Since the COVID pandemic began, I’ve been racking my brain in trying to come up with new ideas about how I should be functioning in this new reality of musical life. I feel grateful to have conceived and been facilitating the Music for Self-Isolation project, but I still feel that our music community could use some more innovative ideas to deal with the present dire state.
I also feel grateful that I have been able to teach online all during the pandemic, so my flow of income to pay the bills has been steady. That along with the Music for Self-Isolation project and other creative projects…honestly, I’ve been busier than ever so my time to devote to something new is limited.
So if you’re a musician (or know a musician), here are some random ideas…
Concerts in an airport hangar…or at least in a very cavernous warehouse. It’s easy for a limited size audience to space out. It’s generally echo-ey so the sound can travel. Audience members would pay and get designated arrival and departure times using a specially-made app so they can socially distance. These spaces are indoors so it would deal with the issue of cold weather.
Musician bartering site…a website that musicians can subscribe to where they can trade instruments or gear. Also, musicians could exchange services…I’ll teach you to play the violin if you record my next album? With money being scarce, musicians need other ways to get what they need to move their skillset forward while helping each other in the meantime.
Make an awesome concert video that you can sell…not one of these impromptu single-camera live streams. Something with multiple cameras and pristine sound that can be shared exclusively or on DVD. There are many ideas out there to make something like this amazing! Sounds expensive? Why not get a bunch of your colleagues together who want to do the same type of thing and rent a production crew and facility together so there won’t be so much set-up cost and scheduling could be one after the other.
Promote and sell tickets to future live concerts now…who knows when concerts will resume, but ask your followers to buy tickets now anyway so you have some cash flow. Promote the venue and the programme of what will be performed. It’s like selling rain checks. Have policies in place to refund people their money in case it does not happen.
Teach or Share Knowledge…but only if you do it from the right spot in your heart. It’s not just about making money but nurturing someone else’s journey into music…for me that’s a pretty sacred thing. This can be in the form of teaching individual lessons online or making videos on something you’re expert at and selling those videos in the form of an online course. There are a lot of sites out there that host that type of thing but Udemy comes to mind first and foremost. We live in the day of the DIYer. People yearn to learn how to do things…especially music. Here you can help people with that along with building your fan base for your musical pursuits.
Feel free to use or vary these ideas. If they ever come to fruition, let me know! If something like these already exist, let me know! Bottom line, despite how challenging these times become, we all have the ability to make something new and exciting happen. As artists, we are wired to be creative and original. No virus will ever stop that from happening!
