Children's Musicians By State

Featured Artist - Mary Lee Sunseri

2011-08-13T10:48:00.005-05:00

MaryLee Sunseri is the producer / arranger / performer of 16 CD’s of traditional and original music. Her credits include appearing in the MGM Elvis Presley movie The Trouble With Girls, recording nursery rhymes for Mattel Toys' See 'N Say, touring America as a member of “Randy Sparks & The Back Porch Majority,” recording the title song to Walt Disney’s movie The Apple Dumpling Gang, singing back-up for Shirley Jones, opening act for Bill Cosby and Lily Tomlin, and many concert appearances with the legendary Burl Ives.

She received her certificate of study in Musical Theatre from London Drama School with distinction in singing. She performs many concerts for festivals, folk clubs, and corporate and academic groups annually. Ms. Sunseri is a frequent performer at public schools and libraries throughout California, Massachusetts and Washington, and gives workshops on music and infant brain development.

Check her out at www.maryleemusic.com

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Back to School Concerts!

2011-08-13T10:35:00.001-05:00

Gearing up for back to school? Pull out your brand new crisp school calendar and plan to have a children's musician perform a concert to celebrate the beginning of the new school year to set the positive tone for the entire year. Check out our list of great performers in your area and email them today!

Featured Artist - Nancy Stewart

2011-04-27T22:44:00.002-05:00

Nancy Stewart is a national award-winning musician who has been writing and performing for young children and their families for twenty years. This followed a successful fifteen year-long career as lead guitarist and vocalist with a nationally known show band. Featuring original and traditional songs, Nancy’s nine CD’s for children can be heard in schools, homes, and libraries across the country. Her music workshops for teachers, parents, and librarians have been highly praised for their relevant, useful, and easy to use songs and ideas.

Nancy has also shared the stage with Burl Ives, Shirley Jones, Bill Cosby, and Lily Tomlin at concerts and nightclubs across the United States and Canada. As lead guitarist and vocalist she performed with Randy Sparks and the Back Porch Majority beginning in 1971, and recorded several albums in Nashville and Los Angeles, the Disney movie theme “The Apple Dumpling Gang”, and numerous radio and TV commercials.

For more information, visit Nancy’s website at www.Nancymusic.com

- Seattle, WA

Featured Artist - Farida Dowler

2011-04-27T22:28:00.004-05:00

Farida Dowler shares folktales and plays guitar to accompany traditional and original songs for preschoolers and kindergarten age children along with their caregivers.

She is available to perform at bookstores, libraries, children’s parties and other venues in the Seattle area. Past performance venues include Island Books, Third Place Books, Pierce County Library System, Seattle Public Library, and the Seattle Children's Museum.

To book a program, please contact her at farida@dowler.com with information on where and when you are having your event as well as group size.

-Seattle, WA

Featured Artists - BenJammin and Analisa Gauthier

2011-03-06T14:28:00.003-06:00

Jammin with BenJammin and Analisa Gauthier gives kids a chance to move, play and sing along with Educational Music. With songs like "The Safety Belt Song", "Keep in Shape" and "Dream, Love, Live", your kids will learn about health, safety, respect and science—all while having so much fun they won't even realize they are learning!!

BenJammin and Analisa have performed their educational music at schools, museums, libraries and parties everywhere from Kalamazoo to New York to New Jersey and San Fransisco. And they can bring something special to your event. In each energized performance, they inspire children from the audience to sing along, dance, play instruments and even write new songs! With every new performance, BenJammin and Analisa get children excited about achieving goals, reading/writing, hygiene and safety all in a format to build confidence.

Michigan - www.benjammin.biz

Quick Tip for Musicians

2011-02-25T01:24:00.003-06:00

Here is a Quick Tip for musicians from Andy Mason of New Mexico. Use this resource of fellow children's musicians when planning tours in different regions to get insights and recommendations about gigs, booking patterns, market trends, and perhaps even fee ranges.

Featured Artists - Brian and Terri Kinder

2011-02-25T00:55:00.004-06:00

Brian and Terri Kinder
Kindersongs

Brian Kinder is a singer/songwriter who, along with his wife, Ms Terri, performs rollicking goodtime concerts for kids. Their music is fun and invites audience participation, and is perfectly suited for libraries, schools, fairs, corporate family gatherings, churches, and birthday parties. Yes, Kinder is their real name. (Kinder, German word meaning children as in kindergarten). For rollicking good time music for kids, there is none finer than Brian and Terri Kinder.

www.kindersongs.com

Arkansas

Featured Artist - David Williams

2011-02-25T00:36:00.003-06:00

David Williams

Emmy winning songwriter for his songs on PBS's BIG GREEN RABBIT, & ALA, & NAPPA winner. Over 30 million hits on YouTube. David Williams--songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, cartoonist, children's author with Random House (Grandma Essie's Covered Wagon, Walking to the Creek). "No one else writes animal songs like David Williams," Dirty Linen. "Williams works magic," Newsweek magazine.

Colorado

Featured Artist - Andy Mason

2011-02-25T00:25:00.004-06:00

Andy Mason

All year round Andy performs his award winning concerts for kids in schools, pre-schools, daycares, State Fairs, libraries, birthday parties, summer camps, after-school programs and festivals. Kids and parents alike love Andy's original music and interactive program that will have them singing, dancing, laughing and learning right from the very first song. Andy's many years as an educator are clearly visible in his concerts and his unique style will have children and teachers, parents and librarians shouting for more!

http://www.andymasonmusic.org/

New Mexico

Teacher Tips - Hiring a Performer

2010-11-09T08:31:00.003-06:00

Teacher Tips
Booking a Performer
By Johnette Downing

Often an educator is placed in the role of hiring a performer for their school assemblies or special events. Having the tools necessary to hire the right artist for your school or event can be a rewarding experience for the students, staff and performer. Below are a few tips to help educators hire artists:

Where to look?

Performing artists can be found in numerous places such as:
*State Artist Rosters coordinated by each State Division of the Arts
*Performing Artist Directories compiled by State Libraries
*Artist Rosters coordinated by State, City and Parish/County Arts Councils
*Independent organizations like Alternate Roots, National Storytelling Network, Artist Guilds, Children’s Music Network, Folk Alliance, SouthernArtistry Register, etc.
*Online artist directories, phone books, magazines and newspapers
*Performing artist showcases and live public performances
*Referrals from other artists, arts coordinators, educators and performance venues.

Who to hire?

*Hire a professional children’s artist for the job. You get what you pay for!
*Look at artist credentials, performance history, fees, programs offered, travel area, audience age, space requirements, availability, reviews, letters of recommendation, press clippings and demos.
*Attend artist showcases and public performances to ascertain the quality, genre and style of performers available in your area and select artists who best suit your needs.

How to book?

*Contact the artist and ask for their brochure or “promotional packet.” A brochure gives you a brief overview about the artist and their work. A promotional packet gives you a comprehensive outline and usually contains an artist biography, list of credentials, performance history, press clippings, reviews, photograph, business card, and demo audio or video.
*Discuss your particular performance needs in as much detail as possible (who, what, when, where, why and how).
*Discuss available dates and times
*Discuss artist fees
*Discuss artist’s technical requirements

What will I need from the artist?

*Contact name, address, phone, fax, email and website
*Booking confirmation letter, form or contract
*Invoice
*Audience size, audience age range, length and description of the program.
*Press release and photograph to publicize the event.

What will the artist need from me?

*Contact and school name, address, phone, fax, and email.
*Signed booking confirmation letter, form or contract
*Audience size and age range.
*Location of the performance (stage, gym, cafeteria, etc.).
*Access to the location 30-60 minutes prior to the performance.
*Directions and map to the school or venue.

Prior to the performance

*Inform staff and students that the artist is coming.
*Publicize the event with flyers and photographs. Invite the local media who are often looking for “good news” photos to put in the paper.
*Ask for artist study guides. Copy and distribute the guides to staff and students. Study guides offer pertinent information about the artist, their work and how the scheduled performance relates to the curriculum.
*Ask for order forms for artist’s products (CD’s, tapes, videos and books). Many educators preorder artist’s products and use them in the classroom to allow students to become familiar with the artist’s work prior to the performance.
*Contact the artist a week prior to the performance to re-confirm.
*Discuss audience etiquette with staff and students.

Day of the performance

*Make sure the performance space is clean and clear of debris and furniture.
*Make sure the artist has access to the space 30-60 minutes prior to performance.
*Be available or assign someone to direct the artist the performance space.
*Discuss the best seating arrangement with the artist for optimum audience viewing and enjoyment.
*Allow ample time prior to the performance to assemble the students in the performance space.
*Begin the performance on time.
*Introduce the artist.
*Pat yourself on the back for a job well done and enjoy the show!

Copyright 2003 Johnette Downing, www.johnettedowning.com
Article first published in the Spring 2003 Issue of Applause!

Johnette Downing
johnette@johnettedowning.com
www.johnettedowning.com

Johnette Downing is a multi-award winning musician, author, poet and educator.

Featured Artist - Paul Behnke

2010-10-07T16:56:00.002-05:00

Featured Artist - Paul Behnke

From Tavistock, Ontario, Canada, Paul Behnke's dynamic style and superb songwriting skills have caught the attention of those in the music industry. Paul's new album "Singing, Learning and Laughing" has been released across Canada by E.M.I. Music and Popular Records. It has also been honoured with a 2000 Parents' Choice Award. In 1998 Paul was nominated as "The Children's Songwriter/Entertainer of the Year", by the Entertainer Network of Nashville, Tennessee. Emerald Records were so impressed with Paul's children’s songs that they have released "We're All Different On The Outside" and "The Greatest Prehistoric Band" across North America and Europe. These hits can now be heard on radio stations throughout Europe, Canada and the United States.

Featured Artist - Randy's Music Jam

2010-10-07T16:40:00.003-05:00

Featured Artist - Randy's Music Jam

Randy Sauer is a Children's Songwriter/Singer from Hays Kansas and he calls his show "Randy's Music Jam". Randy’s Music Jam is a fun and interactive music show for the entire family. Randy leads the audience in fun familiar songs and has the audience singing along with his original songs. Kids always enjoy jamming with Randy on stage with the inflatable instruments and rhythm instruments. Many of the songs will have the entire audience up out of their seats dancing to the music.

Randy has been performing at Libraries throughout Kansas, Malls, Town Festivals, Kansas Sampler Festival and the Midwest Kids Fest in Overland Park, KS. Randy has been teaching music for over 17 years and is very active in writing children’s music, performing and conducting music workshops.

Family Night at Schools

2010-10-07T16:15:00.003-05:00

For several years, schools have been hosting Family Nights to encourage parent involvement in student learning in the school environment. Schools usually have Parent/Teacher Organizations as well for the same purpose, but Family Night offers a fun night out for the entire family. Schools now host Family Math Night, Family Literacy Night, Family Art Night, and so on.

The Family Night concept has become so popular with families that schools are hiring entertainers to provide storytelling, music, magic, and other arts to make the event even more special.

Next time you are planning a Family Night at your school, consider hiring a local musician. Our list of performers makes it easy to plan a special musical treat to liven up any Family Night.

About the Artists - Harpbeat!

2010-10-07T16:08:00.004-05:00

Featured Artist - Harpbeat!

Harpbeat! celebrates the unique combination of harp and percussion instruments to entertain children. While singing, moving, and laughing with the music, children hear positive messages about themselves and the world we all share.

Harpbeat! brings many exciting aspects of our world to children by featuring foreign and sign languages within the songs. Musical styles and cultures from Australia to Zaire are explored through traditional and original songs.

Harpbeat! concerts offer a dynamic new twist to the stereotypical reputation of harp and drums. Donna brings the magic of music to children of all ages in her highly interactive, approachable, multicultural programs.

Harpbeat! appeals to children ages three to thirteen in small or large groups. Harpbeat! suits the length of its programs to suit your needs.

Harpbeat! was founded upon the conviction that children want to have fun while learning about their world. After all, the most beautiful music is the sound of children's laughter.

About the Artist - Mister Chandler

2010-07-23T07:15:00.004-05:00

I have decided to let you know a little bit about the artists listed in the resource Blog. I will start with the artist I added today and slowly make my way through the list.

Today's featured artist is - Mister Chandler

Mister Chandler is a first grade teacher in Northern Virginia. Many years ago, OK - not that many, he was inspired by his brother to learn to play acoustic guitar. A year later he was inspired by a colleague to use it in the classroom. According to her, it would make the job and the students' day more fun, right? Right! Ever since that first attempt to play a song in class, Mister Chandler has been writing songs straight from the curriculum he teaches. Colleagues from other grade levels have asked him to write and record songs for them, too. These days, if he has to teach it, he's instantly thinking about how to play and sing it as well! He hopes you think about purchasing his new CD, "Songs From Room 8" for primary aged students, but even more, he hopes you find new ways to use music in the classroom!

He has a new CD so check him out at http://www.misterchandler.com/

Music Together

2010-07-11T22:00:00.001-05:00

Music Together is an internationally recognized early childhood music program for babies, toddlers, preschoolers, kindergarteners, and the adults who love them. First offered to the public in 1987, it pioneered the concept of a research-based, developmentally appropriate early childhood music curriculum that strongly emphasizes and facilitates adult involvement.
Music Together classes are based on the recognition that all children are musical. All children can learn to sing in tune, keep a beat, and participate with confidence in the music of our culture, provided that their early environment supports such learning.

www.musictogether.com

Happy Summer!

2010-07-11T21:51:00.000-05:00

Have a musical summer!

Kids Music Planet Podcast 5/2010

2010-05-18T21:18:00.001-05:00

This week Kids Music Planet Podcast brings you our special theme episode - Water Songs, featuring Erin Lee & Marci, Jim "Mr. Stinky Feet" Cosgrove, Mr. Billy, Dennis Caraher, Charity and the JAMBand, Bobs & Lolo, Dino O'Dell, and Monty Harper. Plus Evalyn's Pick of the Week, "Woo Woo" by Milkshake.

Listen anytime with your web browser here:http://kidsmusicplanet.blogspot.com/2010/05/051610-water-songs.html

Listen, subscribe or post a review on iTunes here:
iTunes

Happy Listening!

Lisa Harper
lisah@montyharper.com
kmp@montyharper.com
Host of the Kids Music Planet Podcast - kidsmusicplanet.blogspot.com
Get a free song download every week:
http://calendarsongs.blogspot.com

Car Vacation Music

2010-05-18T21:08:00.003-05:00

Taking a family vacation trip by car??? Are we there yet, are we there yet, are we there yet??? Smooth away the miles in the car (and plane, train or boat for that matter) with great children's music for the whole family. The wonderful musicians on our Blog have awesome CDs that should do the trick. Give 'em a listen today!

Have a great summer vacation!

A to Z Teacher Stuff

2010-05-18T21:03:00.002-05:00

A to Z Teacher Stuff web site has great thematic unit lesson plans and activities with a summer theme. From ice cream to oceans, check it out at:

http://www.atozteacherstuff.com/Themes/Summer/

Summer Camps

2010-05-18T20:58:00.002-05:00

Add a little fun to your summer camp by hiring a children's musician for an in-camp field trip concert! Or, bring your campers to see a children's musician at a venue or festival this summer. Your campers will love you for it!

Summer Reading Programs

2010-05-06T20:17:00.002-05:00

Children's musicians are gearing up for summer reading program tours. The national (United States) theme for the Summer Reading Program is "Make A Splash...Read." So check out your local library this summer to sign up for the reading program and get the schedule of performers who will be visiting your library. You can see and hear a live concert and splash into some books without getting wet! Now that's cool!

Children's Book Week

2010-03-30T15:14:00.000-05:00

May 10-16, 2010 is Children's Book Week. Check out the Children's Book Council for more information about how you can help make every child a reader at:

www.cbcbooks.org

Read Across America

2010-03-07T18:57:00.000-06:00

Last week was Read Across America week. Many schools celebrated literacy all week and many of the teachers and students dressed like their favorite book characters. For more information about this exciting event, check out http://www.nea.org/readacross

Fund Raisers

2010-02-12T14:16:00.000-06:00

As you well know, most children's musicians have CDs and videos to sell after their performances. What you might not know is that musicians are often willing to work with schools and venues to sell their CDs and videos to raise money for the schools or venues.

For example, prior to the musician's performance at the school, an order form can be sent home with each student to purchase the musician's merchandise in advance. The school then lets the musician know how many pre-orders have been placed so that the musician can bring enough merchandise to fill the orders on the day of the performance. The musician then gives the school a previously agreed upon percentage of the sales back to the school as a fund raiser for the school.

In the case of an organization, a manned merchandise table may be provided for the musician free of charge before, during and after a performance, and the musician gives the venue a percentage of the sales.

In the case of a venue with a gift shop, the venue can purchase the merchandise from the musician at a wholesale price and sell the merchandise in the gift shop before, during and after the performance.

These are just a few ideas of how creating a musician/venue partnership can be mutually beneficial. Some musicians rely on merchandise sales and cannot afford to give a percentage away, but if the venue or school can guarantee a larger number of sales than the musician can get on his/her own after the performance, creating a fund raising partnership may be worth it. It never hurts to ask.

Planting "Musical" Seeds of Love

2009-11-08T16:57:00.001-06:00

Planting Seeds of Love:
Making music with babies and their caregivers.
by Pam Donkin

One of my favorite things to do is to work with babies and their caregivers to help encourage bonding and musical response between them. Babies are never too young for music! After all, most begin hearing, in utero, around the 4th month. The same way they are learning the language of their culture they can also learn music. When surrounded by music they actually begin reacting and trying to make music with you! It can be so much fun for adults to learn how to recognize and encourage that playful exchange, and of course the babies just love it! The babies are fascinated by everything we adults do and when we focus on them and sing, they immediately start either kicking their feet , moving to the rhythm, or they may begin to coo and many times will coo in the key in which you are singing to them! If they do coo or make some other sound the best way to begin a musical conversation is to coo back to them. That encourages them to continue and then you can go back to singing the song which further encourages them to continue the exchange. Cooing is a beautiful, non- verbal way to deepen the relationship and at the same time get the language out of the way. I call it planting seeds of love.

-by Pam Donkin

Pam Donkin is an award-winning songwriter, performer and recording artist on the Gentle Wind label. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area she presents workshops for babies (ages infant to age 12 mo) and their caregivers as well as family music programs ( children's ages 2-8) in the Bay Area and beyond.For further information go to www.pamdonkin.com

Teaching Artists' Organizations

2009-11-07T12:37:00.000-06:00

Here's a great resource!

TEACHING ARTISTS’ ORGANIZATIONS

THE ASSOCIATION OF TEACHING ARTISTS
http://www.teachingartists.com/

Email list: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/associationofteachingartists/
Contact: Dale Davis, Executive Director
ddavis@teachingartists.com

CALIFORNIA

San Francisco
Teaching Artists Organized
http://www.teachingartistsorganized.org/

Newsletter: Send email with "Please Subscribe Me" in subject heading
Contact: tao@teachingartistsorganized.org

CHICAGO
Chicago Teaching Artists’ Collective
http://www.chicagoteachingartists.org/

Email list: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/teachingartist/
Contact: chicagoteachingartists@gmail.com

NEW ENGLAND
New England Consortium of Artist Educator Professionals
http://www.artisteducators.org/necap_about.htm

Email list: NECAP-on@mail-list.com
Contact: Frumie Selchen, Director, Arts Alliance of Northern New Hampshire ArtsAllianceNNH@cs.com

Educator Workshops

2009-09-09T08:28:00.000-05:00

Did you know that many children's performers offer educator workshops? Well, they do! Many of the artists listed on this Blog are not only performers, but experts in the field of music education. Do you need an in-service, on-site training, workshop or a keynote at an educator conference? Look no further. Children's performers are often bilingual in entertainment and education!

Summer Reading Program

2009-06-05T15:04:00.000-05:00

Summer Reading Programs across the US are underway and many libraries hire children's musicians to entertain the children. This is a great opportunity for you to check out children's musicians for possible bookings at your venue; it's the best free showcase of talent around!

Check with the library in your area about the schedule of events this summer and support libraries and musicians at the same time by signing up for the free summer reading program and participating in the fun activities for you and your family!

The theme this year for many libraries is Be Creative @ the Library: READ.

Now rock on down to the library!

Great Dates for Booking Children's Performers

2009-02-12T15:16:00.000-06:00

Need a reason to celebrate? Here are some great dates to book children's performers at your venue:

Read Across America Day is March 2, 2009; the event is always held on or near Dr. Seuss’s birthday.

Celebration of the Young Child is April 20-24, 2009

Children’s Book Week is May 11-17, 2009

Call a children's performer today to add a little more fun to the party!

Blog Testimonial

2009-01-31T12:43:00.000-06:00

Dear Johnette,

Thank you! We have already enjoyed your resource by using your notes on school study guides to help us do a better job with that.

Take care,
Monica
Banana Slug String Band

http://www.bananaslugstringband.com/

Thanks cool Slugs! Keep up the great work!!

Alphabet Soup Assembly Poll

2009-01-29T11:59:00.000-06:00

The results of the Alphabet Soup Assembly Poll are in! Visitors were asked, "If assemblies where alphabet soup, which top three ingredients you would add?" The top three answers were 1) laughter 2) participation 3) movement.

There you have it!

Thanks to everyone who participated in the poll!

2008-11-25T09:34:00.000-06:00

Study Guides for School Shows

By Johnette Downing

Study guides are an important element in your school booking confirmation packet. Study guides assist administrators, teachers and students in preparing for your upcoming performance by giving them useful information about you, your program and how your program fits into the curriculum. Below is a brief outline of the information you should address when creating your study guides:

A. About the Artist

A brief artist bio that indicates something about you, your art form, your accomplishments, and your experience.

B. About the Program

A brief overview indicating the theme, style, age range, length and content of your program. You may expand this section by adding the history of your art form or the particular style within your art form that you will be presenting. For instance, if you are performing a jazz program, you may want to make a statement about the history of jazz and why you have chosen to present this style of music.

C. Curriculum Connections

Indicate how your program makes curriculum connections in the areas of math, science, art, history, music, English, social studies, dance, etc. For instance, a jazz program may make curriculum connections in social studies, history and music.

D. Enrichment Activities

Include simple activities and ideas that the teachers and students can use before and after your program to enhance their understanding of your program and your art form.

E. Resources

Provide teachers with a resource list of books, audios, videos, articles, and websites for further information.

If you make your study guides simple, user friendly, fun and informative, you will increase its usefulness. Teachers have very little time to pour through pages of text or to use activities that require lots of time, materials and energy. The study guides should be on one sheet of paper (if necessary, back and forth) and the activities should be easily accomplished within a few minutes or by using readily available school supplies, books and materials. You can always provide in-depth information or expanded activities by including yourself as a resource on your resource list. The goal of a study guide is to enhance the learning experience about your program and your art form for the children and faculty.

The key is simple, user-friendly, fun and informative.

Copyright 2002 Johnette Downing
www.johnettedowning.com

Themed Shows

2008-11-16T11:34:00.000-06:00

Hey Venues!

Did you know that most children's musicians offer shows according to themes such as animals, multi-cultural, holidays, transportation, self-esteem, drug awareness, environment, bugs, marine life, literacy, music history, history, seasons, special needs, character building, etc.? Well, we do! When hiring a musician for your special event, inquire as to whether or not the musician has a show to harmonize with the theme of the event. If the musician does not already have a show to suit the event theme, they may be willing to tailor their show to include songs that do match the theme. Musicians usually have a huge repertoire of songs and can often create a show tailor made for you! The musician will often be happy to do it so give it a try!

Funding for Performances

2008-09-23T13:02:00.001-05:00

Venues are often surprised to discover that professional children's musicians do not work for free and charge a respectable fee for their work. Children's musicians are contacted weekly to volunteer their time to perform benefit concerts for worthy causes. While children's musicians are some of the most kind-hearted and worthy-cause-oriented people around, the volume of these calls makes it impossible to accept them all, if any depending upon whether the musician makes his or her sole living from music.

Venues should expect to pay a fee beginning around $200 and going up into the thousands depending upon the experience, reputation, region and needs of the musician. In addition to a performance fee, musicians may also charge for travel, lodging, rental car, excess baggage fees for flights and per diem based on travel distance.

Keeping this in mind, there is help available. If the musician's fee is more than your budget, before asking the musician to volunteer or reduce his or her fee, consider several funding options.

1) Grants from city, county, state or federal agencies, arts councils and organizations.

2) Sponsorships from large corporations, local businesses, individual, hospitals and civic organizations. Usually sponsors will fund music programs in exchange for advertisement.

3) Parent-teacher organizations. Many schools have PTO's that have funds to pay for special programming for children.

4) "Friends" Organizations. Many libraries and non-profit foundations have "Friends of the Library" or "Friends of the Museum" organizations that raise money to fund special programming.

5) Fund-raisers or Raffles. Many schools and venues have fund-raisers to pay for special programs. Some venues raffle off the musician's CDs, books, DVDs or collections to partially or fully fund the performance.

6) Donations. One or more individuals and organizations may make a donation to the venue or the musician to fund the performance.

7) In-school field trips. With the cost of fuel and bus insurance, many schools have adopted in-school field trips. Like off-site field trips, on-site field trips are student funded through a nominal fee per student (often as little as $0.50 to $1 per child).

8) Patrons are individuals or groups that support arts programs and use the expense for the program as a tax deduction.

9) Cover charge. Many venues and musicians work together to share a percentage of the admission fee charged at the door of the venue. Usually an agreed upon amount of money is “guaranteed” to the musician as a base before any amount is collected at the door. If the cover charge collected exceeds the guarantee, the shared percentage applies to the excess funds. If the cover charge collected does not exceed the guarantee, only the guarantee applies to the musician.

Bringing the joy of music to children is worth the effort of finding the right funding source for your venue. There is ample funding available for programming. It just may take a little extra step to find it. The key is building a musician/venue relationship and working together to brainstorm ideas and make a plan of action to make the performance a huge success for everyone.

-Johnette Downing
Copyright 2003 & 2008 Johnette Downing

Preparing For A Performance

2008-06-28T10:08:00.001-05:00

You have hired a children's musician for your venue. What next? It is time to prepare the venue and audience for the performance. Here are some items to consider:

Weeks prior to the performance:

1) Inform the staff and child audience that the musician is coming (date, time, purpose of visit, etc.).
2) Publicize the event with flyers and photographs. Many musicians have Media Kits for publicity purposes. This kit may include a press release, publicity flyer, photograph and sample songs or video clips.
3) Invite the local media to cover the event. The media is often looking for "good news" photos and articles to put in the paper, on the radio or on TV. The media is your friend!
4) Ask for artist study guides if available. Copy and distribute the guides to staff and audience. Study guides offer pertinent information about the artist, their work and how the scheduled performance relates to curriculum.
5) Ask for order forms for the musician's products (DVDs, CDs, videos, books and merchandise). Many venues pre-order musician's products and use them prior to the performance in order that the child audience may become familiar with the musician's work.
6) Contact the musician a week prior to the performance to re-confirm and go over final details.
7) Discuss audience etiquette and behavior expectations with venue staff and child audience.

Day of the performance:

1) Make sure the performance space is clean and clear of debris and furniture.
2) Make sure the musician has total access to the space 30-60 minutes prior to the performance to set up equipment and sound check.
3) Reserve a parking space nearest the performance location for easy loading of equipment. Ramp access is preferred.
4) Make sure the musician has access to an electrical outlet.
5) Be available or assign someone to direct the musician to the performance space.
6) Discuss the best seating arrangement with the musician for optimum audience viewing and enjoyment. Be flexible. The musician knows their show best and often has a preferred seating arrangement in mind.
7) Provide a sales table for musician's products and assign a person to staff the table during the performance if possible.
8) Allow ample time prior to the performance to assemble the children in the performance space.
9) Begin the performance on time.
10) Introduce the musician to the audience.
11) Remind staff and audience about audience etiquette and behavioral expectations.
12) Assist with audience management and audience etiquette during the show if necessary.
13) Enjoy the show.
14) Assist with audience dismissal.
15) Confer with the musician after the performance to brainstorm ways to make the next event even better.
16) Pat yourself on the back for a job well done!

-Johnette Downing
Copyright 2003 Johnette Downing

Performing Biz

2008-06-27T16:03:00.000-05:00

Hey Musicians!

Do you need a little help with the performing biz? Well look no further! Check out Jeri Goldstein's Performing Biz.com at http://performingbiz.com/. Her book, workshops, seminars, consultations, retreats and weekly hot tips guide musicians step by step into booking and managing their own careers with ease. Also check out her contracts and forms resource which helps organize and simplify the day to day paperwork of running your own music business. Your clients will love you and applaud your business savvy!

Booking Summer Shows!

2008-05-27T17:01:00.000-05:00

Add a little spice to your summer camp, summer reading program or special event with a performance by a children's musician. Summer is a busy time for children's musicians so contact them early to reserve that special date for your summer event!

Here is a helpful hint to make the summer performance go as well as possible; book the event indoors or under a pavilion if outdoors. The audience and the performer will thank you!

How To Hire A Children's Musician

2008-03-20T12:36:00.000-05:00

You have a great event and you want to hire a children's musician. Where do you find children's musicians? Well, here for starters! How do you hire a children's musician? Here are some things you should do to hire a children's musician:

1) Ask friends, coworkers, venues and other musicians for recommendations.
2) Visit the musician's website.
a) Listen to sound clips and/or videos on the website, if available.
b) Read reviews.
c) View program offerings.
d) Review performance history.
e) Check for awards.
f) View the musician's calendar for availablity and a list of venues who have already hired the musician.
3) A musician's website should give you all the information you need to make a hiring decision. If not, you can ask for a promotional packet and demo audio or video.
4) Attend a concert by the musician.
5) Contact the musician via email or phone, or both.

To make the hiring process easy, here are some things musicians will need to know when you contact them. This information will help them determine an accurate fee for your event.

1) The date of the event.
2) The time of the event.
3) The budget for the event. Remember, when hiring a musician, the performance fee may also include mileage, per diem, lodging and airfare.
4) The location of the event; actual address, the actual space or room the performance will take place in, and if the event is indoors or outdoors.
5) The size of the audience.
6) The age of the audience.
7) If a professional sound system is provided or if the musician needs to provide their own equipment.
8) Your contact information including name, organization name, address, phone, fax, cell phone, email and website (if any).
9) Theme of the event, if any. Many children's musicians have various programs to offer and can often tailor their performance to suit your theme.
10) Map or directions to the event.

Once you have booked the musician, here is what you should expect to receive from them to confirm the event:

1) Booking Confirmation letter and/or contract.
2) Invoice.
3) W9 Form for taxes
4) Publicity pieces (photos, flyers, press release, etc.). Some of these promotional pieces may be downloadable from the musician's website already.

I hope this information is useful to help you and the musician you hire have a pleasant booking experience so that the performance for your venue can be outstanding!

- Johnette Downing

Welcome!

2008-03-18T15:48:00.000-05:00

Welcome to Children's Musicians By State resource blog. I hope you find it useful in locating musicians who perform for children in and around your area.