Welcome to module to where we're going to be talking about freelance performance, so we're going to start was talking about gigs. Now the good news is there are tons of different kinds of them, and here are just a sampling of the range of things. So I'm distinguishing a gig when I speak of this first thing orchestra substitute as opposed to having a sitting chair with an orchestra where you are the person who is playing, you know, first clarinet. This is the sub list and actually you can stay quite busy if there are a number of orchestras in your community subbing with various different orchestras whenever the principles are not able to go to the concert and be there. So an orchestra substitute is a great way to get some extra digging activity, certainly clubs and bars, especially if you're pop band or jazz thing. Weddings is a great source of music because everyone wants music at their wedding and that could be either music during the service music for the reception or both. Corporate parties, Friday private parties, holidays and things like that, corporate retreats that this can be a huge source of income musician for a musical theater productions. Either sometimes the touring productions, they book local musicians to play in the productions when they come through down, others have their orchestra that they take with them. And then there are non touring musical theater companies just in your local community. There's working for studios and doing studio recordings again, especially if you were in the pop world and especially if you're in a big city. A place like Nashville, there are a lot of studio musicians still working or Los Angeles. That is starting to become a little bit, slightly of a dwindling thing, but there's still lots of opportunities to be studio musician and church music. Either as an ongoing gig, you're the director of church music, or you have a paid position in the choir or something like that, or extras during the holidays. I know a lot of, especially brass players, brass players and vocalists who make a lot of money over the holidays doing church gigs and doing performances of messiah and you know. All that comes along with that, so lots of different varieties and most likely you or your group, you're not doing all of these things. But you could be doing many of them and you can say things like, or see how things that clubs, bars, weddings, private parties, those could all be a single. Your group could do all three of those things together and that there would be synergy between those things in terms of being able to promote, cross promote and so forth. So lots of different options, So that's good news, let's say you have moved somewhere for the first time and you want to get into the scene, how do you go about doing this, first of all? Have your promotional materials already in hand, make sure your website is up to date, make sure you've got good work samples, your social media is active. So that when you do start to make those first connections with people, and they said, yeah, well we'll go check you out and then they go home because they have your business card in their hand, remember. And they big punch on your website and they're like, you, this girl's got it going, this is fantastic, she's amazing, right? As opposed to why has the website not been updated in two years, okay, so make sure you've got all your, all your ducks in a row, as the saying goes first. Okay second, just start scouting menus, right, where are the places in your community, where your music, whatever that is, where is that being played, where is it already happening, right? What are the clubs or bars or event venues, churches, et cetera, Whatever the the appropriate venue is, where is your music happening? And just start going to those places and have lots of business cards in hand, right, know what they do, get a sense of who goes to those places and where you might fit in well. Look for open mic nights, this is a great way to just get up on the stage in a venue, do your thing and you know the managers of those venues are watching. Because they are always on the lookout for a new kind of talent, focusing on network in relationships, once again, this is so, so important. So you know, work with getting to know the venue managers, get to know the bartenders, get to know the other musicians who are performing in these places. Just get to know the audience as well, okay, do that networking first. And then that way when there's a last minute cancellation or there's an opportunity that opens up the venue manager or the other musicians. Or if you have also been hopefully networking with booking agents and finding out who is running the show is in town. When those opportunities go up, they may give you a call and that's the first key step, right, but if you have no relationships first, nobody's going to call you, right? So lastly be observant, okay, what appears to be saturated already? Okay, It could be that there's an awful lot of a certain genre already happening, but there's a different niche where nobody is doing anything, okay, so maybe that's where the opportunity is. So observe the scene, whatever it might be, if it's classical music or or club music, wedding bands, whatever it might be, observe what's going on observatory out there and ask yourself. Can I do something different or better? Finding your gigs, page two, so focus on establishing your reputations can be part of the networking piece, but also just getting yourself in front of the right people. So, open magnet is a great example of that, but at the beginning, if you're really wanting freelance gigging to be a significant part of how you make your living. You may need to try to take what you can get to put yourself out there, now I say that with the caveat, I am not a big believer in just this idea of work for free.
