Whether you’re doing a Lohengrin Bühnenmusik, hanging around at a wedding while they have all their photos done in the forest brook, or rehearsing every number the harp is not in at a firework prom, harpists spend a lot of time reading. Not everyone wants to read books about harps or music in their down time, but for those of you who do, I’m starting an occasional Harpblog book club. If you have any suggestions, or would like to write a review yourself, it’d be great to hear from you! I’ll send you a Camac “Nobel Prize for Literature” record bag for every review published.
I recently came across a career-advice site for musicians I’d never seen before: David Cutler’s The Savvy Musician. The site alone is extensive and informative, and so I – intrigued - ordered Cutler’s book of the same title. It is about how to freelance: in Cutler’s title, “Building a Career, Earning a Living, and Making a Difference”.
David Cutler is Coordinator of Musical Entrepreneurship Studies at Duquesne University in the States. I’m always musing that the freelance, entrepreneurial way of thinking about musical careers looks particularly strong in America, and look – over there, you can even study it. Regardless of where you live, it is a work model that is becoming more pressing than ever before. There are more music graduates and fewer jobs, and musicians have to be more and more creative as they build their professional lives.
