Brave Musician

Welcome to season 4 of the Brave Musician podcast. In this episode, Monica introduces the first episode of the new season which will focus on one of her favorite subjects - the creation process. She includes some questions to get us thinking about why and how we create, some of the struggles (especially under the current circumstances) and joys, how we have found ourselves in a space where we are "creating" more and have more time to create than we ever have and she shares her excitement over the upcoming season!

_________

To support Brave Musician, including the production of this podcast, please visit BraveMusician.com for information on our Pay-It-Forward model and how you can help..

__________

See the show notes at BraveMusician.com/podcast

On Friday 4/3/2020 co-founder of Brave Musician, Monica Shriver, sat down with saxophonist Rahsaan Barber, bassist Natalie Boeynik, and trumpeter Del Lyren for a candid discussion on progress and uncertainty during these unprecedented times. Coming from varied perspectives and experiences as freelance musicians, educators, students and business owners, they share how they are feeling, processing, and navigating this new territory. They talk about their routines, how interaction has changed, disconnection of purpose, social media, and how each of them is progressing at the moment. Enjoy this inspiring, honest, and special panel discussion: Now's The Time: Conversations on progress and uncertainty.

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/YePZV_U0ESc

_____________

To support our mission, please join our Patreon page - Patreon.com/BraveMusician.

_____________

See the show notes at BraveMusician.com/podcast.

In this episode, which is part 2 of a 2-part series, Monica sits down with technology executive and musician, Dean Barker. Dean has two careers, one where he runs a group of designers for a fortune 100 company and the other as a gigging musician. In part 2 he talks in depth about his visiting lecture advocating for a double life and about exploring different possibilities and paths. He talks about being Brave and how to him it is about being creative. We share our separate journeys with Morning Pages (Julia Cameron) and other ways that we have faced creative challenges. He shares how he created a support group that helped through a tough creative slump, how he started making coffee haikus, "coffeeku" and the importance of daily creation. As an unintended bonus, these two episodes are full of great book recommendations.

_____________

To support our mission, please join our Patreon page - Patreon.com/BraveMusician.

_____________

See the show notes at BraveMusician.com/podcast.

In this episode, which is part 1 of a 2-part series, Monica sits down with technology executive and musician, Dean Barker. Dean has two careers, one where he runs a group of designers for a fortune 100 company and the other as a gigging musician. In part 1, he talks about his experiences as a full time musician as a young adult, his mix of influences growing up, and his musical upbringing. We talk about his two sons and their musical interests and share some stories about them. Monica and Dean dig into some harmonic conversation about "wrong" notes and playing what you hear, along with the importance of deep listening alone and with others. We start in on the conversation about a double life where Dean shares how he makes it work, the importance of vision and see possibilities, the luxury for him of being able to take gigs without worrying about the bread, the projects he has been able to self-fund, and how he has funded others to bring new music into the world. They explore how Dean takes classes online to keep learning, and the importance of staying curious and wanting to experiment with the new tools out there. They conclude this portion with the reality that you can't do it all and how he uses his time to practice as much as possible with the time he has available. As an unintended bonus, these two episodes are full of great book recommendations.

_____________

To support our mission, please join our Patreon page - Patreon.com/BraveMusician.

_____________

See the show notes at BraveMusician.com/podcast.

In this episode, Monica talks about one of the core values of Brave Musician, which is community and addresses that as we head into this uncharted, confusing, unpredictable, and frightening territory right now with quarantines, the reality that performing and seeing live shows is temporarily no longer possible, the challenges of moving work and education online, and isolation, we need community more than ever. Monica talks about the "Brave Musician COVID-19 Isolation Challenge" itself and offers some suggestions to keep in mind for ourselves and others as we navigate this challenging time of social distancing.

_____________

To support our mission, please join our Patreon page - Patreon.com/BraveMusician.

_____________

See the show notes at BraveMusician.com/podcast.

In this episode, Monica has an insightful and thought-provoking conversation with freelance trombonist Lisa Lizanec, who regularly performs in both Phoenix, AZ and Japan. They talk about how the paths that they both forged were different from the ones that they were told about and how it's so important to find the music that speaks to you the most. Lisa shares her passion for pop music, how she started touring with shows including Blast, and gives a behind the scenes account of the intensive rehearsal process and the work that goes into learning to perform a show like that. They have a candid conversation about being female musicians, including real talk about competition, role models and mentors, the importance of supporting and lifting up each other, and about finding other female musicians to connect with. Lisa also talks about living in a foreign country and what it's like as a "foreign freelancer" from the perspective of not speaking the same language, learning the culture, social navigation, and different gig structures. They take a look at how different performance opportunities helped to build confidence, and the process of figuring out what success looks like when you're exploring different paths and building the confidence to be ok with your own decisions. They address finding your voice online, using social media and Lisa shares how she started making online videos, how she discovered and fostered her love of arranging, editing, and sharing, even though it wasn't easy at first. They explore the myth "don't put anything out that's not perfect" and how they believe people are interested in the seeing the process as well as the final product and challenge all our listeners to make a video, post it, and tag #bravemusician.

_______

To support our mission, please join our Patreon page - Patreon.com/BraveMusician.

_______

See the show notes at BraveMusician.com/podcast

In this episode, which is the second of a 2-part series with trumpeter Bill Dowling, Monica continues her conversation with Bill about his trumpet journey. From relentlessly practicing in a coat closet, to applying to one music school for college, to moving across the country to study with legendary players living in LA, Bill has always known exactly what to do in order to find specific answers to specific questions. They dig into the difference between gathering knowledge and applying it, and the importance of experiencing in real life different situations so you can see and hear how it all works for yourself. They talk about why you have to keep learning and going after the things you are looking for.

___________

To support our mission, please join our Patreon page - Patreon.com/BraveMusician.

___________

See the show notes at BraveMusician.com/podcast.

In this episode, which is part 1 of a 2-part series, Monica sits down with trumpeter Bill Dowling and talks about what life was like on tour as the lead trumpet player with the Ringling Bros' and Barnum & Bailey Circus. Bill shares how he got the gig, the extreme requirements for that particular position, the rehearsal process, how the show gets created from the musician point of view, and living on the train. They dig into the mental, physical and stylistic challenges of playing in that unique setting, how the shows are constantly changing with hundreds of different cues.

Join us next week for Part 2 where we will continue our conversation with Bill Dowling about his path as a musician.

_____________

To support our mission, please join our Patreon page - Patreon.com/BraveMusician.

_____________

See the show notes at BraveMusician.com/podcast.

In this episode, Monica sits down with jazz violinist, Sara Caswell during the Jazz Education Network Conference in New Orleans last month. They talk about her early experiences with different styles of music and how she made the decision to focus more on jazz and what drew her to it. Sara shares how she reached the conclusion that she wanted to move to NYC and they explore the feelings around that decision, and the challenges of figuring out if something is working for you. They talk candidly about different emotions that come up in life, how we emote through music, and how to deal with those emotions, especially professionally.

Sara shares how she grows from a variety of musical situations and gives her recommendations on starting your own group. Monica and Sara confess the nerves they both get around showing bandmates new music and the need for constructive feedback, learning and growing from the musicians around us. Sara gives a little behind the scenes into how the making of her new album was a transformation, and how she channeled her inner courage and confidence, including how vital and important it is to collaborate and surround yourself with a supportive team of people.

Sara Caswell is a musician, educator, bandleader, arranger and composer who has worked with artists such as Esperanza Spalding, Linda Oh, and Brad Mehldau. She teaches at Berklee College of Music and Manhattan School of Music.

_____________

To support our mission, please join our Patreon page - Patreon.com/BraveMusician.

_____________

See the show notes at BraveMusician.com/podcast.

In this episode, Monica talks a little bit about her separate journeys as a visual artist and music composer. She shares the stories behind this path including how they came together, the creation of the "Monica Shriver's Abstract Art Creative Music Experience" which involves original compositions, artwork, and improvisations. She shares some of her creation processes for both. Monica also reflects on some of the lessons she has learned, how she's learning to honor her inner desire to be creative in different mediums and how the practice of these two things both separately and together have helped her develop her voice and be braver. At the end, she answers some questions from Brave Musician listeners.

_____________

To support our mission, please join our Patreon page - Patreon.com/BraveMusician.

_____________

See the show notes at BraveMusician.com/podcast