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January 26, 2010 Portlandbiz

Nonprofit helps musicians turn passion into a paycheck

Photo/Samuel Cousins Mark Lourie, vice president of talent booking agency Skyline Music, talks to aspiring musicians at last week's Portland Music Foundation event

Musicians might express themselves best through their music, but they also better be able to write a good e-mail. A well-written, to-the-point missive will help as much as a beautiful chord to launch them past discerning and overworked talent buyers and onto a club stage.

Punchy e-mails and how to get ahead as a musician were the major topics last week at the Portland Music Foundation's first event of the year. The nonprofit aims to help musicians make money from their art, and in its fourth year has built up a membership of about 300 dues-paying artists and industry professionals. It offers educational workshops throughout the year.

Last Wednesday night, the foundation invited five talent buyers to participate in a panel discussion at SPACE Gallery on Congress Street. The panelists, equipped with beer, water and coffee, were asked to tell aspiring stars how to think more like them.

For Dan Millen, a talent buyer and promoter for the Middle East club in Cambridge, Mass., that means obsessing about "tickets and booze." "Tickets and booze is what the business is all about. The faster you get that into your psyches and heads, the faster you'll [get a gig]. How many tickets are you worth and how many drinks?"

Millen presented an example of a successful e-mail he had recently received from a band. In it, the band described how many people they anticipated drawing to their show, based on past shows. The writer also praised the venue, showing knowledge about what the club was all about, and lastly, much to Millen's delight, mentioned the band's "large group of hard-drinking friends."

All the talent buyers said "cold call" e-mails should lay out a short, factual history of the band's past shows, including the size of the turnouts. (And never use extra punctuation. The panelists pretty much gave a communal groan on this one.)

Ryan Dolan, a local talent buyer for places like Empire Dine and Dance, recited a good example: "I opened up for Blah, at this night at Blah, and drew a crowd of blank," he said.

"Hell yeah," panelist Lauren Wayne followed. She is the marketing director for Live Nation New England and a talent buyer for Port City Music Hall in Portland. "And if you've opened up for a national band, name drop."

But be truthful, the panelists warned. Ian Paige, the talent buyer for SPACE, a nonprofit that presents unconventional and emerging artists, said he had opened an e-mail from a band that promised its turnout would only be between 15 and 20 people. "I found it totally endearing," he said. "At that point artistic considerations come in and I'll listen to the music to see if it speaks to me."

Along with a short e-mail presenting the band and its history, the panelists said including links to a MySpace.com page and website were critical. They also mentioned they're not interested in flashy publicity packages or anything "they have to recycle," as Nicolaus Bloom, the owner of Bloom Arts & Events, put it. However, they are looking for musicians who can help market their own show.

"After checking up on you on MySpace, I want to know how hard you're going to work," Dolan said. "Do you have the things that are going to help us get press and get people through the door?"

Millen followed. "Are you going to be a shameless self-promoter?" he asked. "And bust your ass to do everything you can to put thirsty people in my club?"

A musician's online persona also comes under scrutiny. Not only will talent buyers listen to music, they'll look at how the musicians present themselves, the number of song plays they've had, and whether they have an active message board and lots of fans and friends.

A publicist - either a hired professional or competent band member - and a demonstrated zeal for their music will help sway a talent buyer.

Wayne said if she receives an e-mail from a band, she will have wanted to have already heard of it due to the buzz it's whipped up. "If you are writing to me for the first time, I want to recognize you," she said.

However, despite all the tips and advice offered, Bloom stressed a gentle approach. "I like the soft sell," he said. "I want the music to do the work."

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