Getting Set up
Onwards & Upwards
Now that my decision about finding a tour has been made for me, it’s time to start considering a realistic plan for after I’m done here at RCS…
Being a student here has been a solid mixture of teaching and learning. The fee waiver of course means that RCS have been cashing in on our MD-ing abilities in a kind of ‘skills trade’ deal. This has worked well for me as I value self-improvement and artistic growth more than I value money right now, so I’ve decided to extend this lifestyle beyond my studies here. The idea is that as long as I’m earning enough to support myself I’ll leave as much time as I can free for my own continued learning and creative growth. I hope that this combination of continued personal development and being in the ‘right place’ will be the formula I need for my career to pick up.
Teaching To Learn
I have set the wheels in motion to begin teaching part time at Performing Arts Academy in Swindon, working with their BA and BTEC Musical Theatre students. The idea of this is to earn enough money to pay rent on a place in London so that I can use the rest of my time to learn, of course remaining available to make and nurture industry connections and opportunities.
I have also applied for another role at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. They are seeking a newly graduated MD to work part time with them as an Associate MD. This would be a terrific opportunity for me to teach, learn, earn money and ‘network’ simultaneously, so I created another bespoke webpage containing some of my latest work and submitted the URL along with my application and CV. We’ll see if anything comes of that.
The idea of opting for multiple part time roles as opposed to seeking out a more secure full time position somewhere is the flexibility and variation that comes with part time and/or freelance work. I know from experience that in a creative career opting for a full time job is like putting all your eggs into one basket. It’s not so much that I get scared of that basket falling apart, but more I get worried that I will soon be bored of that same basket and end up carrying all my eggs around begrudgingly.
The Perpetual Student
Something that I’ve realised during my time here at RCS is the importance of finding mentors or teachers that really are at the top of their game. Stuart Morley has had a profound impact not only on my scoring ability but also on my passion to continue along this career path. His wide skillset and portfolio career is hugely inspiring, and having him as a mentor has really made me up my game. So as part of my continued learning journey I have decided to seek out other teachers who are at the top of their game in order to get tuition or mentorship from more amazing and successful creatives…
David Newton – One of my favourite jazz pianists, I was introduced as a teenager to Dave’s playing from the recordings of Stacey Kent. This guy has played on over 80 albums, is the principal lecturer of jazz at LCM and has been voted Best Jazz Pianist at the British Jazz Awards sixteen times. I emailed him – he’s offering in-person lessons and it turns out he lives near Bath, not far from Swindon! I’m currently in the process of arranging some lessons with him, and I’m very excited about it!
Larry Blank – This legendary MD, conductor, arranger and orchestrator is based in LA. He was one of Stuart’s mentors and has hundreds of show orchestrations, movie scores and concert commissions to his name. He is offering tuition videos as well as private lessons online. I have him in mind for some private tuition, but before that I’ll check out some of the tuition videos that he has contributed to as part of the ASMAC organisation – these are fantastic, and are all included as part of my ASMAC membership,
Work, Life, Art
The ideas of work, life and art are so closely intertwined for me at this time that I think as long as I’m earning enough cash to survive in the capital then striking a work/life balance shouldn’t be too tricky. Especially if my work is also within an area of creative self that I am working on, which I’m hoping will be the case.
As it stands right now my plan is to find a place to live in London, fix some steady teaching work, set up some personal learning strategies and start meeting people.