or two sons were likely the culprits in this case, in which a woman was clearly not looking to profit from the piracy, only for her family to enjoy the music she was downloading.

The-PAC @ Elefante Music

The Performing Arts Conservatory (The-PAC) is thrilled to announce the launch of their flagship school in New Providence, New Jersey, at Elefante Music on Springfield Avenue, across from McDonalds.

The-PAC is a new school for students of all ages who wish to explore their inner artist. The-PAC will offer beginner classes in acting, improv, film making, directing, cabaret performance, dancing and voice over as well as Master Classes, Broadway Seminars and Advanced Classes (by audition only).

All of The instructors at The-PAC are individuals who have successfully earned a living doing what they teach. The resumes of our faculty include film, television, regional Theater and Broadway. Matthew Arkin (Drama Desk Award nominee for his performance in The Broadway production of the Pulitzer Prize winning play Dinner with Friends) will be teaching a weekly Advanced Scene Study Class. Our Advanced Musical Theater Class will be jointly taught by David Cantor (Che in Evita on Broadway and in The National Tour) and Joe Elefante (Associate Music Director for Jersey Boys National Tour).

In addition to weekly classes, The-PAC will offer seminars on topics that range from "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Getting Your Child Into The Business But Did Not Know Who To Ask" to "An Evening with Joe and Jim" an interview series featuring an individual who is currently working as a actor, director or film maker. The Broadway Seminar Series is a limited availability event.

In addition to The Interview session, there will be an opportunity to see The Broadway show featuring our guests are in along with a "Talk Back" or backstage tour. Keep watching for more information.

The-PAC wants to support music and the arts in our schools. Five dollars of every registration fee will be given back to our local schools in the form on a Mini-Grant for the Arts. So sure to tell us the name of your school when you register!

For more information or to get a copy of our 2009-2010 Season Course Catalog, please contact us at performingartsconservatory@gmail.com or by phone at (908) 464-1019 or at our website: www.THE-PAC.com

Additional Information Dates:

· Fall Classes begin on September 14, 2009

Mission Statement: The Performing Arts Conservatory seeks to provide a safe and positive environment where our students and staff can explore who they are as artists. Our goal is to help each and every person to find and develop the tools and methods that best suit them as individuals. We strive to provide an artistic home for our students and staff to come back to, as they endeavor to master their craft, and continue on their artistic journey.

Elefante Music Website

Hey, all... the new Elefante Music website is live, so be sure and check out www.elefantemusic.com. While you're there, be sure to sign up for our regular newsletter. Thanks!

Lorin Maazel/Lieber & Stoller

Two really interesting articles in the Times this weekend:

Lorin Maazel retiring: A fitting tribute to a great champion of music.

New Lieber & Stoller auto-biography: A biography about the most over-rated songwriting team in popular music.

Enjoy!

Pets

I like to think that music goes a long way towards improving mental health and emotional well-being. I'm sure there's studies on it, I'm just too busy to spend too much time researching that right now (as long as we're being honest, right?). I do remember playing gigs for the Music Therapy department at NYU, and those people believe that music can be used to improve the lives and functions of people with learning or motor disabilities. After seeing it firsthand, I believe it as well.

So take some piano lessons. Audition for a community theater show. See a concert. And get a dog.

In a World Where Everything Is Newsworthy

This morning I was watching the news and there was a feature about the PS22 chorus, a performing group from an area elementary school. The PS22 chorus has attracted millions of hits, a ton of fans, and, as I witnessed this morning, major media attention. The reason for this attention is hard for me to comprehend, but apparently it has mostly to do with the quality of the singing group. Now I must admit this is a darn good 5th grade chorus, probably the best I've ever heard. But how exactly is it newsworthy?

In a world where everything is newsworthy, the PS22 chorus is just another YouTube phenomenon that will most likely end up on Oprah, the Today Show, and one of the FOX morning shows that nobody ever watches. Sure, I am happy for the kids, and, though surprised at the number of hits, I am glad that folks appreciate how special it is for kids this age to perform so well. And as much as I am enamored with the democratization of culture, it seems silly to me that this story is considered worth putting on a major market news broadcast at 6:45am.

In a world where Susan Boyle is newsworthy, we are reminded that a sudden spike in page-views can easily become an internet phenomenon, and from there a mass-media sensation. This is most likely just a negative side effect of the democratization of culture, and maybe as we all grow together in the world of Web 2.0 we will show better judgment as far as what is worth reporting as opposed to what is worth watching. For now, check out Malcom Gladwell's The Tipping Point, start a movement, and get out of the way.

By the way, if you disagree with me about the newsworthiness of the PS22 chorus, let me know. Here is the clip I saw on the news.

Up, Tonys, Footnotes

I had interesting weekend, thought maybe I'd share. Friday night I saw Up, and what an enjoyable experience that was. I don't hesitate to say it was one the best movies I've ever seen. I strongly recommend you see it in the theaters. I did not get the opportunity to watch it in 3D, but I'm sure that experience is even more amazing. In keeping consistent with the theme of this blog, I sure hope the score wins the Oscar next year. It has been a long time (John Williams?) since an original movie score was as carefully crafted, moving, and integral to the film. Bravo, Michael Giacchino.

Saturday afternoon I played the Jersey Boys Tony Awards rehearsal. It was great to see some old friends, as the Frankie Vallis from around the country all came together to perform "Can't Take My Eyes off You" at the Tony ceremony at Radio City.

Saturday night I was at the 20th anniversary recital of Anne Fattal's Footnotes. Anne is a good friend, and many of the young dancers have been students of mine throughout the years, so I was happy to be a part of the big show. It was a very entertaining performance, crisp, solid, well-conceived, and lots of fun. I'm proud of Anne and the kids, and for the record, anyone planning to produce a dance recital should try to sneak a peak at the video of this recital.

Butera, Mattingly, and Danson

Music lost an important figure on Wednesday. Saxophonist Sam Butera died of pneumonia at age 81.

Butera, a veteran Vegas showman, is most well known for his longtime association with Vegas legend Louis Prima. Butera was saxophonist, vocalist, arranger and bandleader for Prima through Prima's glory years and helped forge Prima's trademark sound. His sound, spirit, and showmanship were unrivalled, and will not be forgotten.

Butera was not a technical wizard. He was not a great jazz saxophonist, and did not have the type of sound quality that we strive to impress upon our students. He created nothing new in music. In short, he was not an artist one would learn about in music history class.

Butera's gift was not significant historically or musically. It was the gift of entertainment. It is a gift that we in the industry often lose sight of, particularly those of us that are not entrenched in the popular music arena.

I remember every note, every growl, and every nuance of those Louis Prima records. I haven't listened to them in over fifteen years. But I remember them. And I loved them. I remember telling my saxophone teacher, a true bebop purist, that I dug Butera. I also remember the look on his face after I told him.

There was a joy, a vibrance, a raw energy in Butera's playing and arrangements. His sax solo and arrangement of "Just a Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody" are iconic pieces of American popular culture. I've never in my life had more fun with my father than recreating that arrangement and solo note for note at the night clubs when I was in high school. Come to think of it, Butera was as much a part of my childhood as Don Mattingly and Ted Danson.

I remember how my sister and I used to make my mother put on Louis Prima as she would drive us to school in the morning, even though I don't think she liked it very much (I'll have to ask her). I remember my other sister complaining because I was too young to sing along in the same octave as Prima and Butera. My poor brain is littered with vivid memories of my childhood, with Butera as the soundtrack.

Hey, if you're not busy, throw on "Gigolo". Let's not honor Sam Butera with a moment of silence - rather, with a moment of music.

Your Contribution

I really appreciate the folks at TakeLessons.com taking the time to comment on yesterday's post. It shows a commitment to their business and to their mission.

And thanks to all of you who have taken the time to post comments, respond, or link back to this blog. It's really important to me that even if you think I'm an idiot, at least we can all have a civilized conversation about what we're passionate about.

TakeLessons.com

I actually think this is a great idea for private music teachers and potential students. This enables prospective students to seek out exactly what they're looking for, compare and contrast, and make an informed decision. It also forces a certain amount of preparation, organization, and transparency on the part of the teacher.

Great Show

Congratulations to the Voice Actors Orchestra for an outstanding performance of "Princess Bride" at Centennial Park last night. The show was performed by some incredibly talented artists, and was a ton of fun to watch.

The Princess Bride to be Performed in Centennial Park in New Providence, June 2nd

Please be our guest...at an outdoor performance of The Princess Bride by the Voice Actors Orchestra.

DATE: Tuesday, June 2, 2009

TIME: 7:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

LOCATION: Centennial Park, New Providence, NJ

Bring your blankets, and chairs and enjoy a terrific movie script performed by some of the best voice actors in the US.

The Performing Arts Conservatory is about to open its doors in New Providence. Learn to act, direct, and make films from people who earn their living doing what they are teaching.

Easy vs. Right

Almost unfailingly there are two ways of doing things: Easy and Right. Rarely the twain shall meet. Usually the easiest solution to a problem is not Right. Likewise, the right solution is typically not Easy.

So when I see an educator doing whatever it takes to make her ensemble sound good, at first I am impressed with her commitment to quality. Then I pause and examine the situation. What is the teacher doing to ensure the quality of the performance.? Are any shortcuts taking place? Is the teacher writing in fingerings or bowings for the student? Is she ignoring the weaker students' performance in order to concentrate on the strongest students? Is she using an expansive repertoire, or playing the same two or three songs all semester long? Is she using body language to hint the students towards a quality performance, or actually training the students to follow a conductor?

These are often difficult questions to face but easy to answer. The pressure to create a quality performance from parents, adminstration, and even students is often great. But the teacher should remember that the student is best served by being taught the Right way to approach music, not the Easy way. In time, with patience and perserverance, the Right way will produce consistent quality year after year, as opposed to the cheap, reliable quality of Easy.

The O.J. Syndrome

So Phil Spector was just sentenced to 19-life for murder. The sentence may have been a bit weak, but he will almost surely die in jail, much like fellow celebrity murder O.J. Simpson. The saddest truths of this whole ordeal are the dead woman and how terrible her poor family must feel right now.

But there's another sad truth, less visceral, but certainly more significant culturally. The fact remains that Spector, irregardless of his brutal crime and obvious lack of remorse, is one of the greatest musical minds of all time. There may have never been a more influential or important producer in the history of popular music. There's even a name for the distinctive art he created - "Wall of Sound". I guarantee you can not name another producer with a style so unique that there is a recognized name for it.

O.J. Simpson was one of the greatest running backs ever, but killed his ex-wife and her friend. Pete Rose has more hits than any other baseball player ever, but bet on baseball games, including ones he played in (and managed!). Kennedy cheated on his wife and didn't even try to hide it, Clinton did it and lied about it to Congress, and more legendary musicians have died of drug overdoses than I can possibly begin to name in this post.

Back to sad truths. The sad truth of the "O.J. Syndrome" is that, although these icons do disgraceful, violent, or criminal deeds, their contributions to their fields can and should not be ignored or minimized. The reason - the terrible acts did not affect the integrity of their work.

This is different than steroids in baseball. Although arguably less disgraceful, and certainly less violent or criminal than those I mentioned earlier, baseball players who take steroids seriously undermine the integrity of their accomplishments, and even the game of baseball itself.

My point is that although Phil Spector is not to be respected, admired, or even looked upon as a human being, his work should be held up as some of the greatest pop music ever created. Minimizing that work would be disrespecting the artists who collaborated with him, the music it helped spawn, the many great musicians who were inspired by him. It would also serve as an obstacle towards progress in our field.

Just remember that although the world is worse for having O.J. in it, football is better for it.

I Can't Hear the Lyrics

That's the biggest problem with modern sound engineering. I can't hear the lyrics (or myself think, for that matter). "Clear" has given way to "loud", even in instances where "loud" is not genre-appropriate.

If I attend a Nine Inch Nails concert (have I fully dated myself yet?), I expect "loud". I probably require "loud", as that has become the standard for electronica/industrial. But what if I attend a Paul Simon concert? "Loud" becomes a detriment to the quality of sound. In this case, "loud" is no longer appropriate. "Clear" is appropriate. I want to hear every lyric, breath, and vocal nuance. That is part of the performance.

So why is everything "loud" now? Same reason everything is "salty" now, as opposed to "delicious". It is easy to train sound engineers for "loud". It just requires a clockwise twist of a knob (okay, knob? now I have dated myself even further back).

It is much more difficult to train a sound engineer for "clear". It requires a deeper understanding of technology, physics, and music. It requires hard work and experience. It requires loving music as opposed to loving the arcane technologica of sound.

So, next time I see a folk, light rock, or oldies band in concert, on Saturday Night Live, or on Jimmy Kimmel, I will hope to hear "clear". And expect to hear "loud".

Sugarband?

Would there be any interest in a performance of Joe Elefante & the Sugarband?

Boycott Yankee Stadium

Until they fix the traffic/parking situation there. $90/ticket to sit in 2hrs-30mins of traffic (mostly because of blocked off roads and rude, incompetent police officers), to get to the garage where we pre-paid, for them to tell us that our spot is only guaranteed until 30 minutes before game time. It was 28 minutes before game time. We were turned away.

By the way, that stadium was more than half-built with tax-payer/municipal-bond money.

How America Can Stay on Top

I may be "socially liberal", whatever that means, but the truth is I am a blind, raging patriot. I believe the U.S. is the greatest country in the world and has been since its inception. I also have a strong desire for it to remain the greatest country in the world for as long as possible.

Which is why I'm concerned about the state of education in this country. For 233 years we've been sending our children to school seven hours per day, five days a week for 10 months a year and, for most of those 233 years, that's been more than enough to create a nation of productive citizens.

The problem we now encounter is that other countries in the world aren't following that model anymore. In most of Asia, children are in school nine hours per day, six days a week for 12 months a year. The result? The most productive workers in the most productive sector in our country, Silicon Valley, were mostly born in Asian nations. And, no, Wall Street is not the most productive sector in our country. The only thing Wall Street makes is money, and we're only beginning to see how unsustainable that business is.

I can begin to hear the groans of the teachers reading this post. But at some point, if we don't drastically change our public education strategy, we will lose our competitive advantage. It's so simple it's scary. We don't need children working on their family farms in the summer anymore. We need to take money that's going to bail out Wall Street billionaires and over-extended homeowners and install central air-conditioning in our public schools, so our students can study year-round.

If you don't think this plan can work READ THIS.

If you wonder why I'm posting this on a music education blog, read this excerpt from the KIPP website:

KIPP offers a rigorous, college preparatory education. Because of the longer school day, week, and year, KIPP students benefit not only from extra time in core subjects such as math and reading, but more instruction in courses such as social studies and science, as you mentioned.

Each KIPP school operates autonomously, and therefore each principal has the freedom to design his or her own curriculum. Along with a focus on core academics, KIPP teachers also have time to include extra-curriculars such as art, music, and physical education. Some schools also offer unique elective classes in areas such as entrepreneurship.

One of the reasons that KIPP is successful is because of what we call the “joy factor.” In order to motivate kids to be in school for the KIPP extended day, there needs to be an extra hook in there to keep them interested. At KIPP, teachers often use techniques such as singing, chanting, and movement to make classroom lessons engaging. By making learning both relevant and fun, teachers greatly improve their ability to reach students.

At KIPP, we are not only trying to develop better students but also better citizens as our kids head off to college and life beyond. School culture is something that begins from the first day at KIPP, and is the “be nice” part or our “Work Hard, Be Nice” philosophy. We measure success not only by increased test scores but also by how students relate to the world and the kinds of citizens they become.

The Times Article

So I've been thinking a lot today about the article I referred to in my previous post. I'm thinking the second-to-last paragraph really just sums it up:

“Losing a major jazz festival kind of tells the world that maybe this music isn’t marketable,” said Joel Chriss, a booking agent whose roster includes Randy Brecker and Freddy Cole. “It’s potentially dangerous.”

It is dangerous. But it doesn't have to be all that bad. It reminds me of my post on 3/13, rather appropriately named "Jazz Is Dead?".

Read the quote from Chris Shields, the new owner of Festival Productions:

“This business plan can succeed, absolutely,” he said. “You’ve seen it succeed in the promotions business, you’ve seen it happen in sports, you’ve seen it happen in management. We by no means have given up.”

Mr. Shields's enthusiasm is commendable, and he must really love the music to want to take on this project. But any business person seeking to reap financial benefit from jazz music at this point in its commercial cycle is not seeing things very clearly. I'm not sure what Mr. Shields's business plan is, but if includes making money from jazz music, he's way, way off base.

Earlier in the article he speaks about getting corporate sponsors. I am sure there are many companies that would love to sponsor the JVC Festival. But running a festival in New York is really, really expensive. To get the big name artists that would attract big money costs big money. Successful artists rightfully want to be paid well for producing their art. But the demand for jazz artists is too low to command that money.

People's attitudes have to shift. We need to change what this industry stands for. There is simply less money to be made. We have to face that fact. Anybody that's in this business for the money should find something more lucrative, so those of us that are in it because we have no choice, because we cannot bring ourselves to do anything else, because we are 100% addicted to this business can make what little money is left in the new music industry.

Jazz can still exist as museum music. But first we need people to stop trying to get rich by making it. When that happens, maybe we will once again have a JVC Jazz Festival. For now, we will be forced to listen to our pirated Joe Lovano records.

A Sad Day for Music

So George Wein sold Festival Productions, and now there's no JVC Jazz Festival in N.Y.C. anymore. What a shame.

The Times article

P2P Fair Use?

By the way, if you're into boring, academic arguments about copyright law (like me), check out this article from ars technica. If not, ignore this post. :o)

Hooray for Kenny Chesney

By the way, did you hear that Kenny Chesney just gave a free concert in Dallas for ticket-holders of a rain-shortened concert earlier this month. Apparently he was under no legal obligation to do so, paid for the concert with his own money, and even did an extra long show for the audience.

This is exactly what I've been talking about. Hooray for Kenny Chesney! Hooray for integrity! Hooray for live music!

No, No, No, You've Got It All Wrong!

So Billboard.biz just did a fascinating study on how to replace the income lost in the free-fall of CD sales. The analysis and the math are sound and compelling. The conclusion is way off base.

Glenn Peoples, the author of the article on Billboard.biz recommends "a piecemeal collection of marketing and pricing strategies, multi-rights contracts and performance royalties paid to the owners of sound recordings. Also on the horizon are revenues from multi-rights contracts (currently immaterial but expected to be of consequence in a few years), in-house artist services, and acquisitions or market share gains in music publishing."

No offense is intended to Mr. Peoples, who is a very intelligent, informed, and interesting writer. But instead of figuring out how to make more money with music, why aren't we trying to figure out how to make more music without money? In my opinion, that is a much more interesting and fruitful discussion.

As more independent musician services surface, more artists and managers farm out more services to specialty music industry boutiques, and more artists do more business for themselves, this author is trying to figure out ways to further consolidate the power into the hands of the mammoth corporate music execs. Luckily it's a lost cause.

WOW

I found this article super-interesting. The long and short of is that the people of my generation (and younger) prefer to steal music, listen to it for a little while, and then throw it away, as opposed to own and keep music in their collections. It is all part of what the author, Kyle Bylin, refers to as a "throwaway culture".

I had never considered this, as I have always preferred to own music. Maybe I like to think of myself as being more careful about the music I allow myself to like. Which, as I reread that sentence, sounds pretty arrogant, if not downright stupid.

How, if it all, does this cultural shift affect your opinions about how to monetize recorded music?

Relevancy of Major Labels

Here is an interesting debate on the relevancy of major labels, hosted by Music Ally.

My Big Mouth

I am realizing this blog has become a channel for my rants again.

Grumpy readers :o(

I would like to take this opportunity to welcome any suggestions for forum topics from you.

Thanks.

Live Music and the New Economy

Okay, so I fear that what's getting lost in all of the discussion about the record industry is the role that live music plays in the Facebook era. This is a frightening thought. Interest in live music has been trending downward at a ridiculous pace for the past 25 years. As the entertainment options in people's homes grow exponentially, the amount of disposable income thins, and peoples' general affinities for cultural activity wane, this trend will only balloon higher for the foreseeable future.

I considered trying to gather industry information on live concerts and festivals, etc., so on and so forth, but take it from someone who has made his living performing live for over a decade - the majority of live performance takes place "under the table". Statistics are useless to me. I see it every day, month over month, year over year. Virtually no one makes a living as a performer anymore.

The niche market I described in my last post may play a role in reversing this trend. No matter how efficient web marketing and digital distribution become, there is no substitute for building a fan base the old-fashioned way - on the streets and in the clubs, playing for avid live music fans.

These fans, almost quaint in their loyalty to the culture, are what Seth Godin would call the biggest "sneezers" in our field. Sneezers are the fans that always seem to be at the forefront of the market. More importantly, they are the fans that delight in preaching their knowledge to the broader, more tepid fan base. These fans may end up being the catalyst for a live music revolution.

Think about this - if more artists achieve success on the fringe of the industry as a result of the Democratization of Culture, there will more artists with the fan base, resources, and impetus to perform live. And, via the benefit of sneezers, more people will be inspired to experience these live performances for themselves - you know, see what all the sneezing is about.

This all brings me back to an idea I can't quite shake. It is not entirely clear where, if anywhere, big money is to be made with music in the new economy. New, highly profitable models may not ever arise. But I see the overall benefit to the arts and cultural awareness as being undeniable - and undeniably good for a society starved for quality.

Piracy and the Long Tail

Okay, for those of you who have not read The Long Tail by Chris Anderson, check it out. The brief synopsis, if that's ever possible, is that although there will always be big hits in any industry, the new economy dictates that a substantial part of the market will be the countless niche successes online collaboration creates. This concept is irrefutable.

Yet many refute. Their argument has been that hits continue to be the primary driver of revenue in the record industry. This concept is also irrefutable.

The problem is that it's beside the point. A recent study by PRS of Music argues that the most pirated music on the internet is the biggest hits. I'm not sure who paid these geniuses to conduct a study with such an obvious result, but they sure didn't get their money's worth.

Of course the biggest hits are the most pirated songs on the internet. Any other conclusion would have made no sense at all. Anyone who argues that corporate-owned television outlets, radio stations, and record labels are no longer the primary forces of music distribution is severely overstating the effects of a trend.

The good news is that the trend is inescapable, and it is picking up steam. The more file-sharing sites, music discovery platforms, and D.I.Y. music marketing outlets that pop up every day, the less significant the power of mass media over popular opinion becomes.

In defense of the PRS study, they do admit that more niche music has been discovered on the web than would have been otherwise. As this trend continues, these niche markets will constitute a bigger and bigger piece of the economic puzzle, and will be impossible to ignore on a mass scale.

The point I'm trying to make is that the afore-mentioned refuters above have missed the whole point of The Long Tail. And watch out, world - like it or not, the Democratization of Culture is on its way.

Elefante on Squidoo

I just built a Squidoo lens around the theme of this blog. It has a feed of this page, a list of some of the other music blogs I follow, and some materials I have found helpful in my study of the music industry past, present, and future.

I hope you can stop by @

The New Music Industry

Thanks again for reading.

Three-Strikes Vote

So the French Senate has enacted a law designed to punish those who infringe on digital rights. The law enables the French feds to gather personal data from internet service providers and suspend violators' internet access for up to a year. The most disturbing thing about this law is that its prime supporters were artists and music executives.

Once again, the music industry is finding every which to way to litigate against its biggest fans. In any other industry, this is considered bad business.

Wynton Takes the Plunge

Wynton Marsalis is the latest artist to abandon the majors for an indie.

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3i641dc7e691e8df84d11ba5afd11d0aff

Answers to My Own Questions

I thought all night and morning about yesterday's late post, and...

1) I'm not sure about the future of music retail, or if it will exist at all. If it does, I think subscription is the way to go. Sure, Zune is getting massacred by IPod, but I think that's because of marketing, design, and platform. The economics swing heavily towards a subscription model and, as we know, economics always wins in the end.

2) The more I think about it, the more I think music does not need to be profitable to be made. Sure, we may lament the loss of the career artist, but if people are not willing to pay? I don't see any other choice.

Here's how it may go down... Right now, publicly-held corporations control the largest share of commercially viable arts products (music, movies, television, theater). Shareholders care only about profit, as is their right, which fuels rises in prices for arts products across the boards. Furthermore, public corporations are tightly regulated by the government and are forced by law to pay certain, often exorbitant wages to unionized employees and contractors. This brings the price up even more.

There has understandably been a vociferous public backlash to this, and technology has made it possible for consumers to avoid these expensive channels for arts distribution. Fortunately, this technology also makes creating these arts products even easier. So as art becomes cheaper to create, people will be able to spend less (or nothing) to consume it. This will force those in the business of creating art to find other ways of generating income for themselves, which, though unfortunate, has a positive side effect.

People will not be creating art for the purpose of making money. Public corporations will deem arts creation as unprofitable and get out of the business all-together. As arts products become free, or substantially less expensive, and technology makes it easier and cheaper to distribute them, more people will have access to them. Which we all can agree is a good thing.

See my post on 4/24

So, back to my purpose for writing this, I believe the arts does not have to be profitable to be made. In fact, I wonder if it will be better off when it isn't.

Debate: The New Music Retail

Do you think it will be subscription, per/download, or some combination? Or will it be some model we haven't thought of?

Something else I've been thinking about - does music have to profitable to be made?

Something else I've been thinking about - as per my post on 5/1, let's make sure we encourage our students to play popular music. Just make sure you seek out the good stuff (I know,it's hard to find). Currently I'm arranging Jason Mraz's "I'm Yours" for middle school jazz band. It's an interesting tune with very sophisticated rhythms and, although the chord structure is very dull, the way he crafts the melody over it is unique and interesting. Also, young male singers could do worse than imitating Mraz's mature, relaxed phrasing. And his intonation is spot-on - kind of a James Taylor for this decade.

Live Nation & Ticketmaster - the Ultimate in Anti-Trust

So Christine Varney, Obama's top U.S. anti-trust official, is giving a speech at the Center for American Progress, a D.C. think-tank lobbying for the Justice Dept. to block the Live Nation-Ticketmaster merger. Varney has been calling for stronger executive authority in prosecuting predatory practices by dominant companies. Let's hope she follows the C.A.P.'s lead in pursuing a block of this dangerous merger.

Live Nation and Ticketmaster are already the two biggest live event ticketing services in the world. A merger would only strengthen their hold on the industry, inevitably driving up fees, which are already outlandish. Everyone loses in this situation. Artists and management, who charge a certain amount per ticket to see the show, see those prices inflated to a ridiculous extent by these exorbitant fees being charged by nothing more than transaction expediters. And I obviously don't have to get into the drawback to potential ticket purchasers.

I hope Ms. Varney pays close attention to this deal, as Live Nation and Ticketmaster are currently the only competition each other has.

The Record Industry Is Dead, Cont.

I got some visceral reactions to my post on April 24. I just found a great blog devoted to this topic, The Official Weblog of Henry Jenkins. He wrote a book called Convergence Culture, which I confess to not having read yet, but has gotten some great reviews.

So before you think I'm crazy, try reading this scholarly take on the subject. I'll do the same, and we'll discuss down the line.

Loudfeed

Here is a great new service for independent musicians. It acts as a website, widget, and shopping cart builder and manager. The best part is that a good chunk of the service is free and the paid subscription is very inexpensive. The service is too new to be able to tell about the quality of the service or the uniqueness of users' web identities, but the concept is spot on. Let me know if you know anyone who uses this service, and if so, what they think of it.

Bushsong

Okay, this is the funniest, most impressive thing I've ever heard. For those of you that don't know Henry Hey, he is a killer musician. But this is off the register.

bushsong

U2 vs. Radiohead

No, it's not a Celebrity Death Match. It's a great discussion about regulation of peer-to-peer music file sharing.

What do you think?

Here I Am

Okay, shameless plug time (I do it so rarely)...

I've just released Here I Am, an eclectic mix of pop, big band, and modern small group jazz. The album features not only the Sugarband, but my wife, Caryn, on vocals, and jazz greats Don Braden, Cecil Broooks III, Freddy Hendrix, Wayne Batchelor, and Matt King. The title track was written by me and Caryn for last year's American Idol songwriting competition. There are also four numbers featuring the Sugarband, including revisits of "Danger" and "I Cry". The remaining five tracks feature various combinations of small jazz groups playing energetic, modern, swinging jazz.

As always, stop by JoeElefante.com for updates and info. Thanks for your consideration!

A New Online Music Store

So, there's been a little buzz about this ThinkIndie.com, which is an interesting idea, and I'm glad they're doing it, but this is a tough sell. What happened was that the Coalition of Independent Music Stores (C.I.M.S., yet another ridiculous acronym) built an online music store to compete with ITunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, and what not. The draw - higher-quality downloads (320 kb), exclusive offerings, and more customer interaction.

These are all interesting concepts, and make the site a viable alternative to ITunes and the Gang. This only works, though, if it remains an alternative, as opposed to a mimic. Let's face it, very few people will be going to this site out of allegiance to independent music stores. My generation holds no such allegiance. They definitely will not be going for the extra ten cents per download, at $1.11, better quality be damned. The vast majority of listeners can not even tell the difference between 256 and 320kb audio.

What this store needs to capitalize on is relationships with customers and independent labels and musicians, much like CDBaby has, but with more of an emphasis on digital downloads, like ITunes. My generation may not be interested in mom-and-pop record stores, but we definitely have a strong sense of community. Indie music fans, in particular, like to feel like they're part of the "scene". If this store can serve as a conduit between music lovers, retailers, independent labels, and musicians, it can fuel that sense of community and generate dialogue between these parties. By offering exclusive music on their site, they can try to corner their own market instead of trying to infringe on the big boys.

If they try to become a major label retailer and compete with ITunes, as they have hinted, they will eliminate their competitive edge, and fail,

The Problem with Blogs Revisited

I find myself often wanting to amend the tone of my posts soon after I publish them. I am a very tolerant person (as you know if you know me), and I have no problem at all with people that write poorly or enjoy reading poor writing. It's a matter of individual preference. I prefer not to read poorly crafted prose, although I often do anyway if the writer in question is privy to information that interests me. So many music blogs fall into this category.

poorly written + interesting information = something I read

I just felt like stating a personal preference in my previous post. Poor writing annoys me. If you don't mind it, by all means... I'm not trying to insult anybody's sensibilities.

The Problem with Blogs

The problem with blogs is that nobody knows how to write. The problem with blogs is that everyone has an opinion, and those opinions are rarely well thought out. The problem with blogs is that they are free to create and easy to maintain, so millions of people that don't know how to write, have insubstantial opinions, and LOVE the sound of their own voices (figuratively) are now saturating the web with grade school drivel under the auspices of expertise.

Nearly every time I read a blog that is not by a professional writer, I find myself unable to take the blog seriously. This is due partly to the unacceptable grammar, syntax, and spelling. (Yes - spelling. Apparently bloggers are too proud or stupid to use spell check.) It is also due partly to the plagiarism, stupidity, and lack of experience, research, or expertise that goes into most opinions in the blogosphere.

I am not a professional writer, and I'm only 30 years old. I may not have the most interesting blog in the world, but I promise you this: You will never find a misspelled word, an incorrect capitalization, or a misplaced comma on this page. And I will never give an opinion that is not substantiated by experience or research, or is at least qualified to the contrary.

If you come back for no other reason, come back for that.

Twitter Part II

Okay, so Seth Godin is obviously a lot more eloquent, thoughtful, and business savvy than I am. Here he is, this morning, saying pretty much exactly what I said on Friday.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/05/friction-saves-the-medium.html

Maybe if someone as widely read and respected as Seth writes it, people will start believing.

I Love This Song

Okay, the video is really stupid, but check out this new song from Per Gessle, the guy from Roxette.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tM63YIFYa4g&feature=related

See? Only Twits Tweet

So, Nielsen did a study on Twitter and found that 60% of users "end up abandoning the service after a month". The reason? Twitter is stupid.

I've been saying this ever since I heard about the service. Does anybody really care about the inane, narcissistic trivialities that people are doing every second of every day? Absolutely not. And because it's so dumb, and everybody knows it, any business that "tweets" (I really hate using that word) is so transparent in its effort to use every medium imaginable to market itself that people can't possibly take it seriously.

Sure, Twitter's crazy right now, but soon enough everything stupid gets destroyed or relegated powerless by the most free market of all - the internet. Musicians - don't put too much stock in this fickle fad. Facebook is the real deal. But only twits tweet.

Talent - What It Is and Where You Can Get It

I was pleased to read David Brooks's article in the Times this morning, because it furthers a concept I've been preaching for a long time. Brooks's article implicitly refers to the concepts set forth in Malcolm Gladwell's besteller Outliers, which I read and, frankly, I don't get the hype. It was interesting enough and very well written, but the buzz about this book is way too loud.

The one concept I really took to in Outliers and Brooks's column is the idea that genius is more due to consistent practice over a long period of time than some prenatal ordination. I speak from personal experience. My whole life, people have tried to tell me that through some miracle of my birth I have been blessed with some rare talent that makes me the musician that I am. Now, there is no doubt that some people are more talented than others, and that is an integral part of their musical acumen. But the idea that someone pops out of the womb with a mission to create music is as ludicrous an idea as I've ever heard. And, honestly, it's pretty myopic and disrespectful to those who have worked their whole lives towards something greater than themselves.

I was blessed with two things, the first being a good amount of musical talent. Far more important to my development as a musician, however, is the fact that my father, a professional musician, introduced me to music at a very young age. From that point, it was up to me. I listened to all the music my father recommended - and then some. A lot of some. I practiced for my piano lesson and, more importantly, played for many, many, many more hours after I was done practicing what my teacher assigned. I expanded my musical taste, listened to everything I could find, and studied music theory on my own.

Contrary to popular opinion, it was hard for me to play by ear when I first started doing it. But I kept doing it - over and over again. I taught myself television themes first. Then pop songs from the radio. Then more sophisticated music like Frank Sinatra and Pavarotti. Then I transcribed simple jazz solos and, gradually, more complex ones.

I played all day, every day, through middle school, high school, college, and after college. Every free moment not spent going to school or making money was spent with music. Even if I was on stage in a musical, I would learn the whole score. Not because I just heard it and magically knew the notes. I took home the score and played through every note, over and over, so when we performed the songs I knew what they looked like on the page.

I started writing music at a very young age. At first, it was mostly copying things I was practicing in my piano lesson. Then I mimicked pop songs and jazz standards. It wasn't long before I was forging my own style as a composer and arranger, but only because I copied so many other composers and arrangers for years first.

I do not say these things to brag. My goal is not to tout my ability, or how hard I've worked to gain that ability. My goal is completely altruistic. I am sure you have music students that are not as talented as others. I know I have. I can't speak for you, but my instinct has always been to not commit as much emotional energy to these students, to not push them to work as hard as the more naturally talented. I never wanted to discourage a student from enjoying playing an instrument by frustrating them or guiding them to view music as hard work.

This is the absolute wrong approach. Gladwell and Brooks, thankfully, have forced me to take stock of my own musical growth and analyze how I learned whatever skills I now possess. I realize that it started with my love for the music my father exposed me to at a young age. I've decided our goal as music educators should be to:

Help your students discover the joy in music. The rest will take care of itself. Sure, you will have to encourage them to practice, and guide them towards what and how to practice, and coach them as to what to listen to/for, and educate their parents on what they can do to help, and give occasional pep talks and motivational speeches. But if your students enjoy music as much as you and I did growing up, even if they are not as talented as some others, they will practice more, play more, listen more, and have more fun with music. And isn't that why music education exists in the first place?

Recovery.gov

Well, I sure hope it gets a little more specific than this.

Though I must admit, those little bubbles are kinda cute.

Shameless Self-Promotion

So Vanity Fair, the big band album I recorded in 2001, is now available for download at Amazon and ITunes. My second album, Here I Am, is on its way to CDBaby as we speak, and will mostly likely be available for purchase in the next week or so, with digital distribution to follow. Stay tuned to joeelefante.com for info.

Why It Isn't Working

Have any of you tried to read the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009," a.k.a. the stimulus bill? I consider myself to be at an above-average literacy level. I try to keep up to date with public policy, and I've always had a decent acumen for math. I looked up this bill to try and decipher what portion of this money is devoted to education, and what that money is intended for.

I can't make sense of this thing for the life of me. No wonder the lines at the post office go out the door, and when you finally get there you know more about postal protocol than the cantankerous clerk, and inevitably one of every ten pieces of mail you send don't get to their destination when the cantankerous clerk assures you it will. Our government is too stinkin' big. There is no flexibility, no accountability, no clarity. And, yet, it seems every time someone who has been successful in the private sector runs for office, we elect the career politician instead.

I don't mean to get overly political, that's not my goal with this blog. My only point is that someone like me should understand how public policy relates to music education. And I don't. I only know anecdotal evidence I hear from teachers, administrators, and e-mail forwards about how much money is there and what it's for.

Obama ran on a platform of government transparency. I'm waiting...

iLike CEO Ali Partovi

This is a great interview with iLike CEO Ali Partovi. I especially dig his response to the third question, as it is consistent with the theme of this blog as of late.

Banging on Things in Caves

By the way, speaking of "banging on things in caves," if you didn't catch "Waking the Baby Mammoth" on the National Geographic channel last night, do it! It's on again on Wednesday.

Second Music Industry? Same as the First!

There were some great comments over the weekend about Thursday and Friday's rants. As usual, I have been reminded that sometimes I make grandiose statements turning complicated concepts into edible five-paragraph models. Obviously I don't know anymore than anyone else about this, except what I see changing before me in my career as a working musician.

Which brings me to today's point - it hasn't changed much. I'm still doing a lot of the same work I was doing twelve years ago, just on a higher level (at least sometimes). Musicians and lovers of music are almost exactly the same today as they were when we started banging on things in caves. But, just like all other industries, the models for production, distribution, and monetization have changed drastically.

Michele asked how the new paradigm I suggest limits what artists are able to produce, and I think it's a GREAT question. The answer - I don't know. I recommend a great article in Fast Company about media mogul McG, and the ways he's trying to gain more control over the production and monetization of his film-making. He's leaving the boring, expensive distribution part up to the record companies and their unending networks. Here is a man with vast resources, but he's just a man. And he's doing exactly what I've been talking about the last five days.

The Record Industry Is Dead, Cont.

Expanding upon what I wrote about yesterday...

The internet and new media are forcing a democratization of culture. No longer does the mass media hold court over the minds of America. Sure, they still have their say, but the times are a-changin', and pretty soon television commercials won't even exist. How else will they tell us what to like? Knock on our doors? Hey, that's actually not a terrible idea. At least we'd finally be having a dialogue as opposed to a monologue.

This will eventually bring on the collapse of the record labels, because that's the only reason they exist anyway, to tell us what to like, especially as the cost of recording music plummets. Now, we musicians are being forced to be performer, engineer, producer, A&R executive, marketer, and salesperson. Which is good! Who's going to work harder for our product than us, ourselves? Nobody, that's who.

This new model creates some fascinating challenges that not everyone will be up to. Again, I can't stress enough how the willingness of music businesspeople to work on spec will play a crucial in shaping the new paradigm. Everyone from the artist, to the photographer, to the cover designer will have to be willing to take a chance on the success of the project they are involved with. Doesn't this create some interesting possibilities? The best graphic designers, producers, and recording engineers will want to work with the best artists, who will want to record the music of the best composers and lyricists, etc...

MUSIC 2.0. Democratization of quality! Eventually only quality work will be brought to the fore, as artistic people will be in charge of determining what is worthwhile, NOT businesspeople. And all of this quality work will be weighted equally on the internet with all the other quality work, and music lovers, who have been so starved for quality over the past couple of decades, will rush to embrace this new paradigm and the fabulous music it creates. For free.

And don't tell me this is an outlandish possibility. Doesn't this scenario basically define the world wide web?

Feel free to cut and paste this scenario onto movies, television, and any other popular forms of culture. It feels good.

The Record Industry Is Dead

I love this theme! Every so often I'm going to declare something dead. It's so dramatic and obtuse.

So, what will take the place of the current record industry? Obviously recorded music is here to stay, even if no one makes any money on it. So how do artists/labels capitalize on records?

What if records were viewed merely as a marketing tool to get people to purchase concert tickets, merchandise, or licensing? Companies do this all the time. They spend time and money making things that are free in order to market something else. Supermarkets send coupon mailers to get people into the store. Not only do they make less money on coupon transactions, but it costs time and money to make and send those mailers.

There are ways for labels to mitigate those costs. First of all, they don't need to print nearly as many CDs. Most people download music today anyway, and many more would start downloading if it were free (or at least legally free). So the printing, shipping, and marketing costs are going to be far lower than they are now.

Some people still listen to CDs. Labels could have stands set up in stores that share their target audience. Singer-songwriter CDs could be available at Starbucks, country CDs at Walmart, dance music at nightclubs, etc. All free of charge.

What if everyone who worked on the CD was paid on spec and only got paid once a certain threshold was hit in other, more profitable revenue centers? Or made a small percentage of profits?

What if labels sold targeted advertising on CD cases?

What if in exchange for downloading music, record companies were given permission to market live performances, merchandise, and other artists' music to those customers?

I'm sure there are many more ideas I'm not thinking of. But people are going to get music for free anyway. Instead of making it harder for them, make it easier for them. And gain something from it.

Unique New York

Seth Godin had a very interesting post yesterday about the difference between being a market leader and trying to gain share from a market leader. It got me thinking about industries, concepts, and ideas where there is only one viable option. For example, it's much different now, but when I was a kid, if you wanted fast Mexican food you went to Taco Bell. End of story. I'm sure you can think of examples in politics as well. McCarthy cornered the market on the fear of the spread of Communism in post-war America, just as Taco Bell did in their heyday.

Building on Seth's point, if you are the only one in the market, you don't even have to fend off the competition trying to gain share from you. Your only job is to delight the people who already love what you do, and maybe convert some new ones.

This applies to music and the arts more than anywhere. Obviously the Beatles were the only Beatles, Sinatra was the only Sinatra, Michael Jackson was the only Michael Jackson - you get the point. Let's even forget the icons for a moment. The truly remarkable and indelible artists are the ones who are the only option.

Think about Radiohead - Radiohead was nowhere near as popular as Jewel when they were in their heyday in 1997. The difference is that Jewel is exactly like every other artist who is like Jewel, and Radiohead is exactly like Radiohead. They cornered the market. That's why over a decade after OK Computer sold a fraction the number of units as Pieces of You, we're still talk ing about Radiohead and Jewel is on Dancing with the Stars. Except that she never made even made it onto the show, which wasn't even a news story, which if we she was a real celebrity would be all over the internet and gossip mags.

By the way, perhaps it would be useful now to hearken back to the other artists who were all over the radio in 1997 - No Doubt, The Cardigans, Sugar Ray, Smash Mouth, Chumbawumba, The Spice Girls, Hanson, The Wallflowers, Meredith Brooks, Third Eye Blind, Paula Cole, Robyn, OMC, Shawn Colvin, The Verve Pipe... you get the point. Gwen Stefani (original) is a mega-star. Smash Mouth and the Spice Girls could arguably be said to still have careers, but the Spice Girls fall into a different category (see next paragraph).

I know what you're thinking - "But, Joe, Britney Spears is more popular today than ever, and she is as unoriginal as it gets!" That's true. But Britney Spears is not a musician. Britney Spears is a celebrity. Being a celebrity doesn't require originality - in fact, usually that's a hindrance.

Point being - Musicians: be what nobody else is, and you will corner the market.

Earth Day

I try to stay out of "issues" but, heck, it's Earth Day. I am quite convinced that climate change is a crisis far greater than any economic or cultural one we currently face. Al Gore and the folks at the Alliance for Climate Protection say it a lot better than I do. So here is a link to wecansolveit.org, a non-partisan (notice I did not say bi-partisan) organization dedicated to solving the climate change issue. Thanks for taking the time.

http://www.wecansolveit.org/content/pages/60/

No One Cares

Music industry big-wigs are short-sighted, greedy, out of touch, stubborn, and litigious. But they are not stupid. If they find a formula for making money, they will find a way to milk that formula for all it's worth, until it runs dry.

We had a great comment on yesterday's post. The commenter (I wish I knew who you were) made a great point about Britain's Got Talent producers' intentions for putting Susan Boyle on that stage. The point is that there's always an intention, a purpose, an ulterior motive. It's so obvious that everyone in the world can see it.

Yet no one cares.

Almost everybody I know thinks American Idol is about as legitimate as professional wrestling, myself included. And, lo, every Tuesday and Wednesday our butts are pasted to the couch and eyes glued to the screen to watch this singer surprise us with her song choice, or this judge make some condescending jibe, or gasp in stunned amazement at "America's" poor voting choices.

Why does no one care?

Again, read my post from yesterday. That's why no one cares. Because we want to believe it so bad, that we convince our better judgments that they are wrong, wrong, wrong, this nobody can become somebody by showing up at an audition and a bunch of short-sighted, greedy, out of touch, stubborn, and litigious music industry executives will let the American people decide who will be on their national television program every week.

Back to Susan Boyle. I think most intelligent people, in their hard of hearts, believe that Britain's Got Talent's producers wanted Boyle on that stage for some reason or another. Yet no one cares. For the very same reason.

I love fiction. I'm an avid reader, and I like movies as much as much as the next guy. Getting lost in fiction is a truly beautiful thing, and very unique to the human experience. The problem is when fiction is presented as truth, and we get so lost in it we forget it's a lie. Shame on us.

Much Ado about Nothing

Okay, so by now I'm assuming just about the entire world has seen Susan Boyle, the 47 year-old church singer from Britain's Got Talent, on You Tube??? Boyle is older, not very attractive, and untrained. The world has been spellbound by this unlikely star with a pleasant-enough singing voice and atypical apathy towards her appearance.

There's only one problem - she doesn't sing very well.

I mean, she's okay. Like I said, her voice is pleasant enough. Her pitch and tone are inconsistent, her vibrato is forced and too fast, and she phrases way too far in front the beat. My submission is that there are many frumpy old spinsters worldwide who sing at least as well as Boyle (many of whom sing at church, I would imagine). They've just never been on Britain's Got Talent.

We love the underdog - Susan Boyle, Lance Armstrong, Barack Obama. When they succeed, it makes us feel that success is possible for any of us. Which it is. But Susan Boyle reminded us that it is not the mass media that chooses our heroes (like many believe is the case with Obama). Even on the internet, the most democratic of media, Boyle was canonized as a populist icon.

There's only one problem. She doesn't sing very well.

But is that the point? What do you think?

"Rush" Season

So it's about that time where the elementary school students decide which instruments to play next year. And the important thing is not which instruments they choose but that they choose one at all. So if you are a parent of a 3rd-5th grader, or teach 3rd-5th graders, or are doing instrument demos, just remember my favorite line from Mr. Holland's Opus - "You can cut the arts all you want, but pretty soon these kids won't have anything to read or write about".

Social Networking

Who has time, right? Just for laughs, ever since I've joined my family's music store, I've been experimenting with some social networking, and most of it accomplishes nothing other than being fun.

If you get a minute, check out www.squidoo.com/whatareyoureading. I have 6 Squidoo "lenses" so far, but that one exists only for the sake of my curiosity (for the rest, check out www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/joeelefant). Or www.linkedin.com/in/joeelefante. If you are a LinkedIn member, go ahead and add me to your network. Facebook member? Put Elefante Music into the search query. I admit it, I'm not good at Facebook at all, so if any of you have any experience with Facebook business page admin, I'd appreciate the advice.

I've also been futzing with sites like Digg, Delicious, and LastFM, so visit me there if you get a minute (I know some of you already have). All these links are on the right side of this page. After all, social networking is no fun if you don't have any friends to network with.

Coming Up

This summer I will be teaching workshops in Jazz, Musical Theater, Jazz History, and Composition/Arranging at Elefante Music in New Providence, NJ. If you would like to attend (or know anyone who might), please contact Stefani at (908) 464-5928 or shealey@elefantemusic.com.

Keep your eyes peeled... my new recording, Here I Am, will be available in the next few weeks. Here I Am is an eclectic mix of pop, big band, and small group recordings with all-world artists like my wife, Caryn, Don Braden, Freddie Hendrix, Bruce Williams, Wayne Batchelor, Cecil Brooks III, Matt King, and the Sugarband in all its glory!

Juilliard Curtails Program That Serves Poor Children

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/08/arts/music/08juil.html

Reasons, Cont.

Okay, so we finally got some comments for cryin' out loud. Let's keep it going.

Paul's questions are great, for those who haven't read them. And he raises some more implicitly. Let's assume your whys are no longer valid. You make new whys. Paul is using the skills he mastered in college to do something progressive, unique, and meaningful. He is making money, helping people, and doing something that yields tangible results. That is more than many of us can say, am I right?

Or is it? Think about what you do. Can you invent new whys? My guess is you can. Are these new whys as valid as your old ones? My guess is yes.

If your answer to either question is "no", then you probably aren't looking hard enough. If you are, can you make what you do progressive, unique, and meaningful?

Reasons

Do you ever stop and think about why you do what you do? I find myself doing things all the time without really having a good reason. For instance, my career in general - why music? In the past I've given myself feel-good, new-agey reasons like "I didn't choose music, music chose me" (which, in all honesty, was told to me by somebody once, but now for the life of me I can't remember who it was - if it was you, I'm really sorry, but at least I still remember it, right? mission accomplished). Truth is, I don't remember exactly why I chose it. In fact, there are at least a dozen or two reasons why I wish I hadn't (I won't go into those here - maybe tomorrow...). But I did, and here we are, and now I can't imagine doing anything else. Good choice, Joe.

Or what about this blog? Look, I have an Analytics account - I know how many people read this. But my reasons for writing these posts are purely selfish. I love doing it. Writing helps me organize my ideas, and the fact that even some people read it leads me to believe, true or not, that what I have to write occasionally entertains or helps somebody.

Back to my point. Do you think the "why" matters? Well, of course it does. But my "whys" only matter to me. I have my reasons, and I think they're good enough. Why did the Steves create Apple? Did they want to be rich? Did they want to create something earth-shattering and eternal? Did they even have a reason? Of course they did. But the answer may not be what we're expecting, or for that matter even much to us. For that matter, their reasons may have been different from each other.

What are your reasons for doing what you do? Care to share? I'm interested - really.

What Do These People Have in Common?

Black Eyed Peas, Lauryn Hill, Lizz Wright, Dave Matthews Band, Steely Dan, and Marianne Faithful...

Hint: They're sure not jazz musicians.

Then why are they the line-up at the 2009 Montreux Jazz Festival? I know Montreux has always had popular artists at the festival (e.g., last year had Paul Simon, Joan Baez, and Alicia Keys, and 2005 had Alice Cooper and Crosby, Stills and Nash), but this is getting stupid. Black Eyed Peas?

You know, jazz musicians don't even get their own thing anymore. Which is why they have to make one themselves. No Claude Nobs, charging $185.17 for three concerts at the bunk venue or $3244.86 for the two-week all access in Switzerland.

No, jazz needs a re-thinking, a re-tooling. Jazz needs a niche. There need to be lower price points, more venues, and more opportunities for younger musicians creating fresh, new music to reach a broader audience.

A forward-looking jazz artist will never sell as many records or concert tickets or t-shirts as the Black Eyed Peas. But that doesn't mean that there is not some sustainable way to stop this music from becoming just a volume in music history.

A Web in More Ways than One

So I was just on LinkedIn, and I was reminded of how much I love the "people you may know" portal in the upper-right corner. More often than not, there's someone I know on that list, and BAM!, I have a new connection.

Far more interesting to me, though, is when the person recommended is NOT someone I know, but a friend of a friend. That person becomes an indicator of the circles my friend is running in, which deepens my familiarity and comfort with that friend.

Even more interesting is when the person is not someone I know, but is a friend of two DIFFERENT friends from DIFFERENT circles of life. For example, one person that was just recommended to me is a friend of someone who used to work for my father's company and someone I went to high school with.

How eerie... Imagine how many of the people we encounter on a daily basis are one "degree" removed from our circle of connections. I use the word degree intentionally in order to call to mind the "Six Degrees of Separation" theory that has gained such prominence.

Nowhere can this theory be applied more exhaustively than the internet. In fact, I wonder how one could organize a web portal devoted to the sole purpose of exploring this topic. A site like Facebook (or LinkedIn, for that matter) comes close, but those sites serve other purposes. It doesn't make sense for most people to use those sites to gauge their social reach.

Just think how small the world would become if this theory could be tested not with a small or even immense group of people (which has been done many times, hence the "six degrees" number) but with every human being with access to the internet. I know I would like to see how I get to whom - and how that information could be used to make truly remarkable changes in the world.

Last FM

Be my friend on Last FM... It's actually a pretty incredible (free) service that reads what's on your IPod and builds a library of music that you listen to. You can, of course, modify that library. Not only can you listen to streaming feeds of individual artists (and artists like them), but you can listen to a stream of artists from your entire library on one "station".

Furthermore, the site reads who is in your library and recommends artists for you to listen to. I have not only discovered new artists this way, but have often been reminded of artists I've forgotten about. (Yesterday I literally said to myself, "Oh, yeah, Mike and the Mechanics..")

Great site. For a few bucks a month you get can some additional services too, but so far I've seen no reason to subscribe.

Heroes

Whom do you view as the heroes of your field? I look at somebody like Quincy Jones as having about the most exciting career I can imagine. His work in every capacity of music creation has been second to none. He has performed, composed, arranged, and produced with the highest level of artist in every genre imaginable. He has been instrumental in education and outreach worldwide, and has turned the "behind-the-scenes" role in music into something of a mini-celebrity.

In short, he has reminded the world that there is more to music than the pretty face singing the song. He has given the music depth, significance, and personality. That is no small feat in an era where the artistic aspect of music seems inconsequential, if not completely invisible.

Who is your hero?

Why Not?

Apply to a college out of your "reach"?

Try to submit your demo to NBC Universal?

Make a cold call to a Fortune 500 company?

Start a blog and just start writing?

Write a Symphony? Opera? Musical?

Learn a new language?

Master a craft?

Why not?

There is always a reason not to do something, and it is always easy to think of. It is usually "Why bother?"

There many more reasons to actually do something, and they are harder to think of. Take the time to write them down. I think you will be surprised by their power.

Star Ledger Scholarship

So this morning I head over to participate in day two of the Star Ledger Scholarship auditions over at the NJPAC. The prizes vary in size, but the top prize essentially pays for a four-year college education. I have had the opportunity to play with some great students over the last couple days! Congrats to everyone who auditioned.

The NJPAC offered the students a free rehearsal with me Friday afternoon. Nearly all of them took advantage of this. For the few who didn't, well, it showed at the audition. My only question is - "Why?".

Now, I understand that there are often extenuating circumstances. But if the reason is apathy or a school commitment, this is unforgiveable. Why hamstring yourself? Why put yourself at a disadvantage for such an important opportunity? Those who know me know I would never recommend bailing on sports practice or school musical rehearsal. But this is different. College paid for in full? This concept is almost ludicrous in its rarity and generosity. This should trump nearly every excuse a student could think of to give me.

I hate to dwell on the negative. Again, to those who auditioned - great job! It was really pleasure getting to know you and helping you in your audition. And many thanks to the NJPAC, Star Ledger, and Newark public school teachers for putting this program together.

Renaissance

President Obama's Chief-of-Staff, Rahm Emanuel, said he doesn't like to let a crisis go to waste. Only a politician would actually say something like that out loud during the worst economic conditions in 70 years. But let's roll with it for a minute.

Anybody who tells you money can't buy happiness doesn't have any. Maybe money can't buy love, but it can buy fun, comfort, security, peace of mind, and even an education. That sure sounds like happiness to me.

The problem is when people try do derive all of their happiness from money. It's just shallow. And in this economic climate, folks that used to derive happiness from cars, clothes, televisions, and big houses can't do that any more. In fact, they'll probably never be able to do that again. That level of spending was unsustainable.

Fairly soon this country will have to come to grips with the fact that we are going to have to adopt a more European economic model. The poor will be less poor, the rich will be less rich, taxes will be very high, and people will have less stuff and smaller houses to put them in.

Which is great! In fact, maybe, just maybe, we can adopt a European cultural model as well. There's a lot of talk in this economic climate about returning to the simple things. Let's return to a sense of culture.

We have the greatest country in the world, there is absolutely no doubt about that. But we've forgotten about the arts. That being said, I don't think it's the government's responsibility to remind us (Sure, a little funding for arts programs in schools would be great, but that's a discussion for another time).

No, it's our responsibility as artists and teachers to lead this renaissance. Let's not let a crisis go to waste. Let's get people (young people, especially) energized about music, theater, dance, visual arts, etc. Without six-figure jobs on Wall Street to encapsulate their lives after college (or during, for that matter), maybe they can actually save some time and energy for the things that really matter. Not money, or power, or prestige, but quality time, with family, enjoying all the culture this great country has to offer.

The Pigeon Hole

So this morning I received the tragic news that Zac Efron (High School Musical 1-3, Hairspray) will not be starring in the new Footloose movie. It seems he doesn't feel that starring in another movie-musical would be a good idea for his career.

I totally get this. A year ago I left the Jersey Boys tour partly because I didn't want to be thought of as "The Road Guy", you know, the type of musician who only gets called for tours. I don't purport to speak for Zac Efron, but I imagine he doesn't want to be thought of as "The Movie-Musical Guy".

My question is: why not? Efron is an exceptionally talented young movie-musical star. He is not an exceptional actor, singer or dancer, but he's very good at all three. Why is he trying to be an actor? At that point, unless I'm missing something (which is possible), he ceases to become exceptional. He then becomes just another good-looking, talented actor.

Efron should maybe look to Hugh Jackman as a role model. Jackman is not afraid to be "The Hollywood Blockbuster/Broadway Musical/Awards Show Host Guy". Which makes him exceptional.

Meanwhile, in the grand tradition of George Burns, Dudley Moore, and Judge Reinhold, look forward to seeing Zac in yet another "I am an old person stuck in a young person's body" movie. Coming soon to a theater near you.

CDBaby

I guess I think a lot about the business of music over the weekend. Last Monday I posted an ode to the creator of Pandora as a model for making money in a "dying" industry. This week, I feel compelled to tell you about my experience with CDBaby.

Those of you who read this blog regularly have been forced to listen to my self-absorbed rants about bad customer service and annoying bureaucracy. Well, today I've to decided to tell you about a positive experience I've had in the past couple of weeks.

I haven't been actively selling my big band album, Vanity Fair, for several years now, mostly because people stopped buying it after the big Nightline/Wall Street push. A couple of weeks ago, I decided to list Vanity Fair on CDBaby, a site that helps independent musicians get their music "out there". I was shocked right away - could this be for real? A miniscule, $35 membership fee allows me to list as many CDs as I want (as long as they are packaged professionally), and $20/each gets each album a distinct barcode, traditionally a $75 investment at the least. They also take a small amount off the top of each record they sell, which is fine with me, because they're not selling out of my father's music store anyway.

At prices like these, this site has to be a sham, or least ineffective, right? Wrong. I've already moved product, and for no charge they've already sent my album to Amazon and ITunes for digital distribution, with other sites like Rhapsody and Napster coming soon.

Meanwhile, I had a customer service problem last week (it turns out I had accidentally created two accounts, and was logging into the wrong account to access my information, not an easy problem to diagnose!), and the company responded to my e-mail within a day. When the e-mail did not solve the problem, a knowledgeable rep WITH POWER TO FIX MY PROBLEM called me on my cell phone to inform me of his diagnosis and the steps I should take to correct the problem.

Why is this concept so hard for other companies to grasp? Offer excellent products at reasonable prices and be responsive to your customers. You may initially get clipped at the margin, but at least you will have and, more importantly, keep your customers.

Four Different Paths

So, I was thinking... companies generally follow one of four paths:

1) Nondescript, non-remarkable - Most companies (even very successful ones) are built this way. They are well-run, efficient, and sell a product or service that satisfies a demand. They may have great ideas, great marketing, and even great products.

I'm more interested in paths 2-4.

2) One Product - These companies were built on the success of one incredible, ground-breaking product. They perhaps have moved on to make many more great products, but the company exists solely because one day they created a product that no one could have imagined and everyone wanted. Classic example - Coke. Modern example - Research in Motion's Blackberry.

3) Revolution - These companies completely changed the way business was done in their industry, forcing all others to scramble to catch up. Inevitably, no one ever does. Classic example - McDonald's. Modern example - Amazon.

4) One Person - These companies are extremely rare. These companies were built on the genius of one person. This genius was so pervasive and timeless that it fostered a culture on which all future success is built, long after that person leaves the company. Classic example - Disney. Modern example - only time will tell, but my vote goes to Apple.

Every so often, there is a company that combines 2, 3, and 4. One (or two) people come along, create an earth-shattering product, build a market where none existed, and create an environment where this success will be recreated indefinitely. Classic example - Ford. Modern example - again, only time will tell. But I can't get the name Google out of my head.

Just something I've been thinking about.

Into the Woods

This week I'll be conducting Madison High School's production of Into the Woods. My wife, Caryn, is the director. The show is great, if you get a chance some and see us.

Those that know me know I'm not a big fan of most musical theater. Then again, I'm not a fan of most music. I guess that seems strange... but I don't see it that way.

I'm not a music snob. I enjoy mindless 80s pop as much as the next person. But is it strange to be selective about the music you enjoy? I submit "no".

Woods is not a typical work of musical theater. There are shades of avant-guarde classical music, classic music theater, and jazz. The construction is sophisticated, the rhyme-schemes are ingenious, and the tunes are catchy as hell, but not in that I-wanna-slit-my-wrists kind of way.

My opinion is that even the most discriminating music lover can love this show. Most already do.

JoAnne Fox

JoAnne Fox, English and Theater teacher at Mahwah High School, died this past Friday. She was 58 years old. Her school musical is set to open this weekend.

Our hearts go out to her family and students, and we wish them the best of luck in their production.

http://www.legacy.com/NorthJersey/DeathNotices.asp?Page=LifeStoryPrint&PersonID=125159270

Digg

For the record if you're ever interested in checking out the stuff on the web I just love, visit me at Digg.

http://digg.com/users/joeelefant

Making Money in the Music Business

Okay, so we can't all make money playing progressive jazz music all day. I've resigned myself to that fact. Now the question is - do we just do something else, or do we try to find a way to forge a career out of this music thing that got us so excited in the first place?

Here's a good answer. This article was on Inc.com today, and it demonstrates an example of someone who saw a vacuum in the music industry, and filled it. Did he ever.

http://www.inc.com/ss/how-draw-22-million-visitors-your-website#0

By the way, the benefit on Saturday was really special, and I was honored to be a part of it. Not too late to help:

www.ittakesavillageforjames.com

James

Tonight I'm performing at a benefit for a friend of mine whose son has been diagnosed with leukemia. See below.

www.ittakesavillageforjames.com

Jazz Is Dead?

No, jazz is just different. It is no longer a vibrant, current form of expression. It is now art music.

Art music is important. Otherwise the New York Philharmonic and the Brooklyn Art Museum wouldn't exist. There would be no NEA, and public television would no long air "Great Performances".

It is important to continue to make jazz music, and to take great pains to expand the language. It is equally as unrealistic to pursue a career as a jazz musician. Because as AIG and GM have demonstrated, when you require public money to make yourself viable, you will never be profitable.

Seth's Take on the Music Industry

Seth Godin is not in the music business, so I'm sure not all of his ideas are feasible, but there are some great ideas here.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2008/01/music-lessons.html

Movado

My wife bought me a Movado watch as a wedding gift. I'm not exactly sure of the price, but I know it was closer to a thousand bucks than it was to a hundred.

That was about eight months ago. The watch's screws are already coming out of the watch. One of them is completely missing.

I brought to a Movado store yesterday. I would have tightened the screws myself but, as I said, one of the screws was missing. Not being a jeweler, I do not have these screws in my garage. I figured Movado would have them at the store. After all, if this happened to my watch after eight months, this must happen all the time.

They, of course, did not have the screws. They shipped my watch to Movado for "repair" (a SCREW). I will not have my several-hundred dollar watch, a wedding gift from my wife, for 5-6 weeks. Furthermore, I was told I will have to pay for the "repair" (I repeat - a SCREW), and that an estimate on my repair would be mailed to me in 15 days.

see my post from yesterday

Music Should Be Easy

Private teachers - if your student is working too hard to play their instrument, something is wrong. Unfortunately, sometimes this problem is difficult to diagnose. Maybe her bottom teeth are not applying enough pressure, or maybe her tongue position is poor, etc. I find this to be the exception.

It's probably an equipment problem. Is your student still playing the mouthpiece that came with her instrument? Is the piano she's practicing on out of tune? Are the valves on her trumpet not responding quickly enough? Does she understand how to store her reed so it doesn't get warped or chipped?

Music should be easy. If your student is fighting her equipment, then music is not easy. And if it's not easy, it's not fun. And music should be fun.

Customer Service

I have a hard time keeping friends for a very long time. As we move further way from each other or no longer work together, I find it harder and harder to take the time to communicate with my friends. This is an inconsiderate quality in my personality, and I am taking measures to get better at this.

There are some people in this business whom you call in an attempt to give them money. Professional musicians perform some music service in exchange for cash money. Some, however, don't take the time to call you back after you call them and offer them money for their services.

???

Worse yet, others berate their customers or clients. I went to pick up paint on Sunday morning and the man behind the counter said belligerently:

"You called three hours ago and said you'd be here in an hour!"

Okay. First of all, that wasn't true. My wife had called to order the paint, and he said, "You CAN pick it up in an hour." I didn't realize that was a binding contract to do so.

Second of all - WHO CARES?!?!? Seriously, so you rushed the order a little bit. I am paying you $26 for a can of paint, and you have the audacity to yell at me for coming to pick it up two hours late?

Customer Service

Professional musicians - Don't think that because you don't install HVAC you don't have to pay attention to customer service. Quite the opposite. Entertainment is a service industry. We don't make widgets. We provide a SERVICE to CUSTOMERS.

If that doesn't require customer service, I don't know what does.

OMG

I asked my wife recently if there was one concert she would pay any amount of money to go see, what would it be? The answer was easy:

"Michael Jackson"

Hard to argue. I must admit, my answer was the same. We both thought the likelihood of a Jackson tour was pretty remote, so it remained a distant dream, never to be realized.

Until now.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/06/arts/music/06Arts-MICHAELJACKS_BRF.html

I can only hope the "any amount of money" part was hyperbole.

Be Indispensable

Times are tough. No two ways about it. Meanwhile, a year ago I was the jackass sounding off about how the economic news was sensational journalism, CNBC was just playing the "ratings of fear", etc. I was wrong. Too much anecdotal evidence makes the problem too big to ignore.

So in a business where we seek people's precious discretionary income, we are understandably scared out of our wits. There's little of that to go around these days, and we're all competing for it. Which leaves us only one choice.

Be indispensable.

I'm not saying "work harder" (though I'm sure that applies in some cases). That's a cliche, and it's usually not true. I'm saying when you are working, do things that your client or employer could not imagine themselves living without.

Case and point: I'm doing a run-of-the-mill house party in April. Someone called me to play background piano for a birthday party. I did three things most other people in my situation don't do.

1) Asked her what her budget was, and billed the low end of it. (Her numbers were pretty good to start with)

2) Asked her who her favorite musicians were, wrote it down, and I am compiling a repertoire of said musicians' material

3) When she mentioned her piano hadn't been worked on in a while, offered to tune it for half my original price

You may say I'm adding time and subtracting money for the sake of one party. Here's what I say:

1) Treat every job the same, whether it's at Lincoln Center or a house in Jersey. Your reputation postcedes you.

2) I can tune the piano whenever I want. I can do it during less valuable time in my schedule.

3) It so happens that this woman is well-off, likes to talk, and is an exceedingly nice person. These three things are what we freelancers like to call Referral Heaven.

Make your client so happy that they can't imagine anyone else playing at their party. Or tuning their piano. Or referring other musicians. Or selling them their daughter's flute.

Be indispensable.

I, Student

I had the immense pleasure of being the accompanist for Marc Shaiman's master class at the Paper Mill Playhouse this Sunday. Marc, along with co-conspirator Scott Wittman, brought tremendous insight into the business, aesthetics, and overall joy of show business like only folks with that level of success can truly relate. Luckily for all who attended, it was not merely a master class in how to deliver an effective audition but a probe into what makes these brilliant men tick, how they got excited about the business, how they got their big breaks, and how much they sincerely enjoy going into work every day.

I believe I may have learned more than the students. :o)

On another happy note, my friend Adam and his sister were just featured in the Times this morning and I figured I'd pass it on to those who missed it: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/03/arts/music/03shee.html

Who Said Live Music Is Dead?

As per my Feb. 26th post, I was reading the Times this morning and stumbled upon this article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/01/nyregion/new-jersey/01rocknj.html

It's about a live band concert in South Orange featuring "weekend warrior" types, professionals from all walks of life who play music in their spare time. I know many professionals who play music in this manner. Many do it very, very well. At least as many do not. But does that make it any different from the pros? I submit "no".

I think something like this would go over just great in the New Providence/Summit/Berkeley Heights area as well. What do you think...?

Carnegie/Julliard Education Program

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/arts/music/27acjw.html

Another casualty of the ailing economy.

Arts Careers

I hate to be Mr. Negative - but here goes. There are a LOT of moderately talented high school students who decide they want to pursue the glamorous life of a career in the arts. It inevitably follows that these students end up majoring in music performance, acting, etc. In my opinion, the vast majority of humans should not consider this course of action. I give you two of the many reasons why not.

1. A young adult who is truly gifted and driven to do so will find themselves with at least some degree of professional work in the arts. This is irregardless of whether or not they major in a performance degree in college.

2. The amount of jobs that pay a living wage in this field have dwindled to a precious few. The only ones left are being snatched up by the most gifted and driven individuals, and only after many years of sacrifice and struggle.

Consider majoring in music education. There are always schools looking for smart, talented, passionate artists with a gift for communicating that passion. Or consider a more practical major with the hopes that you can find a job working in the business of the arts. There are even some schools now that offer business degrees with specializations in the arts.

But beware of a "music business" degree. You will find yourself in the same situation as a performance major. Better to get a business degree with an arts business concentration.

Again, I am not trying to be negative. Quite the opposite - I am only hoping to get more smart, talented and passionate people working in the arts! And trying to save them some headache along the way.

NEA Funding in Stimulus Bill

So, it seems the stimulus bill has once again awoken the debate on public funding for the arts. Check out This article in the Boston Globe. I admit I am not a huge fan of the government picking winners and losers in the arts world, but so much of this money goes towards educational programs, which need all the help they can get right now.

Slumdog Oscar-winner

For those of you (like me, most years) who missed the Oscars last night, Slumdog Millionaire composer A.R. Rahman took home the awards for Best Original Score and Best Original Song. Theater fans may know Rahman from his work on Bombay Dreams and Lord of the Rings. I am not a huge fan, but his talent is unmistakable. And it couldn't have happened to a better human being.

NJMEA Conference

Tomorrow I'll be at the NJMEA Conference in East Brunswick. I'll be with Elefante Music - please stop by and say hello!

Marc Shaiman

So, on March 1st I have the privilege of accompanying a master class at the Paper Mill Playhouse for Marc Shaiman. For those of you not familiar with Marc, he is about the hippest composer of film and theater alive. I don't fawn often, but...

Seth Godin

This is the smartest guy writing about the music industry (and business in general).

New Musical

So, I just got an e-mail about collaborating on a new musical. This is something I was pursuing fervently a while back and just lost interest, mainly because I found the prospect of finding a collaborator so daunting.

I'm putting it out there, for the world to reply to - anyone got any great ideas? Need a composer/arranger/orchestrator to collaborate on on exciting, original musical theater concept? I'm all ears.

joeelefante.com
joe@joeelefante.com

Gerry Niewood

Please take a moment to remember Gerry Niewood, a brilliant musician and one of the nicest guys I knew. He was tragically killed in the recent crash of Continental Flight 3407.

Welcome!

Welcome to my new website. I had a little trouble with my old hosting company (that's the understatement of the year), but I'm back online now and happy you took the time to visit.

I'm working full time at Elefante Music now, and it's great being forced to spend so much time with my family. I've also been working on Jersey Boys a bunch, both on Broadway and on tour. Hopefully you can catch me there if you ever get a chance to see the show, which I strongly recommend.

Working with so many school districts and teachers through the music store, I can't help but be struck with how many school music programs have been decimated or are in serious danger of cutbacks. I have seen schools eliminate string and/or private lesson programs, start music instrumental music at higher and higher grade levels, or cut teaching positions. I have even seen a district in which one teacher was responsible for instrumental music in twelve different elementary schools.

I'd love to hear about some of your experiences with this issue. The only way this trend will be reversed is if we all speak our minds. So feel free to start a conversation here. Thanks!