Managing a Large Animal

More often than not orchestras and bands are referred to as well oiled machines, but I prefer to think of them as unpredictable animals with minds of their own. Because you truly have no idea what will happen, no matter how well prepared they are, anything can come flying around the corner and send you off track. That’s where the preparation comes in, to be able to handle the unruly curves that life brings. From the driver’s seat of a carriage to the throne behind a drum set to the stool behind the timpani: they all have one thing in common; the drivers, drummers, and percussionists around the world are all driving large unpredictable animals.

As a carriage driver my horse, Roxie, has taught me many lessons in such a short time about managing and more specifically micro-managing. In fact that it’s more important to simply manage rather than micro-manage. If I let Roxie go the way she has been trained and do what she knows how to do, with only small adjustments from me once in a while, she will be fine. But as soon as I begin micro-managing, constantly pulling on the lines in different directions, she immediately becomes confused often times stopping in her tracks until I give her a clear sense of direction.

I’ve experience this same scenario first hand playing in bands and even in orchestras. The last time I played timpani for the University of Utah Philharmonia we were performing Stravinksy’s The Rite of Spring and I was on the first timpani part. I was in the drivers seat of this gigantic orchestra, we had combined brass and strings with Utah State University, and I could feel the raw power of the beast in front of me. I knew that we had done our preparation in rehearsals but what would happen once we threw in unknown variables and double the amount of players? With a piece like The Rite of Spring, there really is no room for error. There’s so much going on all the time that you have to be spot on, especially as the timpani player, because everyone else is cueing off of your part. But very much like driving a draft horse through the city traffic, you have to know when to make small adjustments but be weary about too many constant changes, for fear of running into a bystander.

There’s also a level of mutual trust that must be achieved so that both the driver and the animal know that any situation that approaches will be handled appropriately. This process can be scary because until this mutual trust is earned there’s a series of moments that can be highly volatile. But once this trust is reached between both parties, the days get much easier and bonds begin to be formed.

Again and Again Life Changes

Changes, again, are just around the corner. This time they are less drastic but just as tough and potentially life changing. You would think that after 20+ years of constant changing and adjusting I would, in some way, get used to it. Nope, still just as scary as before. The only real difference is that I know now that I can survive anything. Literally, anything that comes my way I know I can manage and make it through, even the worst-case scenarios. Minus an impending doom but let’s face it there’s no control in that situation anyway so why worry? I got this, I think.

After getting passed over for the PAS fall internship, the last month or so has brought about a new job, which I quite enjoy. Driving a horse drawn carriage around downtown Indianapolis. This is a job that honestly seemed unattainable for some reason. But after seeing a large handful of carriages downtown one day I got up the courage to call and ask one of the companies if they were looking for drivers, assuming they would turn me down because they were already well into their busy season. After an interview in person I started training just a few weeks later. The only thing that postponed my training was going out on tour with the Lindsey Stirling crew for a week. After I returned from the tour I wrapped up the PAS spring internship and began training on my evenings after the museum.

I’ve been driving a carriage solo (senza trainer) for three weeks now and I can say that its one of the best jobs I’ve had in a long time. Mind you, its still a job not playing drums, buts its definitely at the top of my “Skills to Maintain” list for future work. It’s really nice because you get to work independently most of the night, improvising routes to keep on time, working through traffic with a 2000 lb. draft horse and carriage, and expecting the unexpected because when Roxie (my horse) senses a skateboard anywhere near, its time to go whether there are cars in front of her or not. So be aware the next time you cut off a horse drawn carriage to make your turn downtown. The drivers have planned ahead to ensure enough room to move if anything happens, but if you suddenly take away all control by cutting in front of them, don’t be surprised if you end up with hoof prints in your trunk. Besides that getting paid weekly is wonderful as well as tips on a nightly basis. The constantly flow of money, regardless of how big or small, makes it much easier to plan for the future.

On top of all of that, I found out yesterday that I will be returning to the Lindsey Stirling crew for her European tour in October. This is a major development, as it will now allow Madison and I to make the move to Orlando with far less stress than anticipated. The week I spent out with the tour previously was such a great experience that I jumped at the opportunity to do it again. This time will be for roughly six weeks. The tough part of this is that it puts a huge space between Madison and I for a period of time, which is not what we need right now. But she knows as well as I do, that we need this. Not only is it a good amount of money to bring home to pay for our move and settle in a better place, but its a grand opportunity for me as a musician and stagehand to network and build upon the years of groundwork I’ve been laying out.

So for the next two months I will continue driving carriages, then off to Europe for a six-week tour. When I return I will continue driving carriages through the holiday season and then by the end of the year I will be moved to Orlando with my beautiful girlfriend and at least one of her dogs (Minnie), the other dog (Darcy) and the rest of our things from Utah will hopefully follow soon after. Lots of planning and lots of logistics to work out but moving to Orlando I will have more than a handful of opportunities to pursue for work: musician, stagehand at SIR and LMG, and now carriage driver. Thanks to years of hard work and determination, and lots of help from supportive friends and family things are slowly coming together.

Bringing Love into Fear

Hesitation marks the beginning

Greatness is abound

But not for the weak

The passion that drives

Insanity ensues when

What’s expected is not imbued

Detours break piece by piece

Each rounded corner

Until sharp edges remain

Such a delicate yet resilient thing

The heart, is not to be tampered

But fear drives me to continue

Losing you is not in the book

But my dreams speak of it nightly

Pushing me to try harder each day

Trying may be suffocating us

What else am I to do?

But push on and hope we can endure

Rivers flow to lakes

Flowing to the never ending sea

Fueling my passion, my love for you.

Where's My Voice?

We spend years practicing to the soundtracks of other people’s lives, researching, listening, and playing along to try to catch a glimpse of something special.  I love listening to others’ music for inspiration but never to recreate. I spent far too many years trying to sound like someone else while playing. I know the purpose is to be the greatest we can be, but why not instead focus on making the greatest sound that is uniquely your own?

Now I’m not saying you shouldn’t go out of your way to listen to every kind of music for as much influence as possible, what I’m getting at is instead of going into a playing situation trying to sound like Dave Grohl, Stewart Copland, Saul Goodman, or Alan Abel; try instead to take those influences and roll them into your playing. To a certain extent this happens regardless because, let’s face it we are no Stewart Copland. But many spend hours; even years working to sound like that of others.

My point is that I don’t want to be the next Stewart Copland or Dave Grohl, I only want to be the first Clay Barnum! So to those drummers and percussionists out there that are sitting comfortably on their thrones doing just enough not to get noticed, but not too much to stand out, I’m coming!

I’m not a fan of stealing gigs, but if you’re not doing all that you can possibly do to be happy, productive, and improving yourself while doing what you love; then I’ll be there to show those around you what they’re missing. Power, passion, and persistence are my tools. I’m fighting for my life, complacency is your biggest weakness because you’ll never see me coming.

Perceptive Responsibility

It’s very interesting to me to see how others perceive responsibility. When you’re in high school its understandable that starting your first job you may not know how to work in that environment. But as time grows on and you hold more and more jobs, in my case 30+, you become adept at learning different processes and ultimately gain more and more responsibility.

I’ve balanced more scheduling conflicts and responsibility in the last 10 years than most people will see in a lifetime. But how does that translate to finding work? Traditional job applications or even resumes, the way the average business world sees them, do not leave room to quantify the type of skills that we learn as stagehands, musicians, or freelancers. We have to get even more creative in our writing and editing skills to show the traditional business world what we are capable of. Why would I want to embark into the business world after years of freelancing? Truth is, it still takes a traditional “day job” to pay the bills, for now. More so, what I’m confused about is people’s ability to underestimate me, even when they’ve had months to assess and see my work ethic in action.

It becomes interesting is when you spend years learning and gaining responsibility in some cases to the point of having other people’s lives in your hands (i.e., if you don’t do your job correctly they will die).  But when its time to switch jobs trying to convince another employer that you’re worthy of their responsibility to fly a desk is a little silly. I’ve spent countless hours running fly rails in my home theater where all of the weight in the air, if not proportioned correctly can damage and kill people, I’ve spent time managing groups of students whose creative education depends on me, and after six months of consistent efficient work at a desk where the most dangerous part of the job is handling cash in a drawer; DO NOT treat me like I’m brand new on the job. You hired me because I am older and have more experience than anyone else don’t under mind your own choice by treating me like a child.

But then to go from a small tour where I was responsible for building the main video wall only to return to the desk job to be treated like a new employee? Really? After driving a desk for more than 6 months I have now attained a job as a carriage driver downtown. That’s right; driving a 2000lb Belgian Draft horse through the crowded streets of Indianapolis, never mistake my capacity to accept responsibility. It’s not unlike driving a band behind a drum kit; one wrong move and it can crash into a parked car. 

There are a few points that I would like to finish up with. The first is that no matter what, you can do anything you put your mind to it’s all in how you approach it. The second is to always keep moving forward. Regardless of what you end up doing always keep your goals in mind. Everyday take a step toward your goals, don’t be afraid of responsibility, and learn to quantify the unquantifiable. Be creative in every endeavor.

One More Last Day

I have worked a lot of different jobs in my rotational experience around the sun. And because each job had a starting day it also eventually came to an end providing a last day on the job. Now I never thought that I would have quite so many last days but as it turns out sustaining a musical career takes a lot of non-musical jobs. So from job to job I have weaved in and out. In this process I have learned a few things.

There is always a job to be had; it’s just a matter of whether or not you’re willing to do said task. At times it may seem that there are no jobs anywhere but the truth is you just gotta get down and dirty or creative in how you’re looking or simply what you’re looking for. Don’t be afraid to do anything to accomplish a life goal.

The one most important thing that I've learned in my many and various jobs is the process of learning. As much as we take learning for granted because it is very much a part of nature and happens almost seamlessly for most; it couldn't be more overstated that we need to continue to understand the process of learning within ourselves and work to improve our ability to learn quickly. We need to work on the skills that cannot be quantified by tests and resumés (i.e., social interaction, work ethic, adaptability, etc.). The technical knowledge in any job can be learned by anyone simply because 1+1=2, but a horrible work-ethic plus an anti-social personality does not equate to a marketable or hirable employee.

Especially as drummers and percussionists, we are not likely to have a career where we are at the top of the hiring tier. Mainly we will most likely be working for someone else as a session musician, hired side-man for tour, or in a band with other musicians so it is important for us to be fully aware of how we interact with everyone around us. Basically, every step you take should be toward being a better person and learning as much as you can. There is an infinite amount of knowledge to be had especially in the realm of drums and percussion.

“I am doing everything I possibly can to achieve my goals every single day, for if I die tomorrow I will have no regrets.” This is something I think long and hard about almost every day. I constantly focus and re-focus on what I’m doing and where I’m headed because life has a tendency to throw curves at you and if you don’t pay attention those curves can send you sailing in a completely different direction than where you want to be. Not to say I don’t take those changes in stride and incorporate new information into my current plan, but I have a vision of where I want to be.

Although the last day at this internship will not likely be my final last day, if I cease to exist tomorrow I will know that I have done everything within my power to get accomplish my goals and earn a little bit of happiness. Thanks for the opportunities. Here’s to the future, come what may!

Six Months Have Come and Now are Gone

My, how time flies. As it does time passes continually but our perception of time can vary dramatically depending on our state of busy-ness or lack thereof. The past six months at PAS has been a roller coaster of projects ranging from small sporadic projects to large time consuming projects that seemed to have no end. But I am happy to report that all of the major projects have been completed and the remaining minor projects will successfully be wrapped up by the end of the week.

To give you an idea of the range of projects that have come across my desk or that I have proposed, I've compiled an overview:

482 marketing contacts called and/or emailed, 376 publisher contacts and 3253 reviews organized into a single cohesive document, 140 reviews personally processed and distributed, 183 scores and audio compiled and re-organized for the 2014 PASIC Listening Room, 47 tours ranging in age from 2 to 80+, 2 proposals written and submitted, 18 blog posts, 9 private and special events, and 9 well-known musicians met including (DJ Fontana, Gene Markowitz, Dan Hunt, Musicians and Cast Members from Memphis The Musical, Mark Schulman, Eva Gardner, Dr. Michael Bakan, Brian Dunn, and Porter Carrol), also got to pit sit in a fun show with Jeff Snider for Addams Family the Musical. I've even assisted in the photography of a few museum collection pieces that may or may not have been published in either Percussive Notes and/or Rhythm Scene, along with research for exhibit posters and articles to be written about various objects in the permanent collection.

On top of the various projects that been completed there are a handful of day-to-day tasks that the intern does to keep PAS and the Rhythm Discovery Center operating: Point of Sale cash handling, cleaning of collection and galleries, on-going inventory, receptionist, and security. These are all tasks that must be maintained on a daily basis to ensure the cleanliness and safety of our museum for our guests.

After a long, not so long, six months I am moving on to another job around the Indianapolis area where I will fulfill the remaining terms of my lease at my apartment. After that, my girlfriend and I are planning to move to Orlando where we can both pursue our musical dreams, auditioning for various performing groups and creating unique original music. Looking forward to lots of new things this year and I would personally like to thank the Percussive Arts Society in offering me this opportunity to see a little more of the inside track of the business side of music and a non-profit organization.

Here’s to the future, whatever it may bring!