I
had long conceived of a community based idea for artist development and
had tried it on a small scale twice before, raising money locally to
develop a specific artist. In January of 2007 I began work with funders
Michele and Steve Heller to do a full-scale local audition and
recording to develop local talent on Lopez Island, Washington. I called
it LOPEZ ARTIST ADVANCE. I also joined forces with Ann-Marie Fischer,
head of the Music department at Lopez School. Together we created a
very synergistic and successful event that resulted in two artist
finding their own voices and recording two terrific CDs with producer
Ralf Illenberger. Audition were held end of April 2007 and recording
followed over the course of the summer. In Mid-October of '07, the
community turned out for the concert and CD release party for the two
artists.
Have fun learning more about Lopez Artist Advance by choosing from the following:
The poster that went up around town to announce the auditions. click here
The FAQ sheet for the Lopez Artist Advance project.click here
The letter to participants announcing the winners.click here
Photos and my reviews of the auditions. click here
Hi everyone,
Lenedra
here. We wanted to get the results of the auditions to all of you
before the article in the paper next week. Ralf and I loved the
auditions! It was really a gift for us to be able to meet all of you
and share your music, your wonderful spirits, and your hopes. Our
hearts were touched many times by yours, and we were so very impressed
with the caliber of talent on such a small island. As impressive was
the degree of caring and interest that you had for one another.
karjam Saeji
We
were able to procure
some additional funds, before our final decision, that allowed us to
choose two artists for the recording opportunity. We felt these two
artists had exceptional talent, were ready for recording, had projects
that we could do with the budget and time requirements we have this
year, and we felt that both of their music careers could be greatly
advanced by the opportunity.We will do a recording with Karjam Saeji that includes several traditional
Tibetan songs, several a cappella songs, and several of his own
original compositions.
Jean-Jacques Têtu
We
will also record with Jean-Jacques Tetu, focusing with him on his own
songs, to make a shorter CD of his best songs, with the aim of helping
him with artist development and fully defining and refining his own
sound. Click Here to visit his MySpace page and sample his music!
Other opportunities may develop as we move along the
process, as there seems to be a lot of synergy in the community around
this. In the meantime each of you who participated in the auditions are
invited to spend time with me in an artist development group that will
meet several times throughout the summer. We will take a look at music
options, careers, tools, etc. to further your own goals and growth in
music. Group members will also perform during the CD release concert in
the fall.
For
now, we’re a little sad to have the fun and energy of the auditions
over, but really looking forward to the recording. And I hope to see
you all in the group. Please email Ann-Marie if you would like to
participate. We’ll be in touch about dates and details.With thanks to
you all for making Lopez Artist Advance so enjoyable, worthwhile, and
rewarding,
