In the intimate small roundtable setting of Music Library Room 285, about 15 musicians of various ages and abilities came together from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday to discuss how early music ensembles can thrive professionally in this changing world.
As part of a new initiative to start using technology to provide long distance sessions, this room allowed them to Skype other members as well as record the entire session. Rafael Porto of Project Jumpstart, a student-led program offered to Jacobs School of Music students for career development and entrepreneurship, photographed the event, according to the Jacobs School of Music website.
Bob Wiemken and Joan Kimball, founders of Piffaro: The Renaissance Band, led the Jacobs School of Music speaker series about transitioning to professional life. This meeting included everyone’s opinions and questions related to breaking into the music ensemble industry.
After everyone provided an introduction about what ensembles they had taken part in, Dana Marsh, visiting associate professor of early music and coordinator of the Historical Performance Institute, spoke about his past ensemble participation and how networking plays an important role.
Ensembles normally evolve out of communities and those network ties will stay, Marsh said. He said it is most important to stay dedicated to the music and take a close look at the talent around your town if students or others are trying to make their own ensembles.
Though gas bills and rent were what motivated Wiemken, he spoke of other motivations for pursuing this career.
“It’s about finding who you are and finding the people,” Wiemken said.
He said passion, identity, values and mission are most important.
“Laying out your strengths and weaknesses is a helpful step,” Kimball said.
They discussed electing an important person to be in charge of the group as well as choosing a way to build and promote the group.
Wiemken said he and Kimball have gotten the chance to work with such fabulous people and that they would not be where they are today without the relationships of the people in Piffaro. They also stressed the importance of making the audience feel the music.
“Take the program to the audience rather than having the audience come to you,” Wiekman said. It is important to go wherever the audience is so they can hear your music without having to go so far to enjoy it.
It’s just fascinating to see the process that a group has gone through that has been around for so long,” said Kathryn Summersett, a doctoral student in the Early Music department who attended the conference. “It’s inspiring to know that things can be unpredictable."
At the end of the presentation, Wiemken showed what really goes on behind the scenes of Piffaro. He showed a picture of his cats and said, “The real secret behind Piffaro is this.”
Due to the multitude of questions asked by the panel, there may be another session where Wiemken and Kimball can finish their presentation.
Two performances were supposed to accompany this talk as a part of the Bloomington Early Music concert weekend: one at 7 p.m. Saturday at First Presbyterian Church, 211 E. Sixth St., and one at 2:30 p.m. Sunday at St. Thomas Lutheran, 3800 E. Third St. The Bach Cantata Project still played Sunday, but the Saturday Showcase Concert was canceled due to weather. They will reschedule for sometime in March.
This story has been updated.
