Did you like the Publicist Parade? I learned many things, and here are two of them: 1. I send out press releases way too late and 2. I miss blogging when I don't get to do it. Decide for yourselves whether or not those two points are at all related. Here's what I didn't write about but wanted to this week:Is this black thing New York City Opera's new logo or is it just an image for the upcoming season?Because...And I mean...I also thought a lot about anticipation this week, which perhaps I will flesh out at a later point. I finally watched the … [Read more...]
Archives for May 2009
Rebecca Davis, Rebecca Davis PR
Publicist Log, Day 4: Today we have Rebecca Davis, who I have known 4eva, 4eva-eva. Rebecca was Director of Publicity at Universal Music Classical when I was Publicity Manager at IMG Artists, and then we worked on Hilary's Schoenberg/Sibelius exploits together, and then I covered for her at Universal when she was on maternity leave last fall. She's since started her own firm, and here's what she has to say for herself:Rebecca Davis is a publicity, promotions and marketing consultant with over ten years of experience working with musicians on … [Read more...]
Steven Swartz, Dotdotdotmusic
It's Publicists Gone Wild this week on Life's a Pitch. Each day, we'll have answers to the same eleven questions from different New York City publicists. Today, we have Steven Swartz, who hails from the publishing (and apparently ukulele) world(s)! Steven and I met...actually, when did we meet?...but our paths cross early and often at cool-kid "new music" events throughout the city.Steven Swartz never set out to be a publicist. He studied music and philosophy at Swarthmore College and earned a PhD in composition from University at Buffalo … [Read more...]
Jennifer Wada
This week on Life's a Pitch, the royal "we" is talking to NYC-based classical music publicists. Everyone gets the same questions, and presumably no one has seen anyone else's answers! Here's Jennifer Wada, with whom I had the pleasure of working on the Hilary Hahn/Josh Ritter concert at the Metropolitan Museum of Art last spring.Jennifer Wada is a New York-based public relations consultant in the performing arts whose clients include the Metropolitan Museum Concerts series, the Orchestra of St. Luke's, the George London Foundation for Singers, … [Read more...]
Christina Jensen, Christina Jensen PR
Since I'm going to try to keep my trap (fingers?) shut all week, I'll just say two quick things now: One. Last night at the bar Union Pool in Williamsburg, I received the best response yet to my response to the question, "So what do you do?" "So what do you do?" "I am a classical music publicist." "That sounds difficult." (The usual response is, "Oh. Cool. What does that mean?") This guy went on to ask what media opportunities there are for classical musicians, and of the outlets that do exist, how many of those translate to concert … [Read more...]
En masse
Are you sick of me? If you are, then next week on Life's a Pitch is just for you! All week long, I'll post interviews with other NYC-based classical musical publicists. Each independant publicist or firm has been asked the same set of questions, and hopefully no one cheated and shared answers (ahem). All your (well, at least my) publicity questions are sure to be answered, and by New York City's finest, so tune in starting Monday! … [Read more...]
Talk to me about alcohol, aka art and commerce
And now for something completely different. I got into an argument with a web designer once about whether a site should be in orange or green tones. He liked the orange, but the client liked the green. He then went behind my back and talked the client into the orange which made me furious because 1. the green was better and 2. this wasn't art for art's sake; the client was paying him and me to promote their product (in this case, themselves), not to win this designer awards or get him a spot in a gallery. (Are there physical galleries of … [Read more...]
Now, I didn’t go to biz-ness school or anything, but…
It's no small wonder magazines are folding. Here's what happened yesterday: I filled out an application to join MediaBistro and it asked me whether I wanted a free subscription to New York, Wired, Gourmet or W magazines. Erm...Wired?And then I thought, speaking of magazines, where the Murray Perahia have my New Yorkers and Vanity Fairs gone off to? And why didn't I get the last two issues of my beloved Domino, may she rest in peace. So I got on the horn with Conde Nast, only to learn that they had removed a "3" from my address for no apparent … [Read more...]
Captive audiences
About a month ago, I posted (here) about how box offices aren't open during and after performances:Presumably we are all 100% behind the artistic product we put into this world, so logic would dictate that the time patrons would be most willing to buy additional tickets would be directly following a performance they've just enjoyed. With that in mind, why aren't box offices open after 8pm? They close when the performance starts, so love your experience or not, you're not buying another ticket after the show unless you go home to your computer. … [Read more...]
Above the fold
My friend Joe e mailed me this morning, attached the following, and asked, "Does it seem like ads might now be more important than news?" … [Read more...]
Instead of a “them”
Aliza and I went to the equality rally hosted by the cast of Hair yesterday and were only mistaken for a couple once, far as we could tell. (To which she said, "Hey mister, she's my sister!" Sisters? We're close.)David Hyde Pierce and Cynthia Nixon were both fantastic speakers. The Mayor and the Governor showed up, which made me mildly regret snapping at a Bloomberg caller about term limits and The American Constitution the other day. The group behind the rally - which was apparently organized in just ten days - is called Broadway Impact. … [Read more...]
Talk to me about arts coverage
Circa once a week, I'll post an interview with someone who knows a whole 'lot more than I do about specific marketing and publicity topics. This week, I'm very excited to talk to my very first critic (well, for the blog, anyway): Denver Post arts critic Kyle MacMillan. Here's Kyle on having something to actually pitch, on enjoying the new-found benefits of a one-paper town, and on thinking globally/acting locally. An alumnus of the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University, Kyle MacMillan has been an arts critic for more than two … [Read more...]
Golden opportunities
Question: Why don't either of the two massive banners for the Lincoln Center 50th Anniversary at the Time Warner Center tell us how or with whom we will be celebrating? (The second banner hanging to the right of this one is identical.) What kind of programming and which artists will the festivities include? Are we not excited enough about this to put an exclamation point after "Anniversary"? That's too bad. Was there not space to maybe list some of the features of the new plaza? What's my motivation for going to LincolnCenter.org/50? Lots of … [Read more...]
Facing a dying nation
You had me at "when the moon", Broadway revival of Hair cast, but you've taken audience participation - or rather, cast participation - to a new level. From Perez Hilton, courtesy of my sister: … [Read more...]