By Susan Eldridge
The podcast currently has 37 episodes available.
Welcome back! This episode introduces the eight guests for this season and gives you a chance to listen to sneak clips from the episodes.
IMAGE CREDIT
Lulu & Lime
PODCAST TEAM
Production Support and Audio Engineering by Thomas Grayden
Theme Music Composed by Danna Yun
Theme Music Performed by Jasper Ly
Recorded on 08 November 2024
Paul Bruch-Wiens is a Private Wealth Manager at Quadrant Private Wealth, based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, where he lives with his spouse, two children and still has a deep passion for the performing arts.
QUOTES
“Singing in close harmony with my family and church community was a way of life. It was something you just did every Sunday.”
“After I finished a business degree, the only thing I could do to have gainful employment based on the training was to be a bookkeeper. But I’d already done that for 3 years as a part time job. It wasn’t interesting to me. So instead I studied for a Master of Music.”
“There was no job lined up for you coming out of music school, but I adamantly chose not to be a music teacher.”
“I got the job (in a bank) and thought it would solve everything. But it didn’t. It was really difficult to come to terms with making the wholesale change. In my heart of hearts I was still a performer and the reality of the situation had not caught up with me. I just didn’t believe it. I perhaps thought I would go back.”
“I have all of these things to pull experience from. People don’t necessarily want advice from people who haven’t felt that themselves”
“It’s liberating when you find yourself, and let go of who you think you should be.”
LINKS
PODCAST TEAM
Production Support from Molly Jenkins
Audio Engineering from Frazer Ruddick
Theme Music Composed by Danna Yun
Theme Music Performed by Jasper Ly
RECORDED
Recorded on 21 October 2021
A former professional oboe and cor anglais player based in London, Sadah Webster now works as an investigator and intelligence analyst. Investigating whistleblower complaints and misuses of public office.
QUOTES
“I was halfway through a Bachelor of Music degree when I took a year off to study linguistics and live in Thailand.”
“I didn’t know what I was doing, I was petrified all the time and I was burned out.”
“Looking back, emotionally, I think the fact that I was advanced as a player quite early on and I got thrown into a lot of stuff which was great for my playing but emotionally I wasn't ready.”
“Because I had solely focussed on being an Oboist, I didn’t know anything else.”
“I had various attempts at retraining, but a sense of purpose came much later in my emotional journey.”
“As a freelancer, you never know why you don’t get booked.”
“The context in which we learn perpetuates “there’s something wrong with me” and the same toxic productivity runs through the law school as in music school.”
“Assumptions are being made about your work ethic, motivation and ability to use your time. I had been told by various teachers that I was lazy when I couldn't practice more because instead I had to work to earn a living.”
“The only tool the teachers have is “well just practice more”.
“The work was more stressful than enjoyable, the balance had totally shifted and I was just exhausted.”
“The cost benefit analysis of being an oboist doesn’t make sense, but I didn’t know how to make that assessment when I was studying.”
LINKS
PODCAST TEAM
Production Support from Molly Jenkins
Audio Engineering from Frazer Ruddick
Theme Music Composed by Danna Yun
Theme Music Performed by Jasper Ly
RECORDED
Recorded on 24 October 2021
Daniel Meyers is a bass player, music administrator, and professional fundraiser who currently manages donor relations and annual giving at the Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota. Before moving into fundraising, Daniel performed regularly as a substitute with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and he was a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago.
QUOTES
“I was playing with orchestras that were “the end goal” if you’re searching for a career as an orchestral musician, but I wasn’t finding the connection and focus on the audience and that focus on the audience. That’s what I care about.”
“I never heard or rarely heard musicians talk about the experience of the audience. And I felt like the people I was playing with didn’t care that much.”
“I don’t think you can expect something that someone does full time, that it can't be a job just some of the time.”
“You have this great opportunity and people are congratulating you, your peers are congratulating because you’ve achieved their dream. You feel like you should be on top of the world and you’re not. This is what I was hoping for and it’s really not all that”
"It was just a job for a lot of them."
LINKS
PODCAST TEAM
Production Support from Molly Jenkins
Audio Engineering from Frazer Ruddick
Theme Music Composed by Danna Yun
Theme Music Performed by Jasper Ly
RECORDED
Recorded on 08 October 2021
Sarah Denholm was originally a classical pianist who moved into a successful career as a speaking and presentation skills coach, built after suffering from performance anxiety.
Sarah’s pathway back to comfort on stage was learning the art of public speaking. She now helps others globally through her Speakers Confluence® confidence and influence coaching and training programs.
QUOTES
On performing and imposter syndrome “I found it so stressful, and that’s still in my body.”
On being seen “I’ve had to learn how to overcome being looked at.”
On self-healing and finding your voice “I was determined to move forwards, I needed safety so much.”
On helping clients “When you’re speaking with fluency, you’re not fighting yourself.”
On your journey “I miss what I used to do but I don’t regret a moment of it. What I’m doing now is what I’m meant to be doing.”
LINKS
PODCAST TEAM
Production Support from Molly Jenkins
Audio Engineering from Frazer Ruddick
Theme Music Composed by Danna Yun
Theme Music Performed by Jasper Ly
RECORDED
Recorded on 16 September 2021
ABOUT TIFFANY
QUOTES
“At the end of first semester, I was looking around thinking about the professionals I had worked with from all different ages and backgrounds. I thought that if I wanted to add something, what might that be? I was interested in arts admin and thought if I understand what managers want then I could craft myself to navigate that sphere.”
“ What was eye opening was that backstage at Carnegie Hall looks the same as backstage as anywhere else. Eye opening to see the reality of a thing I had held sacred in my mind.”
“Living in Manhatten on $26K meant I was tired of choosing between rent or groceries. So I went to a headhunter and went to a hedge fund. They doubled my salary overnight. I thought “what is this world”.”
“What I thought was a means to an end, turned out to be life changing.”
“I had a lightbulb moment in a donor meeting, talking about their giving to the institution. I thought if everybody had access to this level of planning, this team of experts behind them then we could literally create a whole new generation of philanthropists and everybody could achieve their goals. What would I need to do that?.”
“So much of what I do is healing relationships with couples or individuals and their interactions with money.”
LINKS
PODCAST TEAM
Production Support from Molly Jenkins
Audio Engineering from Frazer Ruddick
Theme Music Composed by Danna Yun
Theme Music Performed by Jasper Ly
RECORDED
Recorded on 11 October 2021
Michael Lowenstern has spent 15 years as a professional bass clarinetist specializing in avant garde jazz, and 15 years as a professional brand marketer specializing in data-driven creative strategy. Those journeys have two things in common: They are both niche corners of their respective markets, and they are both things that most people couldn't care less about. He's currently a Principal Creative Director for Amazon.
QUOTES
“After music school when I turned up in NY, I stared at the phone. It took about 7 years to establish myself and I was doing the work I always wanted with Steve Reich, John Zorn and Peter Sekin. But I wasn’t making much.
“I always had ‘double majoring’ in life, it started as a temp and then worked in advertising.”
“I was driving on the New Jersey turnpike at midnight, having an existential conversation. I just played Beethoven for the millionth time, I hadn’t seen my kid in 3 days because I also have a day job with night gigs. Would I rather play Beethoven and fulfil that destiny for the rest of my life or would I rather watch my kid grow up.” (2005)
“Now I’m able to feel fulfilled as a musician and have a second job”
“I landed in a great spot by dumb luck”
“The critical thinking part is not about being a clarinet player (singer, pianist, composer) it’s about being a musical contributor. If you're not contributing, you're taking. And if you're not empathetic, you don't know how to give. And if you don't do that, then you're not part of the solution that's pushing music forward.”
“if you’re successful at more than one thing, there’s precedent for that. Not to compare myself, but there are a lot of people in history who’ve been good at more than one thing.”
LINKS
PODCAST TEAM
Production Support from Molly Jenkins
Audio Engineering from Frazer Ruddick
Theme Music Composed by Danna Yun
Theme Music Performed by Jasper Ly
RECORDED
Recorded on 03 September 2021
Angel Lezak is a patent prosecutor with 15 years of prosecution experience who has been able to successfully leverage the knowledge and experience she gained at the USPTO to develop and execute creative, effective strategies for prosecuting both new and problematic patent applications to issuance.
As part of her practice, Angel develops and manages patent portfolios for new and existing clients. Additionally, Angel analyzes existing patent families to determine the value and strength of pending and acquired claim sets. Angel's methods expedite prosecution and minimize prosecution history.
QUOTES
“I had a parent who was concerned about how music would translate into income but I never seemed to have that worry.”
“My choice to go to law school had a lot to do with experiences I had. As a graduate composer from Eastman, I was writing music for a new Jim Henson production. Jim passed away and it was a struggle to get the scores back. I thought “Wow that’s pretty powerful. I can help others with this.”
“My interest in law, honesty, fairness, truth and integrity came from my grandmother. She believed in me.”
“In engineering school, the majority are introverted types who don’t particularly care for change. Also my dad had a PhD in math, anytime something changed it threw him off and made him go sideways. A lot of the people I work with are the same way but in engineering school I found myself convincing others that the world will not fall apart if they make changes because the change makes sense.”
“Music has given me the courage to do things that others might not be comfortable with but I've always known worked. Also kindness, I always try to help others. Music has made me like that.
“I love making my clients look good, I love getting them tonnes of patents. They go to their board of directors and look amazing, it’s like I wrote you the perfect piece for you to perform and get applause.”
LINKS
PODCAST TEAM
Production Support from Molly Jenkins
Audio Engineering from Frazer Ruddick
Theme Music Composed by Danna Yun
Theme Music Performed by Jasper Ly
RECORDED
Recorded on 03 September 2021
Jackson Harnwell is a former singer and conductor, having studied at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music and worked with artists including Anthony Warlow, David Hobson, Helena Dix, Teddy Tahu Rhodes and Yvonne Kenny. Today, Jackson oversees the clinical training of medical and health discipline students at the University of Melbourne, following a 10-year career in higher education.
QUOTES
“Church choir was an amazing opportunity that connected with me. To be able to create on my own, bond with others, sing in a group and share the emotion.”
“I have memories of my choir master having to settle me down because the church choir went to stand, they're all very stoic and grim faced as they sing perfectly constructed vowels and I wanted to dance. I wanted to move around and express that emotion that was inside me.”
“I started to have some self doubt, maybe there’s more work that I need to do that I didn’t understand I needed to do.”
“Going into university, my perspective was that I was very good. That changed quickly when I became part of a cohort of people that, in my mind, singing came easier to.”
“No matter how hard I worked, how much I did, I couldn’t seem to overcome some of these hurdles.”
“People really identified that one of my skills was that I could jump into unknown territory and be really crystal clear on the outcome that I wanted to achieve.”
“It’s probably only in the last three or four years, I've been able to recognize and accept just how much my creative self influences the work that I do, and is valuable to the organization and that it's not something that should be kept separate.”
“I realised if I was going to make a living from performing, I knew how much work that would be. But what did “making it” look like? It means taking gigs that you don’t want because you need to pay the bills and you don’t get to choose what performance opportunities come up. That wasn’t for me. The idea of this thing that I loved so much becoming a chore was terrifying.”
“The pandemic has really brought to the fore my performing background. I’ve identified that I thrive in a crisis, because I'm so used to not knowing what's around the corner, not knowing what might happen on stage.”
“The saddest thing that I have seen, with some incredibly talented, passionate musicians and performers, is that they leave it too late and lose the love of it. Eventually they're forced into a career transition and they cannot bring themselves to engage with their creative self anymore and that is an awful thing.”
LINKS
PODCAST TEAM
Production Support from Molly Jenkins
Audio Engineering from Frazer Ruddick
Theme Music Composed by Danna Yun
Theme Music Performed by Jasper Ly
RECORDED
Recorded on 27 August 2021
Ian Anderson Gray is the founder of the Confident Live Marketing Academy and is host of the Confident Live Marketing Podcast. He helps entrepreneurs to level up their impact, authority and profits by using live video confidently. As well as being a geek, husband, and dad to two kids, Ian is also a professional singer and lives near Manchester in the UK.
QUOTES
“I'd get very bored very easily I was doing the same thing all the time. And it was the same thing with music, I needed to do other things.”
“Writing a blog changed my life. And I had this bit of an identity crisis, because I wasn't sure “was I a musician or was I something else?” I wasn't really quite sure.”
“I felt really guilty because I didn't really want to go into opera. I felt like I was somehow a second class singer, because I didn't want to do that. “
“I had a real issue with my self-esteem and with depression which I know a lot of people do. I had to go through a massive mindset shift, which has taken a long time.”
“In my experience of those of top name music schools, they are not an emotionally safe place to be if you're already at risk. If you are different or you're trying to figure it out, it’s just not safe to be there.
“As musicians, our job is to translate and transfer emotion to the audience. But we're never taught how to have those emotions safely and what to do with them if they're overwhelming to you.“
“I've realized suddenly that all of that training that I did as a musician wasn't a waste, and it was all coming together. And it was just a wonderful moment. And so it was at that point where I realized that actually Yes, live video is what I want to do. I want to teach people to do that.”
“My identity as a musician doesn't have to be connected to a job.”
“There are so many musicians in the creative world. When I went to Social Media Marketing World, 30 40% of the people there are musicians.”
LINKS
PODCAST TEAM
Production Support from Molly Jenkins
Audio Engineering from Frazer Ruddick
Theme Music Composed by Danna Yun
Theme Music Performed by Jasper Ly
RECORDED
Recorded on 16 August 2021
The podcast currently has 37 episodes available.