I am a middle-aged singer in mid-journey. I have friends in the business also experiencing this inevitable crisis of “middle age.” My story is not exactly an inspiration for young singers, but it is a life experience that may shed light and hope on singing and music as a lifelong profession.
I am a firm believer that singers should develop additional skills and interests to maintain their ability to make good choices and create new fulfilling opportunities. Many wonderful opportunities exist for artists who are no longer actively performing but want to remain involved in the music industry. These opportunities can be significantly rewarding, such as the alternate path in grants and arts administration into which I was guided.
My redirection was partly influenced by my personal values, and by financial considerations and my development of other career interests.
New Direction
If anyone told me 25 years ago, when I was actively pursing a career in opera, that I would not be singing at the Met, that instead I would become artistic director of a small concert series on Roosevelt Island, I would have thought that most unlikely.
Formerly known as Blackwell’s Island and Welfare Island, Roosevelt Island is about two miles long and is in New York City, between Manhattan and Queens on the East River. Historically, it housed various hospitals, asylums (the New York Lunatic Asylum, for example), and a mélange of correctional institutions. Today 12,000 people reside on the island, along with two long-term medical care facilities located at opposite ends of the island. A state entity oversees the island.
After I moved to Roosevelt Island in 2007, I checked out the existing arts programs. It occurred to me that an island-based, monthly, free concert series would fill an unaddressed need. I wrote a proposal that highlighted this concept and presented it to the island’s local state agency. Initially, both my proposal and I received much interest, but no funding from government sources.
I persevered, however.
I approached other groups for support, including island-based organizations and other government entities. In my initial attempts to obtain funding, my applications were rejected repeatedly. I did not have 501(c)3 status (used for certain not-for-profit organizations), a major impediment in obtaining funding.
I had seldom turned to prayer in the past, but I decided to try. I asked for help—and was sent angels.
My Angels
My angels were sent to me in guise of the vicar, the church advisory board, and the music director of The Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd on Roosevelt Island. This church has a relaxed, enjoyable atmosphere and I joined the volunteer choir. I spoke with the church’s vicar, the Reverend Lewis C. Johnson, about my concert series plan and funding issues. He presented my proposal to the church advisory board and they offered sponsorship for the concert program. Their sponsorship gave the concert series a “home” and allowed me to apply for funding that had been unavailable previously because of eligibility requirements.
Today I remain artistic director, in charge of fund-raising, grant writing, budgeting, screening and engaging artists, programming, program design, and marketing. Rev. Johnson assists as community liaison and Martin Garratt, the church’s music director, serves as a valuable consultant on musical matters. Members of the congregation and choir help distribute fliers and assist at concerts. The series succeeds in large part because of the dedication of these individuals.
I soon realized that the concert series would enhance the benefits it would bring to the Roosevelt Island community if we coordinated the need for music with another important community need: a more progressive and visible food pantry program. The church had a food pantry but it was not highly visible in the community and was limited to nonperishable food items. The vicar and I worked on a plan to maintain the food pantry’s non-perishable food situation, but modified the program to include vouchers at local stores so that recipients would have other options. In addition, while the concert series is free to the public, we encourage donations—and all donations we receive support the food pantry program.
Grant writing is kind of like auditioning, and rejection still plays a role. For every 20 applications you send, you’re lucky if one grant is awarded. Foundations decline even the best-prepared applications. I was successful, however, in getting two foundation awards in our first year. Foundation and individual sponsorships are likely to decrease further as a result of the recent economic downturn, but I’m determined to keep trying.
Our planned budget was modest, but we still did not have sufficient startup funds. The funding we receive from our sponsors pays for artist honoraria, printing, advertising costs, and miscellaneous concert expenditures. The foundation awards received in our first year supported only two of our concerts.
To obtain additional funding I implemented the church’s “Adopt a Concert” program, a sponsorship program for individuals and small businesses. In return for partial or full sponsorship of a concert, we note the sponsor’s generosity in the concert program by offering a partial or full page in the program where the sponsor can write a personal dedication. This effort provided most of our funding in 2008.
Our “Adopt a Concert” program continues to be a work in progress. For example, we are implementing a new subprogram, “Silver Angels.” Its purpose is to include businesses on Roosevelt Island that are unable to sponsor our concerts financially but want to support our program in “spirit” by displaying our concert posters in their storefront windows. In return, they are mentioned on our website as a “Silver Angel” participant. We hope that including community businesses will continue to promote awareness of our concert series and food pantry program on Roosevelt Island.
Up and Running
Our concert series is primarily classical, but we also present other musical genres. The series began in 2008 with our first concert featuring the MotherLode Trio, a wonderful folk-rock group. For this first concert, attendance was more than we anticipated. We had more than 70 people. We presented five additional concerts that first year, including a Baroque harp-soprano duo, the Anima Baroque Ensemble, and a piano-cello duo.
Our concert attendance has steadily increased—our November 2008 concert with pianist Roy Eaton had approximately 200 people in attendance. We have a strong core of regular attendees, and I continue to attract new attendance to the program through Internet and newspaper advertising as well as e-mail notification of upcoming concerts. Most importantly, we continue to do flyer door-drops and postings throughout the island.
Getting a concert series solvent financially and artistically is complicated. It involves accounting, grant writing and fund-raising skills, Internet and general computer proficiency, a broad musical knowledge, the ability to multitask, an understanding of the community you serve, and good judgment. I needed to learn quickly about matters in which I had no prior experience or training, including problem solving in the face of unexpected circumstances.
Take for instance, the situation with the piano. The church did not have a concert-worthy piano nor the additional funds to rent one. As a result, I couldn’t engage artists who relied on a piano. A contributor gifted a concert piano to the church, however, at the end of the summer of 2008. This was a definite blessing—but the piano needed a significant overhaul. The church piano technician began the process, but tragically, he passed away in an accident several days prior to reassembling the piano. It took two months to find another technician to complete the work. In the interim, as we searched for a new technician, we rented a piano to continue with our scheduled concerts. We were lucky to receive private sponsorship that financed part of the piano rental. The overhaul of the piano was completed just prior to the 2008 Christmas season.
It is important to me that artists enjoy performing at our concert series. Within reason, I try to make the performance for our artists rewarding and pleasant.
On a personal level, I enjoy applying my skills to contribute to this community. It is a thrill for me to see it “all come together,” from artist engagement, to performance, to a thriving food pantry.
With the economy in serious decline, there is an immense need for outreach programs. If you help your community, even in small ways, you are making a contribution to your fellow man that lives longer in the heart and mind than any performance you can possibly give.
We have several concerts scheduled for 2009 as a result of the generosity of a major foundation. I hope to obtain additional funding for next year. Like my Angels and the piano, I believe good things are yet to come.
For more information visit www.goodshepherdchapel.net.
This article is in loving memory of Ralph Wells, a beautiful artist and singer. Special thanks to Daniel Gundlach for his contribution to this article.
