The year I finally graduated from college, I was so busy singing and finishing up credits that I ended up delaying graduation by a semester just so I could get it all in. I was in several productions at school, was in the chorus of the local opera company, had a recital, and was also cast as Little Buttercup in the Gilbert & Sullivan Society’s production of HMS Pinafore. I was so involved in the moment that I completely and utterly neglected to look to the future. Aside from attending a summer program and auditioning for the Ryan Center (then called the Chicago Lyric Opera Center for American Artists), I had no clue about what came next.
Luckily for me, I was accepted into grad school and after one semester left for the Chicago apprenticeship, which launched my professional career. I was equally lucky to have some high-level guidance from my then-teacher, the unsurpassed Mignon Dunn, without whom I would have neither voice nor career. And once I left the Ryan Center, I was able to start working as a singer and quickly sign with management.
I was incredibly fortunate. Most singers don’t have such a clear-cut career path (though it didn’t seem clear at the time!) or receive the kind of guidance I did. But regardless of your beginnings or support system, the transition from student to working singer is a very difficult and overwhelming one. Just think, you’ve been in a highly structured environment all your life. If you’re lucky enough to get into an apprenticeship right out of school, you’ll prolong that structure—but all freelance musicians, at some point, are going to find themselves having to create daily structure and pursue a career without much guidance or support.
It’s very easy to get lost in the maze of day jobs, family obligations, and the general frustrations of our business. It’s very easy to let days turn into weeks then into months that slip by without any real practicing or career development, especially when you don’t have a specific project or goal in the future.
You need a plan—and that’s where we come in, with 10 things you can do to launch your career once you’re well and truly on your own.
1: You are now a small business owner—act like it.
Set up an office space in your home and stock it with everything you need to conduct your business. If you spend a little time organizing your space and making sure you have supplies on hand, you will not find yourself running out to the 24-hour Wal-Mart for puffy envelopes and stamps at 3 a.m. the day your application is due or, worse yet, having to stop on your way in to rehearsal when you already have too much to do.
You should have a filing system, both paper and virtual, and keep good records not only of your expenses and income but also of contracts, auditions, industry contacts, measurement sheets, and audition materials. For free, easy-to-use budget and expense spreadsheets, visit www.TheBusinessOfSinging.com/singersresources/budget_expense_worksheets.htm.
2: Make—and keep—a weekly schedule.
Many singers have 9-to-5 day jobs. But ideally you want a day job with a lot of flexibility which, for many singers, means self-employment. Regardless of which kind of job you have, you’ll need to regularly schedule time for practice sessions, lessons, research, and career development. Make this time sacred—schedule it first. It isn’t easy when you’re working a 40-hour week and trying to keep up with mundane daily chores. But when you signed on to be a professional singer, you essentially signed on for two full-time jobs: the one that is paying the bills right now, and the one that is your profession. In my own between-singing-jobs temping days, I would frequently remind myself, “This is not my real job. I am not a secretary. I am an opera singer.”
If you are lucky enough to be in a Young Artist Program, some of your structure will be set for you by the program, but you really can’t afford to rest on your laurels. Always look ahead to the next gig—it’s a lifelong lesson for singers. You still need to schedule time for career development, even if your performance plate is full.
Keep a large calendar where you can see it regularly and schedule your rehearsals, research, audition trips, and career development time into it as well as into your PDA. It will help keep you accountable and achieving.
3: Keep an auditions database.
You should keep records of where you applied to audition and when, as well as the responses. Did the company reject you? Did they say why? Is there something you can do to make yourself more interesting to them?
Were you scheduled for an audition? Did you sing? Where? What was the room like? Who played for you and were you happy with them? Who was present at the audition? What did you offer and what did they hear? What kind of feedback did you get? Did you book a gig as a result?
This information becomes very valuable to you later when you are trying to remember how many times you’ve sung “Come scoglio” for your Santa Fe audition, or whether General Director Xavier has ever asked for “O du, mein holder Abendstern,” or how many times Vesuvius Opera has asked to hear you but never cast you.
4: Keep in touch.
If you didn’t start a database of contacts while still in school, you most certainly should start one now. The importance of networking really cannot be understated. More casting takes place through word-of-mouth recommendations than auditions, and you never know who will end up being the person who can say a good word for you and help you be heard. Furthermore, you need to identify “champions,” people with some pull in the industry who believe in you and would be willing to drop your name into the right ears.
Contacts are not just people who you think can do things for you right now. They are friends from your day job, church, and clubs—or even friends of your parents—all of whom may have resources they’re willing to deploy on your behalf. They are your current colleagues in school and YAPs and casts, who may end up running opera companies, heading university music departments, or owning agencies. It’s easier than ever to keep in casual touch with people via e-mail and social networking sites, but the occasional postcard or “tweet” detailing your recent triumphs or upcoming season is also a good way to keep your name on people’s lips.
As long as you’re developing contacts, don’t forget to keep a database of fans and patrons. A website is a great way to keep people informed and interested, and you should also have a mailing list for your performances and news.
Finally, wherever you may be, find a community of like-minded singers. You can pool resources, encourage and support each other, and share industry news. If you are so isolated geographically that you can’t meet with other singers in person, develop an online community. It’s an invaluable source of support.
5: Keep your core repertoire audition ready and refreshed.
Young singers spend so much time trying to find the perfect five audition arias, and once they have them, it’s hard to try anything new. But it’s very important to keep your repertoire fresh. Experiment with different ornaments and tempi. Work with a dramatic coach and actually stage them (not necessarily for use in the audition room, but as an exercise). And look for additional arias that show off your good side. You want to have plenty of alternatives when audition season rolls around.
6: Learn new roles before you have the chance to perform them.
In school, the focus is often on learning songs, arias, and scenes; hopefully, you also get to do full roles. If you haven’t, or don’t have many, it’s crucial that you at the very least begin to learn some. With your teacher and coach, decide what your core repertoire should be. What are you likely to be hired for right now? Don’t forget to include some “foot in the door” roles, small things that you could be hired to do at larger companies or as a Young Artist.
Preparing roles, even when you haven’t currently been hired to sing them, shows that you’re working on your craft even if you’re not, well, working. You’ll be in a better position to be hired if you already know a role. You’ll be ahead of the game and poised to jump in at the last minute should there be a crisis. Also, you can list them on your résumé as “Roles in Repertoire.”
7: Be proactive about auditions. Be your own manager.
Speaking of roles, one of the most overwhelming issues for ground-level professionals is figuring out how to find auditions. Of course, you can use important resources like the Classical Singer listings and YAP Tracker, but that isn’t enough. Part of being CEO of your own small classical singing business is learning to manage yourself, and that means learning to land auditions.
I’m of the opinion that young singers should audition for every Young Artist Program they can for as long as they can. You should also do competitions if you’re good at them. But don’t put all your eggs in the YAP/competition basket. Get out there and look for auditions with small opera companies, music festivals, choruses, and symphonies. You don’t have to wait for audition notices—get your materials packet together, do your research, and send mailings to appropriate opportunities.
8: Set goals for income and career growth.
In the interest of keeping your business on track and remaining accountable, you should try to set some modest goals for singing income. You can do this a couple of ways: decide what percentage of your income you want to see coming from singing over the next year, set a total dollar amount you want to achieve, or plan to increase your base fee. Then challenge yourself to grow those numbers by finding more and better jobs and learning to negotiate for more money.
You should also set specific career growth goals for yourself and then impose your own deadlines for reaching them. For example, if you’ve never sung a complete opera or oratorio role, perhaps one of your goals should be to do so in the next year. Or maybe it will be to audition for at least five YAPs, add a symphony gig to your résumé, or plan a money-making concert. Having specific goals to work towards will give you structure and ensure that you have something constructive to do besides updating your Facebook status.
9: Keep performing, no matter what. Create your own opportunities if you have to.
It can be very discouraging to audition and audition and never get a single gig. It’s important to find performance outlets even if you aren’t getting paid, both for your business and your art.
Sure, we all want to be paid for our work, and it’s always preferable to have someone else do the producing. But if you aren’t getting hired to sing, make your own work until you are. Create and market a concert. Sing in your church choir. Band together with some friends and have a regular aria night or learn opera roles together. Work begets work—and besides, singing feeds your soul.
Now, I’m not telling you to sing for free. As a professional, you should do that only if you are doing a benefit—and even then, only if all the other musicians are donating their services as well. It’s very important to establish yourself as a professional in your community. However, there are ways to be “paid” other than receiving a check. You can ask for services or privileges in exchange for your singing, such as access to an organization’s mailing list or free rehearsal space.
10: Do one thing for your career every single day.
Singers are often very good about prioritizing their music, but less so about staying on top of business matters. Make it a point to do something for your singing business every single day. Make a phone call to a prospective champion. Send out some applications. Investigate local venues for concerts. Research some opera companies and symphonies to see who they’re hiring and what kind of repertoire they do.
And keep track of these activities. When you set a big goal for yourself, write out as many steps to attaining that goal as you can imagine. No step is too small to be listed. Then make sure you cross one or more items off that list every day. You will soon be well on your way to realizing your goal—not to mention creating career momentum that can take you where you want to be.
