Tag Archives: resources

Avoid the Flu
Health, Resources

Avoid the Flu this Season: What You Need to Know

Avoid the FluIn North America, millions of people are sickened, hundreds of thousands are hospitalized, and more than 100 million workdays are lost, due to the flu each year. It’s important to take every precaution to not have to cancel gigs. Don’t risk sidelining your career due to illness. Do your best to avoid the flu this season. 

Your best defense may be to get vaccinated. Flu vaccine effectiveness depends on how well the vaccine matches the dominant strain of influenza circulating in a particular year. This year’s shot will offer protection against the H1N1 flu virus and two other flu viruses expected this season. A vaccine that protects against four strains of the virus will be available, as will a high-dose flu vaccine for adults age 65 years and older. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), when the vaccine is well-matched, it can reduce the risk of flu by about 50%.

It takes up to two weeks to build immunity after receiving a flu shot, but you can benefit from the vaccine even after flu season is underway. Typically, the flu hits in October, peaks in January or February, and can run well into spring. Experts say that for some populations, like the elderly, the vaccine may wear off faster. But because it’s unknown when the flu will strike, it’s best for people to get their flu shots sooner rather than later.      

Who should not get a flu shot?

Check with your doctor if you have had a serious reaction to a previous flu vaccine. Generally, it’s inadvisable for these individuals.  

Most types of flu vaccines contain a small amount of egg protein. A mild egg allergy is not cause for alarm, but if you have a severe egg allergy, you should be vaccinated in a setting with medical personnel who can respond to a severe allergic reaction. There are flu vaccines approved for use in people age 18 years and older that do not contain egg proteins. Consult your doctor about your options.

What are the flu vaccine delivery options?

This year the vaccine is recommended as an injection only. The CDC no longer recommends nasal spray flu vaccinations because in the last three flu seasons, the spray has been ineffective.

The injection is usually given in a muscle in the arm. The FDA has also approved an alternative for adults aged 18-64. The intradermal flu vaccine is injected into the skin, instead of the muscle, and requires 40% less antigen than the regular flu shot.

Can the vaccine give me the flu?

The vaccine’s killed (inactivated) viruses enable the body to develop the antibodies necessary to ward off influenza viruses, but cannot give you the flu. However, you may develop flu-like symptoms—muscle aches and a fever—for a day or two after receiving a flu shot. This may be a side effect of your body’s production of protective antibodies.

It takes about two weeks for the flu shot to take full effect. If you are exposed to the influenza virus shortly before or during that time period, you may catch the flu.

What other illnesses mimic the flu?

Flu symptoms include fever, chills, malaise, dry cough, loss of appetite, and body aches. Because this is the body’s natural response to fighting infection, other illnesses mimic flu symptoms. Some of the more well-known conditions include meningitis, tuberculosis, food poisoning, hepatitis, Hodgkin’s disease, and Lyme disease.

What kind of protection does the flu vaccine offer?

The flu vaccine is generally more effective among healthy children two years old and older and adults age 64 and younger. The elderly and people with particular medical conditions may develop less immunity after receiving a flu shot.

According to the CDC, when the match between the flu vaccine and circulating strains is more precise, a flu shot is 71% effective in reducing flu-related hospitalizations among adults. The flu shot may reduce a child’s risk by 74%.

What are other ways I can avoid the flu?

Most flu viruses are not spread directly by airborne particles, like coughs and sneezes, but by direct contact. Hand washing is the first line of defense. Wash your hands often and avoid touching your face, especially your nose and eyes. Carry hand sanitizer and use it throughout the day.

Bar soap can be a breeding ground for many viruses and bacteria. When possible, use liquid soap. Hand towels should be changed frequently for the same reason. Wipe down surfaces such as stair rails, telephones, countertops, desks, music stands, doorknobs, and grocery carts. Clean your mouthpiece each time you handle it and avoid touching any part that will make contact with your lips.

Germs survive in stagnant air so open the windows and air out your home or practice room. Avoid breathing in smoke. Smoke can increase your susceptibility to viruses. If you have no choice but to play in a smoke-filled room, step outdoors for fresh air during breaks.

Rest, exercise regularly, stay hydrated, eat a nutritious diet, and try to manage your stress.

How do I determine if I have a cold or the flu?

Cold symptoms include runny nose, sneezing, and coughing. Influenza symptoms are more acute, accompanied by fever, extreme fatigue, sore throat, headache, and muscle aches.

Prescription medications, such as Tamiflu, may reduce the length of the illness, but  must be taken within the first 48 hours of showing symptoms. You can sometimes get a prescription before showing symptoms, if a family member has been diagnosed with the flu.

Although there is no cure for the flu (or the common cold), you will recover more quickly by following some simple advice. First, stay at home and rest. Try to avoid spreading the illness to colleagues and other musicians with whom you are in close contact. Physicians recommend drinking plenty of fluids and avoid alcoholic beverages, which are dehydrating.

On average, the duration of the flu is about a week. Seek medical advice immediately if you experience high or prolonged fever; difficulty breathing or shortness of breath; pain or pressure in the chest; dizziness or fainting; confusion; or vomiting.

Where can I get vaccinated?

Flu vaccines are offered at doctor’s offices. If you do not have a regular doctor or health care practitioner, you may be able to get a flu vaccine at a pharmacy, urgent care clinic, or a university  or public health center. To find a flu vaccine location near you, go to the flu shot map (http://flushot.healthmap.org/).

Cool Tools, Products

Bass Clone

Bass Clone is a chorus pedal with features especially designed for bass. A combination of modulated and dry signals, its crossover switch cuts low end from the modulated signal so the pedal delivers a more accurately articulated bottom end with excellent tone definition. Bass Clone’s treble control affects the whole signal, while the bass control only affects the dry half. Together with the crossover switch, they provide precise sound shaping for a tight, focused bass guitar sound with well-defined low end and shimmering chorus on top. The Electro-Harmonix Bass Clone features compact design and true bypass switching. It can run on a ct-ehx-bassclone_right9V battery or adapter.

www.ehx.com

How to Play Blues Fusion Guitar
Recent News

How to Play Blues Fusion Guitar

Blues fusion merges the soulfulness of the blues with the sophistication of jazz. This book with online audio access will show you the key elements of blues fusion—scales, chords, and arpeggios—and how to use them. You will look at the gear used by masters of the style like Robben Ford of Local 47 (Los Angeles, CA), Larry Carlton of Local 257 (Nashville, TN), Mike Stern and John Scofield of Local 802 (New York City), and Eric Johnson of Local 433 (Austin, TX), and explore their music.

How to Play Blues Fusion Guitar, by Joe Charupakorn, Hal Leonard Corporation, www.halleonard.com.

neck pain
Health, Resources

Finding Relief from Neck Pain

Editor’s note: Always check with a physician if you are experiencing pain, as well as before beginning a new physical activity.

Chronic neck pain stems largely from poor posture and daily exertion. Taking simple measures to realign one’s body can decrease the odds of having to live with chronic pain. 

Our bodies are designed to work in concert with gravity. Poor posture causes a slew of problems such as inflammation, nerve compression, and limited range of motion. In some cases, it leads to acute conditions such as degenerative disc disease. If the neck is habitually thrust forward, in front of the shoulders, the pull and weight of the head places undue stress on the vertebrae of the lower neck. Our heads can weigh 10-15 pounds, which is a lot of strain. The muscles of the upper back must compensate to balance the weight. Simple stretches and exercises performed on a regular basis can offer long-term relief.

The Alexander Technique

A popular component of voice and music instruction is the Alexander Technique, which focuses on the head and spine. This correlation determines the quality of overall coordination. The exercises within this curriculum are well established and offer positive physical benefits. The approach centers on not overworking the neck muscles and the head being properly positioned and balanced, at the top of the spine. For more information, go to the American Society for the Alexander Technique at http://www.amsatonline.org/alexander-technique.

Take Care Moving Instruments

Never carry a heavy instrument with one hand or on one shoulder. For better distribution of weight, straps should be long enough to go across the chest. Use a bag or case with wheels whenever possible to transport heavier stringed instruments. Bend from the knees and keep the weight close to the body when picking up heavy equipment.

Gentle Neck Stretches

Free Up the Muscles. Let your neck muscles relax, and let your head rotate slightly forward, and go up. Slowly, and very slightly lower the tip of your nose while the crown of your head moves up. Let your sitting bones release down into the chair, in opposition to your head moving up, neither slumping nor straining. Reduce the neck tension again. Let your head rotate forward, and go up.

With practice you can release neck muscles and reduce neck tension. In time, you will realize when and how you are creating tension in your neck.

Seated Neck Release. Sitting cross-legged on the floor, or in a chair with your feet flat on the ground, extend your right arm next to your right knee or along the right side of the chair. Place your left hand lightly on the top of your head and slowly tilt your head to the left. Apply gentle pressure with your hand to increase the stretch. For a deeper stretch, hold onto your right knee or the seat of the chair. This stabilizes the torso and allows you to isolate the stretch on the side of your neck. Hold for 30 seconds, slowly lift your head and repeat on the other side.

Seated Clasping Neck Stretch. For a deep stretch for the back of your neck and your upper back, sit comfortably in a chair or on the floor. Clasp your hands and bring both palms to the back of your head. Sitting tall, ground your hips firmly into your seat. From there, begin to gently press your hands down toward your thighs, tucking your chin into your chest. As you press down, use the heels of your palms to softly pull your head away from your shoulders to intensify the stretch. Hold for at least 30 seconds, slowly lift your head and release your hands.

Behind-the-Back Neck Stretch. This standing stretch provides a deep stretch in the sides of your neck. Stand with your feet slightly apart, about hip distance, arms by your sides. Reach both hands behind your buttock and hold onto your left wrist with your right hand. Use your right hand to gently straighten your left arm and pull it away slightly. To increase the stretch in your neck, slowly lower your right ear toward your shoulder. Hold for 30 seconds and then switch sides.

For more neck stretches to reduce tension, go to http://www.arthritis.org/living-with-arthritis/exercise/workouts/simple-routines/neck-pain-exercises.php.

Howard Shore Collection Volumes 1 and 2
Books-Resources, Products

Howard Shore Collection Volumes 1 and 2

Howard Shore Collection Volumes 1 and 2Academy Award winner Howard Shore is best known for his elegant and eclectic television and film scores. Volume 1 is a compendium of 22 of the multi award-winning composer’s most well-known titles for piano and vocals, including: “Billy’s Theme” (The Departed); “Gollum’s Song” (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers); and “Saturday Night Live” (opening theme). Volume 2 features faithful arrangements of 24 of his best known titles: “Birthday March” (Big), “Brooklyn Heights 3” (Gangs of New York), “Dreaming of Bag End” (The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey), “Jacob’s Theme” (The Twilight Saga: Eclipse), and “Portrait of John Doe” (Seven).

The Howard Shore Collection, Volumes 1 and 2, Alfred Music, www.alfred.com.

Daniels’ Orchestral Music
Books-Resources, Products

Daniels’ Orchestral Music

Daniels’ Orchestral MusicDaniels’ Orchestral Music is an in-depth guide for conductors, music programmers, orchestra librarians, and students researching orchestral programs. This updated fifth edition contains more than 8,500 entries, organized alphabetically by composer and title. Each entry includes the piece’s date of composition, duration, and instrumentation. Appendices include lists of chorus and solo works, plus lists of instrumental works by instrumentation, duration, those intended for youth concerts, anniversaries of composers, and composer groups. The “Orchestralogy” appendix provides a bibliography and gives Internet resources, institutions, and organizations of interest to orchestra professionals.

Daniels’ Orchestral Music, Fifth Edition, by David Daniels, Rowman & Littlefield, www.rowman.com.

Lyme Disease
Health, Resources

Lyme Disease Diagnosis and Precautions

According to the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Lyme disease is the fastest growing vector-borne infectious disease in the US. The number of cases has increased 25-fold since national surveillance began in 1982, now infecting some 300,000 people a year.

The disease is transmitted by the blacklegged tick and the Western blacklegged tick whose range is spreading north. The most recent surveys by CDC biologists show that they are found in more than 45% of US counties, compared to only 30% in 1998.

Once only in Ontario, Canada, Lyme-carrying ticks are now found in almost all the Canadian provinces. The Public Health Agency reported 500 cases of Lyme disease in 2014 and 700 in 2015.

Misdiagnosis

Chronic Lyme disease patients may face a long hard fight to recovery, but first it’s a battle to get the correct diagnosis. Songwriter and actor Kris Kristofferson of Local 257 (Nashville, TN) faced a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s, before he was tested and diagnosed with Lyme disease, according to recent interviews with his wife, Lisa. After many years of suffering with painful fibromyalgia, memory loss, and depression, he began aggressive treatment for Lyme disease and his health improved. Luckily, Lisa was an intuitive advocate who recognized that, cognitively, something did not add up.

The unfortunate reality is that Lyme disease often goes undiagnosed because doctors are not looking for it. Patients and physicians rely on telltale signs: a tick on the skin, the bull’s eye rash (Erythema Migrans (EM) rash), and joint pain. But research shows only 50%-60% of patients recall a tick bite, and the rash is reported in only 35%-60% of patients. Joint swelling typically occurs in only 20%-30%
of patients, and is easily masked by the prevalent use of over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications.

Adding to the problem, people who have Lyme disease can test negative until their body builds up antibodies. Other patients can test false positive due to autoimmune disorders. The CDC recommends a two-tier testing process.

When Lyme disease is misdiagnosed during the early stages, it progresses to a chronic form that’s even more difficult to diagnose and treat. Symptoms can be debilitating, including severe fatigue, anxiety, headaches, and joint pain that mimic other conditions. Meanwhile, the disease causes complications involving the heart, nervous system, muscles, and joints. Patients may suffer through a complicated maze of specialists in search of appropriate treatment.

Treatment

If you live in an endemic area for Lyme disease and suspect you may have been infected, prophylactic treatment for at least three weeks is advised. Early treatment will prevent the body from mounting an antibody response, and subsequent testing for Lyme will be negative.

Antibiotic choice presents another host of problems. Doxycycline also treats other tick-borne pathogens, including Q Fever, and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. However, the parasites may carry bacteria not responsive to doxycycline. One side-effects are sun sensitivity and stomach problems. The typical 100mg twice daily dose may not reach therapeutic levels. Amoxicillin and Cefuroxime are better tolerated, but do not cover as wide a spectrum of infections.

Prevention and Precautions

Avoid tick-infested areas, especially in spring and early summer when nymph ticks feed. Adult ticks are more of a threat in fall. Ticks favor moist, shaded environments, especially leafy wooded areas and overgrown grassy habitats.

• Wear light-colored clothing to spot ticks more easily.

• Walk in the middle of designated trails.

• Wear closed-toed shoes.

• Avoid low-lying brush or long grass.

• Tuck pant legs into your socks to prevent ticks from crawling up your legs.

• Use insect repellents containing  DEET or Icaridin on skin and clothing.

• Check clothing for ticks often, then shower or bathe within two hours of being outdoors to wash away loose ticks.

While tick transmission is most common, new studies indicate that there may be other ways to contract Lyme, including blood transfusions or mosquito bites.

For a symptoms checklist go to:
www.lymedisease.org.

Staying Healthy as a Musician
Health, Resources

Athletes and the Arts: Staying Healthy as a Musician

by Randall W. Dick, M.S., FACSM 

Staying Healthy as a Musician

Lessons from the Sports World

Performing artists are athletes. Just like “sport” athletes they:

• Practice or perform almost every day

• Play through pain

• Compete in challenging environments

• Experience little “off season”

• Face extreme competition

• Face real risk of career-threatening injury

Yet, performing artists rarely have access to the injury prevention, nutrition, and practice and competition guidelines afforded most sports athletes, even at the youth level. Performing artists—musicians, dancers, singers, conductors, actors, and marching band members—of all ages and their instructors need this information, along with education and research associated with optimizing  performance and unique performance related problems.

Why the Concern?

Consider these factors:

• In one year, 64% of world-class drum corps had members who developed stress fractures.

• 50% of all musicians have some form of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL).

• 75% of orchestra instrumentalists will develop at least one musculoskeletal disorder from playing during their lifetimes.

Initiated in 2008 and formally launched in 2013, Athletes and the Arts (www.athletesandthearts.com) is a multi-organizational initiative that recognized that athletes exist throughout the performing arts community and that established performance, wellness, and injury prevention research for sport athletes is also applicable to performing artists. Health and wellness are generally foreign concepts in the performing arts community.

Athletes and the Arts (AATA) believes sports medicine physicians have the skill set to expand their practices to an entirely new and underserved population once they understand the needs and key risk factors of performing artists. Music instructors can address wellness, hearing, and cross-training, similarly to the way sports coaches introduce injury prevention initiatives.

Put Practice and Performance
in Perspective

At some point the number of practice hours may hurt rather than help. Consider focused practice segments with different goals in each session. Rote repetition for extended periods of time has not proven successful.

Large increases in the time spent practicing increases the risk of injury. If the volume or intensity of practice must increase, do it gradually.

Cross-train: employ a mental or physical activity that allows the body to focus on something different. Emphasize both mental and physical rest and recovery.

How to Put These Findings
into Practice

Select appropriate repertoire for yourself and your students. Select repertoire that challenges growth but does not overwhelm  physically or musically.

Learn and teach healthy practice strategies. Seek a problem-solving strategy
to avoid mindless practice. Break up
practice sessions to enhance concentration and avoid overuse.

Observe, record, and review the strength and posture needed during practice. Don’t underestimate the value of core strength when it comes to posture and being strong enough to hold their posture (or instrument) for long stretches.

Promote the joy of performance. Open yourself and your students up to a range of different performance opportunities in order to feel comfortable in any performance setting.

Avoid Overuse/Burnout

Consider repetitive motion, a major source of injury in the sport world.

• About 150 pitches per team are thrown in a professional baseball game.

• Around 8,000 steps are taken by each field player during a soccer match.

• Approximately 50,000 steps are taken in a marathon.

• About 3 million musical notes are played in a full-length Broadway performance.

Youth in today’s culture are driven to train early and extensively. Early specialization and extensive training creates documented risks of overuse injury, burnout, stress, and less enjoyment in youth sports.

The performing artist faces many of these same challenges, but specific research for this population is scarce. Minimize the risk of physical and mental overuse by monitoring how often and intensely you perform.

Noise-Induced Hearing Loss

Be aware of exposure to both the intensity of the sound (measured in decibels or dB) and its duration. Government standards for occupations with high noise exposure have
a foundation exposure value of no more than 85 dB for an eight-hour period. For every three dB increase, time exposure should
be halved:

• 88 dB for four hours per day

• 91 dB for two hours per day

• 94 dB for one hour per day

The dynamic range of music, live or recorded, can peak at or above 95 dB. Normal piano practice ranges from 60 dB to 90 dB, more intense, 70 dB to 105 dB. Hearing damage can occur when exposed to 94 dB for 60 minutes or less daily. Protect your hearing by limiting your exposure to loud noise when not performing, using musicians’ ear plugs on stage, and getting an annual hearing test with an audiologist.

Find a Health Professional
and Wellness Coach

Establish a relationship with a health professional before an injury occurs. Let your physician know you are a performing artist, demonstrate your craft, and explain how often/intensely you perform. Keep a performance diary to document a “typical” week of practice, performance, and other related activity. Insist on regular hearing checks. Your healthcare provider needs to understand how you play your instrument in order to counsel on injury prevention.

Resources

The Athletes and the Arts (AATA) website, www.athletesandthearts.com, is a resource  for artist health information through its own content and links to the 13 collaborating organization websites. There are one-pagers on subjects ranging from hearing loss to performance anxiety to nutrition. Use the website to educate yourself, your colleagues, and your students to enhance their long-term wellness and performance.

Summary

Performing artists are an underserved population related to medical coverage, care, injury prevention and wellness. Your short-term and long-term health will benefit from a knowledgeable medical team that understands what you do (including the volume and intensity of your activities). Your body is an extension of your instrument. Be as proactive about protecting your health as you are your instrument.

—Randall Dick, M.S., FACSM, is a member of the American College of Sports Medicine. He worked for 20 years with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, managing its sports medicine and injury prevention programs. He has authored more than 50 peer-reviewed publications and serves on the US Lacrosse Sports Science Committee and as a consultant for Major League Baseball injury surveillance. He began developing the Athletes and the Arts initiative after a conversation with the New Orleans-based Preservation Hall Jazz Band.

exercise as medicine
Health, Resources

Exercise as Medicine for Your Music

by: Patrick Gannon, PhD

We all know that exercise is good for you. But you may not know all that exercise is good for.

Besides promoting general fitness, musicians need exercise to strengthen their legs, core, and upper body to meet the physical demands of daily practice and performance. This is particularly important because musicians are vulnerable to performance-related injuries. Exercise promotes muscle balance that offsets the physical asymmetries that commonly occur among instrumentalists. And it offers the added benefit of reducing stress.

Now, a broader recognition of how exercise impacts the mind and body is emerging. The American College of Sports Medicine, in concert with the American Medical Association, promote the idea that “exercise is medicine” to reduce risk factors for aging, diabetes, dementia, mood disorders, and sleep. Think of it as a longevity pill that is free, readily available, and has no side effects. 

Beyond being a medicine, exercise can also be a tool. The trick is to prescribe exercise purposefully to activate certain brain functions. For example, by varying the type of exercise (cardio/aerobic or weight training), as well as the intensity level (high/moderate), frequency, and timing of exercise (before practicing or performing), you can prime the brain to help with anxiety, learning, memory, mood—even creativity.

Anxiety Management

Cardio exercise may be the best natural treatment for performance anxiety, including state (situational) and trait (dispositional) anxiety. Exercise reduces anxiety by discharging muscle tension, increasing cardiovascular capacity, and disrupting negative thoughts. Physiologically, cardio stimulates the production of calming neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, and gamma-Aminobutyric acid (GABA), which dampen anxiety.

Two ways to use exercise to reduce anxiety:

1) Thirty minutes of vigorous cardio exercise will immediately reduce anxiety. Although musicians are often discouraged from exercising before performing, it can be helpful. However, the exercise must be completed at least three hours before stepping on stage, allowing sufficient time for rest.

2) For trait anxiety, ongoing exercise several times per week, for 30-45 minutes, will lower the resting heart rate.

Learning

Who would have thought that exercise could also be a learning tool? Several studies have shown that exercise improves working memory, attention, and processing speed. Exercise stimulates neurogenesis—the creation of new neurons in the hippocampus that builds capacity for learning. It also stimulates long-term potentiation (LTP) by binding neural cells together that encode learning.

Two ways to apply exercise to learning:

1) High intensity exercise (at 60% to 80% of maximum heart rate) redirects blood flow away from the prefrontal cortex (PFC), thereby inhibiting learning (recall how hard it is to think straight when pushing your physical limit). But blood flow to the PFC is gradually restored, which then optimizes brain functions for several hours afterwards. This is why exercising before practicing makes sense.

2) Combine moderate exercise (at a 120-130 bpm heart rate) with mental rehearsal of the material that you want to learn. Because exercise stimulates the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), new neural circuits are created that encode learning. This is essentially self-directed neuroplasticity in action.

Try these exercises to promote learning and memory:

• Do 30 minutes of moderate cardio exercise while listening to the music that you want to learn or 30 minutes of high intensity exercise an hour before practicing that music.

• Divide the music up into sections and create associations to each section with your own memories, feelings, and images. These narrative links will serve as cues for memory retrieval.

• Follow up with moderate exercise while mentally rehearsing the music with the narrative imagery included. Repeat this process on alternating days until fully memorized.

Creativity

Studies show that creativity is stimulated by the interplay between the hippocampus, amygdala, and PFC. Creativity happens by holding diverse concepts in mind through working memory, using cognitive flexibility (and tolerance for uncertainty) to play with these concepts, and then focusing attention on the generation of new ideas.

Because exercise lowers the activation of the dorsolateral part of the PFC, old ideas are held back somewhat, allowing new ideas to emerge. But you must keep your mind open—and be patient with the process—until a new idea streams into consciousness.

Here’s how to exercise to stimulate creativity:

• Do 20-30 minutes of moderate cardio exercise on an elliptical trainer or stationary bike while mentally rehearsing the music you plan to practice that day. Allow new ideas to pop into awareness and then track the ideas as they unfold.

• The same technique can be applied to problem solving, procrastination, and planning. By holding the question or issue in mind while exercising, new ideas will emerge. Remember, listening to your intuition and “going with the flow” are what generates creativity.

Patrick Gannon, PhD is a clinical and performance psychologist working in San Francisco and nationally via Skype. He is a member of the Performing Arts Medicine Association and a national presenter on performance psychology. He welcomes comments and inquiries on this article. Visit his website (PeakPerformance101.com) or email him (drpatrickgannon@gmail.com).

Legislative Update, Resources

Taking Advantage of Federal Arts Resources

This month, we feature a new initiative that the AFM believes will be helpful to members who are looking for expanded opportunities with the federal government. The Federal Arts Connection was born from efforts initiated by AFM President Ray Hair and me to highlight the vast array of arts-related federal programs that members can use to build their professional portfolios.

By now, you have read in the International Musician about Hair’s visits with the leadership of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Smithsonian Institution, and the US Department of State. We are pleased to have been hosted by agency chairs, department directors, and department chiefs, each of whom have recognized the important role the AFM has played historically in the development of arts and entertainment over its 119-year existence. 

Each agency has made a commitment to include the AFM as an important partner in their deliberations and they are excited about including AFM members as a resource. Hence, the Federal Arts Connection project is now an essential part of our work on your behalf. We hope that you will use this resource.  More about this work will be outlined in the “members only” section of the AFM website.

We look forward to hearing your stories about grants awarded to you and about international travel you accomplish under the auspices of the US Government. AFM President Hair and I engage in constant dialogue with agency officials. Please feel free to contact my office if you have questions about this project.  Many thanks for your membership and for your support of our union’s government relations programs.

This first edition of the Federal Arts Connection (below) features a few of the resources available. Additional resources will be unveiled each month.

Dear AFM Member

This is a monthly source for information relating to federal grant making, performance, education, and research opportunities for musicians interested in project funding and international travel as artistic representatives of the US. Though extensive, this list is not exhaustive. Each month we will highlight different federal agencies with arts-related components. We suggest that you make direct contact with local federal agencies, government councils, and non-government organizations (NGOs) to help you identify other possibilities. This list is only a starting point, to successfully engage these opportunities it may be necessary to contact the agency directly for requirement details. The AFM Office of Government Relations is happy to help you identify as many federal resources as possible.

 

Websites

The Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance:
www.cfda.gov
(Outlines every federal program offered. Serious researchers can search music, performing arts, and similar keywords to get to the programs listed. For grant writers, in seemingly
unrelated agencies there may be
opportunities for creative thinking about how the arts/music can positively impact American communities.)

The Federal Register
www.federalregister.gov
(Search music, arts, culture)
National Endowment for the Arts
www.arts.gov/artistic-fields/music
National Medal of the Arts
www.arts.gov/honors/medals
National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)
www.neh.gov/grants
NEH (Music)
www.neh.gov/search/content/Music

The White House: Music and the Arts
www.whitehouse.gov/performances
Arts Education
www.whitehouse.gov/champions/arts-education
National Medal of The Arts
www.arts.gov/honors/medals

US Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) of Note Fulbright Program: www.eca.state.gov/fulbrightexchanges.state.gov/us/special-focus-areas

Twitter
@ECAatState
@ECA_AS (Assistant Secretary)
@FilmShowcase (American Film Showcase)
@UIIWP (International Writing Program)

Facebook
Exchange Programs At State (ECA)
American Film Showcase
Center Stage (Artists from Abroad)
OneBeat American Music Abroad

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YouTube
Exchanges Videos (ECA)
American Music Abroad