First Camelot Rehearsal

Had my first rehearsal last night with Mercury Theatre Company for the musical Camelot; and it was a lot of fun! I'm playing picc/flute and singing in the ensemble. Should be a really cool show- the cast are also the pit orchestra. The run is July 10-25, and you can get tickets at http://www.mercurytheatrecompany.org

Updated Summer Concert Schedule

Check out my updated Summer performance schedule:  https://www.facebook.com/musicbrandyn/app_308540029359?ref=page_internal

Jazz Improvisation Class this Summer!

Register for my Jazz Improvisation Class this Summer at Marrell Music, just $135!  Click http://www.marrellinstrumentrepair.net/guitar-lessons-marrell-music-lakewood-ohio/summer-music-programs/ to register.

 In this workshop students will learn the structure of various styles of jazz tunes and will learn the theory behind improvising their own solos. Music will include a variety of jazz standards such as “Autumn Leaves” and “Stella By Starlight” with an emphasis on the blues. Students should have a command of the following concert scales/keys: F, Bb, Eb, Ab. Instrumentation is open to all winds, brass, keyboards, guitar, bass, and voice. Required Materials: Jamey Abersold Jazz Book 1.

Instructor: Brandyn Metzko

Mondays and Wednesdays, 12:30-2pm

June 15-July 11

Grades 7-12 and Adult

Instruments – piano, voice, woodwinds, brass, guitar and bass instruments

Reflection on my Master's Degree Program

                I am proud to be completing my Master’s of Entertainment Business Degree at Full Sail University.  This program has taught me invaluable skills and given me great experiences that I will treasure and use to further my business.

                In Media Literacy and Research Methodologies I learned how to research and honed my knowledge of APA style.

                In Executive Leadership I found many ways to become a better leader.  I found the discussions of power in relationships and social negotiating very helpful.

My Project and Team Management course taught me about scheduling resources using Gantt charts and helped me to learn about how to best choose people who will work well together as well as how to improve the functionality of teams.

I found that the Business Storytelling and Brand Development course framed marketing in a way that I had not thought of before.  Telling the story of who you are and how you got to be there—the why you do what you do—is a very potent marketing technique that I now find invaluable.

I perhaps had the most opportunity for improvement in the area of Entertainment Business Finance.  This was my weakest area prior to starting my graduate program.  I learned how to create pro forma financial statements, how to work with accounts payable and receivable and how to create a business budget.  I also learned how to create reasonable projections that I can use to show potential return on investment.

Negotiating and Deal-Making taught me techniques to work with deals and how to negotiate offers effectively to benefit my career.

I really enjoyed the Product and Artist Management class.  In fact, this was possibly my favorite.  I gained insight about riders and scheduling and learned a lot about what Artist Managers and Talent Agents do. 

Advanced Entertainment Law was quite useful as we explored the process of securing rights for works and how to navigate the “copyright jungle.”  Having a year of law school prior to my enrollment at Full Sail gave me background and helped me to be able to understand the content more thoroughly.

Entertainment Media Publishing and Distribution was quite interesting.  As a result of that class, I now have an inexpensive media publishing and distribution method through Amazon.com that produces media that I write and record and delivers it to ordering customers at a low per-unit cost.

My Business Plan Development and Final Project Classes really put everything in perspective and helped me to pull all of my information into a synthesized package.  I crafted and presented a business plan for MusicBrandyn, LLC, my current business and doing so helped me to run my business more efficiently and to set clear goals for the future.

I would the Master’s of Entertainment Business program to anyone and am so proud to graduate with this degree next week.

10 Things You Need to Stop Doing (or Be Sure to Do) as a Conductor

Many musicians find themselves in a position where they are conducting without having had proper training as a conductor.  Here are 10 things that all novice (and even some professional!) conductors could use to be reminded of:

1.       Keep your score in your head, not your head in the score.   Know your score so you know what to expect and can focus your attention on the current performance. 

2.       Lead, don’t follow the ensemble.  A conductor paints music with the instrumentalists before him as her brush.  If you are being reactive you are not participating in creating the music, you are simply waving your arms afterwards.

3.       Make eye contact.  Especially when you cue an entrance.  Watch for any sign that they are uncertain or nervous.  Maintain eye contact whenever they are entering a treacherous section and be reassuring with your eyes.

4.       Don’t give “a measure for nothing.” Your cue should be strong enough to bring them in.

5.       Always breathe with the musicians when cueing--even if they are a string or percussion player and don’t normally need to breathe.  Breathe in the style of the music that you want to hear, and in time.  The breath is a powerful thing and should be used to set your intention.

6.       Know the basics cold.  Don’t conduct a piece in 5/4 or 6/4 if you are not comfortable with the pattern.  Know the music and know all the markings.  Be able to answer questions about it if the musicians ask.

7.       Come to rehearsal with a plan.  Know what will likely be challenging and have a few ideas on how to overcome those challenges.

8.       Give specific feedback.  After each run through, start with what was good, and then go over things that could be better.   Be specific on what you’d like and how to get there.

9.       When referring to a place in the music, first say who you want to play, then where in the music (measure numbers, etc.), then what musically you are looking at.  Giving directions in any other order will waste rehearsal time by not being clear and will confuse the musicians.

10.   Put it in context.  Whenever you work out an issue be sure to go back a little before it starts and play through so the musicians get an idea of what the isolated area in question sounds like as part of the full music.

New Website!

My new website is up!  Take a look and let me know what you think!

http://www.musicbrandyn.com

NOW HIRING Marching Band Drumline Advisor (North Olmstead, Ohio)

DATE: May 6, 2015

POSITION: Marching Band Drumline Advisor
North Olmsted High School

RESPONSIBLITIES: Provide Drumline students with concentrated instructions.
Maximize the quality of performance of the Drumline.
Collaborate closely with Band Directors to ensure program continuity.
Promote a strong sense of discipline within the Drumline.
Promote the cohesiveness of the Drumline as part of the band.
Promote and instill the concept of “striving towards musical excellence.”
Promote a positive sense of school/band spirit.
Attend all outside-of-school rehearsals and performances during marching band season.
Attend all summer rehearsals and schedule additional
Drumline rehearsals.
Help with auditions and Drumline placement.

Optional duties: Write, arrange and compose music for performance by the Drumline.

EFFECTIVE DATE
OF VACANCY: Immediately

Applicants should submit letter of interest and resume to:

Michael F. Diamond
Director of Human Resources
27425 Butternut Ridge Road
North Olmsted, Ohio 44070
Phone: 440.779.3550
Fax: 440.779.3505

New LGBT Band forming in Arkansas!

There's a new LGBT band forming in NW Arkansas!  If you play an instrument (or used to) and are in the NW Arkansas area, please check them out and consider playing!  :-)

[Not in Arkansas?  There are over 50 LGBT bands worldwide-- visit http://www.gaybands.org to find out about yours.]

      REMINDER: Pride Band Registration
               DEADLINE is next Saturday, 5/9!

** ESPECIALLY, LOOKING FOR TRUMPET PLAYERS **

                  Come join the
     NWA Community Pride Band
                  As we perform at the
         2015 NWA Gay Pride Parade

                 Saturday June 27, 2015    
                         9am to 12 Noon
        On Dickson Street           Fayetteville, AR                          
                       
Contact Person: Norma Horner, Band Coordinator
   Phone/Text: 479-790-0632
             Email: nwaprideband@gmail.com

Deadline for Registration:
    Saturday, May 9, 2015

SHOW YOUR PRIDE & JOIN THE BAND!

Insights from Business Plan Development at Full Sail University

            I recently took a course called Business Plan Development at Full Sail University as part of my Master’s of Entertainment Business degree program.   Upon enrolling in the course, my original goal was to have a clearer picture of my own business financials and to find ways to improve profitability as a working composer, conductor, teacher and music producer.   I am pleased to report that this objective was more than met, and I have learned far more about creating an artist business plans than I had anticipated.

            The course broke up writing an artist’s business plan into several areas.  Over the first part of the course we examined our target market and consumers and refined our strategic marketing plan for our entertainment company.  Then, we looked into our sales mechanism and examined how to create a positive cash flow for our art.  We continued by examining our current and future staffing needs and then spend a considerable amount of time working out the numbers in such a way that investors can see a potential positive cash flow.

            Two topics captivated me more than the others during this course.  The first was the creation of my “one-minute elevator pitch.”  This is a brief description telling the story of my company; the who, what, where, how and why in a succinct manner.  I plan to refine and rehearse this so that I use it in my day-to-day networking and let everyone I meet clearly know what I am and what it is I do. 

            The second topic that captured my interest was the financial statement creation.  I had done some pro forma financials for my business before, but never with much depth.  I was able to identify a need to delay additional staff for another year or so in order to save on expenses and a need to boost my marketing and sales mechanism in order to increase net income so that my bottom line remains in the black.

            I am looking forward to graduation in June from Full Sail, and have thoroughly enjoyed my master’s program.   While the work took time and dedication, I learned so much that I would not have had the opportunity to otherwise know.

Full Sail University Master's Graduation!

I will be graduating with my Master's of Entertainment Business from Full Sail University​ on Friday, June 5th.  While I'll be enjoying a mini-vacation/graduation treat trip by attending my graduation in Winter Park (Orlando) Florida, anyone who would like to live-stream the ceremony and attend from afar may do so by visiting http://www.livestream.com/fullsailuniversity that morning.  My walk ceremony will begin at 8:30 am.

I expect to enjoy Orlando from Tuesday-Sunday that week and then a friend of mine and I will be taking a few days to sight-see, visit and wander leisurely North to Ohio.  If you're one of my Orlando friends who would like to come see me graduate (again!), call or text me at (216) 904-0539 so I can get you a ticket and/or plan some fun/social time with me so we can catch up in person during my visit!

Business Plan Advice for Artists

It is no secret that “working” for an artist is different than it is for other professionals.  However, great benefit can come from an artist having some of the structure in their business that other professionals take for granted.  Having a solid business plan, for example, will help an artist to be focused about the monetization of their work and how they can earn income from their creations.

Cory Huff is an artist management guru who runs a website on artist business practices.  Huff’s goal is to dispel the starving artist myth by encouraging artists to work the business end of what they do themselves, removing middle men such as gallery owners and curators from the picture.  He offers much advice to artists through his business planning guide.

One of the ways he encourages artists to identify their Unique Value Proposition for business planning purposes is to define the emotional or societal impact that their work has and then work backwards.  Perhaps one of the most valuable tips I got from his guide was to not be afraid to repurpose old work in order to make it more marketable and saleable.

Neil McKenzie of Creatives and Business offers further assistance on his site.  McKenzie suggests that artists should calendar their progress on not only creative works but also business activities of their business.  This will help in measuring the success of their goals.  He also discusses setting specific and measurable goals in great length and including the largest of these goals in their business plan as part of their strategic analysis of strengths and opportunities.  

No matter how you do it, you should have a business plan to guide the financial side of your creative work.  The resources listed above can help you get started.  Often the biggest hurdle is in beginning the process.

Hallelujah Chorus for Concert Band

Check out Brandyn Metzko's latest-- a new arrangement of the Hallelujah Chorus for Concert Band! Works with or without vocal sing-along. (This arrangement transposed down a whole step from the original orchestra + chorus score.) Just in time for Easter, and a must-have in your band's library come Holiday season.

Enjoy some Morning Mozart tomorrow at Holy Cross Luheran in Rocky River

Tomorrow morning I'l be playing Mozart's Andante (K.315) and other things during the 8AM service at Holy Cross Lutheran Church  at 4620 Rocky River Drive, Rocky River OH.  If you're an early riser and would like to catch a beautiful tune live, I invite you to join for worship.

Catch me performing live this Sunday in "A Little Chamber Music" (Cleveland, Ohio)

What do you have planned for this Sunday afternoon? Why not treat yourself to a fun, relaxing afternoon of music!?

Members of the Blazing River Freedom Band will share their favorite solos, duets, trios, and quartets! Song selections range from classical to blues to pop- and beyond.

As if the music isn't treat enough...there will be a pay-what-you-will baked-goods bar during intermission, We'll save you a seat!

Archwood United Church of Christ
2800 Archwood Ave, Cleveland OH 44109
Suggested admission donation, $5.00

Sunday, October 5th at 3pm. Doors open at 2:30.
For more information, email info@blazingriverband.org or call (216) 744-3907

https://www.facebook.com/events/1535203426712257/?ref=22 

Get Orff your Arff...and Play with Pieces of Schulwerk!

Join the Greater Cleveland Orff Chapter on NEOEA Day for "Playing with Pieces of the Schulwerk" There are so many charming pieces in Orff and Keetman's body of work written for children. Some are short and therefore, easily overlooked. Some are intimidating with seemingly complex forms, rhythms, or meter. In this session participants will play pieces from the volumes as well as the supplemental Orff/Keetman texts. Participants will play with elements of the pieces in order to expand the overall learning experience. In short, we will play with what we play.
Admission is included for pre-paid chapter members. Admission for all others (including students) is $25. "First Time Free" does not apply to this event. Street parking is metered on Friday's and class is in session at CSU. Please leave extra time for parking. There is a parking deck on located next to the music building on E 21st street. Visit www.csuohio.edu/parking/neighborhood-parking for nearby lots and fees.

Visit www.clevelandorff.org for more information.