Linda Rogers, whom I know as Kate Miranda on Second Life, is an arts administrator who has worked with many organizations, including Opera Ontario. On her blog, “Bread and Roses” Linda discusses how classical performing artists can expect to get more bookings:
So you want to know how to get more bookings as a classical performing artist?
Daily as an arts manager I receive dozens of unsolicited emails and material from artists I've never heard of and those materials are instantly discarded to clear my inbox and desk of excess clutter. Meanwhile I sometimes meet talented artists who ask, "how do I get booked to play more?"
Quite a number of years ago I had my first fulltime job in arts administration in a major US orchestra. I assisted the General Manager in administering the contracting of guest artists. The first thing I was told was to throw out all unsolicited material--no one wanted to see it, or hear it. I was horrified at the waste and for awhile made the effort to return the material--only to be met with angry inquiries and indignant letters about why I hadn't put the material in the correct hands! Needless to say, from then on I simply trashed unsolicited promotional packages.
So if emails, glossy packages and promotional CD's won't get you a booking, what will?
Find out the answer by reading the rest of her post here!
