Success Beyond The Score

Last time, I talked about my thought process when I decided to move on from being a hobbyist and become an established musician. I explained how I started cementing my vision by writing down what I wanted to achieve, condensing my beautiful dreams into describable goals. I also invited you to do the same, so you had your own material to follow along this series.

Now that you have the what, the next question is why. What is the reason behind your wish to reach something? What is the purpose that your goals serve to yourself? If you don't understand why you are doing what you do, or you lose sight of it with time, your motivation will dwindle. You need energy to overcome the challenges and obstacles that you will inevitably find on your way, and this energy, this drive that you need, can be fuelled by your reasons.

Just as we wrote down our whats to solidify them, we need to document our whys. Going back to them now and then to remind ourselves of our purpose keeps us focused and pushi...

I wasn’t born a full-time award-winning musician. In fact, I spent the first couple of decades of my adult life working in a completely different field. During those years, music was a hobby, a fulfilling one that I loved, but nothing more than that. Whilst I did catch the attention of a record label or two, it never came to anything.

At 42, I attended a concert by a friend. Seeing him shining on stage, being aware of his achievements and career, made me realise that I wanted that too. With my children in secondary and primary school, I was at a point when I finally had time for myself. The conditions were there, I could give professional music a shot! I hesitated for a long time, but finally, I decided to try.

I gave myself a timeframe, which was of five years, and sat to write down all the things I wanted to achieve during that period. At that point, I didn't know how to get there, but that didn't matter. The first step towards reaching a goal is to know what the goal is. Then, in ...

There are two days left for you to join Time For My Music. Upon signing up, you will get free trial access to the community's library of resources and information, and you will also get a 20 minutes one-to-one talk with Millicent, in which you will be able to learn more about the dynamics of the group and talk to her about your music journey and aspirations.

You can learn more about Time For My Music here and sign up here.

For your consideration, here are some highlights of the testimonials that the members of Time For My Music gave during the Evening Showcase last year, which was the first face to face concert they put together as a group:

With Millicent's support, we've been able to achieve things that we never thought were possible.
—Michelle

What Millicent gives us is the confidence to come out and play in front of people.
—Patricia

Time For My Music is togetherness, a way to put ourselves out in the world as musicians together.
—Melody

We have been pushed out of our comfort zo...

We're happy to announce that ‘Time For My Music’ is currently open to new members. The community-focused online programme, aimed at women, offers information, resources and support for emerging musicians to reach their goals in the music industry.

Learn more about it in the about page.

This is the right programme for you if you’re a female musician, singer, DJ, rapper or spoken word artiste, and you’re in one of the following situations:

• Music is your hobby, but you would like to take it to the next step by performing and eventually get paid.
• You’re returning to music after a break, and could use some support and a boost of confidence in order to get back in.
• You have gigged occasionally, but it doesn’t seem to be working, and you’d like to give your music one last push to see if you can realise your music dreams.

There's no level of gigging experience required, and you can join from anywhere in the world.

Sign-up now and get access to a free trial of the community group unt...

It may sound like an empty inspirational quote, but it's true: music is part of the human experience, and because of this, it's never too late (or too early) to start playing, writing or even recording.

Mama Kay is a brilliant example of this. This Japanese woman released her first song, titled ‘36 hours’, one day after her 59th birthday. This age is outstanding on its own, but considering the East Asian music ecosystem, in which pop idols tend to fade into obscurity before hitting 30, it becomes even more impressive. The song, a gentle example of Japanese city pop—which is a genre that hasn't been particularly popular since the 80s, although it's been doing a comeback in the last decade—has gathered thousands of hits across social media, and hundreds of thousands of people now follow Mama Kay, enjoying her subsequent releases.

Whilst we celebrate Mama Kay's success, let's not forget that internet numbers don't determine the worth of your music. Social media platforms are promotio...

No matter at what scale, life very rarely goes as planned. Some things are easier than we thought they'd be, many others are harder. Accidents and inconveniences dot our agendas, we get sudden ideas that we then have to fit in our day somehow. Mundanity gets in the way of greatness and viceversa. We're left juggling constantly while wishing there were more hours in the day.

For example, last year, my family and I finally got around to remodelling the kitchen. It was long overdue, and we were sure that the final result would be very good. However, doing it meant dust, noise, and a cramped house. My piano ended up blocked by a bunch of boxes. I had to keep an eye on what was going on during times I'd normally dedicate to practise. It hindered my creativity for some time, it made preparation for gigs more difficult, too. Yet life didn't stop. The expectations of my clients didn't change. I still had to show up and step firmly on the stage.

Although it was strenuous, discipline made it p...

Regardless of the location, stage, or the characteristics of your audience, everybody who attends a concert wants the same: to be entertained, wowed, soothed, and taken away.

For most artists, how to approach the audience starts as at impossible knot of anxious questions: 'am I doing this right?', 'will they like it?', 'what if I make a mistake?'. The key to improve your audience management skills isn't to find the answer to all those questions, but to realise that they don't matter, at least not as much as you might think.

You can look at it like this: what is under your control, like how well you learn your musical pieces, is under your control, so there's no need to worry. What is not under your control, like whether the grumpy looking person at the end of the fifth row is enjoying themselves, is not under your control, so why worry about it? Of course, you should think of your audience, what they want and expect, but not to the point that the thought interferes with your ability...

Let us use this great shot by GL360 Productions to introduce Asharp, the next star in the Time For My Music Evening Showcase’s line-up.

Asharp is a versatile saxophonist who plays all three alto, tenor and soprano sax. She has recently broadened her talents by branching out as a solo artist, and is now a regular performer at the ‘Wednesday Mic Fever’ happening at the Legacy Centre.

This is what she told the audience about her experience with Time For My Music:

I joined Time For My Music—it wasn’t at the beginning, but probably after they’d had about two or three sessions […] What I found has helped me most is learning about technology, because I’m the world’s worst when it comes to computers and technology. Millicent, I don’t know how she has managed to do it. She’s just so patient when I can’t log in or pick up the password. She doesn’t shout at all, she just talks calmly, which is good for me, ’cause I’ll panic at it even more [otherwise]. 

It’s the meetings, the fellowship. Yo

...

Today, it’s Melody’s turn to be under the spotlight. She’s a featured vocalist with the Notebenders big band, whose voice has been praised for being smooth and angelic on the high notes when singing classical songs and jazz.

During the Evening Showcase last year, she had this to say about Time For My Music:

[…] Time For My Music is like a sisterhood, a fellowship. It’s togetherness, a way to put ourselves out in the world as musicians together. 

[…] Millicent has a wonderful gift, a very open heart. She’s very patient with us. I can see that she gives, she goes beyond the mile, many more times than that. I’m truly grateful, also, for the support that she receives in doing this from the family, and for the support of the group. It’s one of the reasons I’m standing here, and I’d like to thank Patricia because, when I started to meet up with the community bands and the Notebenders, it was Patricia who told me about Cafemnee, which was a forerunner to Time For My Music. So thank you a

...

Everything in life entails a risk, even not doing anything at all. Assessing and managing risks is part of life, but it becomes critical in professions that involve large numbers of people, like live music.