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| Music Studio Recital Prep Checklist |
I've prepared a downloadable, printable Studio Recital Checklist for you to check out, which includes even more than I was able to put right here.
Find a Venue For Your Recital
You may already have a venue that you like to use, but if not, it can sometimes be difficult, depending on where you live. After moving to a new city (Miami), I found it extremely difficult to find a simple, inexpensive recital hall!! I tried local music stores to see if they had a recital hall attached that they rented out, and they were like, "Huh? Recital what now?" This surprised me because in Utah, where I had lived before (and where I live now), this is a very common thing, and for little or no money, one can easily hold a studio recital at the music store. Easy peasy. But I began to realize that this recital planning thing may not be so easy everywhere else. I searched and searched for a place to have this stinkin' recital, contemplated not having one at all, then in the end, I was able to use an LDS Church building for free. On my journey, though, I tried everything, and so I'm sharing some ideas for finding a decent venue, that won't cost you an arm and a leg.
Check into:
- Local music stores (it's a start, and maybe you won't be disappointed, as I was)
- Music schools
- Universities, colleges (try the music dept. office, maybe they can direct you to the right person for the recital hall reservations)
- Churches
- Public or private schools
- City and community centers
- Senior assisted living and care centers (why not add to your audience and provide a great service to others?)
- Libraries
- Parks (Outdoor concert? You can decide if it's too risky for you...)
- Or maybe even the home of one of your students
Know what you want and need before you call or visit. What is your budget? Do you need a piano? Music stands? Chairs? How much seating capacity do you need? I've made up a Studio Recital Checklist with some more sample questions to ask the venue before you book.
Hire Accompanist(s) and/or Other Collaborating Musician(s)
You may already have musicians you work with regularly, but if you don't, here are some ideas on where to look. Again, try your network of other teachers and musicians in the area. This is the best resource for everything! Ask your students/parents, maybe they used a particular pianist in the past or a former teacher knows of someone good. Call around to music stores and schools. You'll find someone.
Many colleges offer collaborative piano courses, where the students are required to accompany throughout the semester. This can be an inexpensive option, and the students are generally performance majors who play very well. You can also try the music department office or the head of the piano dept. at local colleges or universities. Sometimes they keep a list of well-qualified pianists or other musicians who are willing and able to accompany.
Again, know in advance what you want and need. What is your budget? Are your students paying an accompanist fee or are you paying it out of your pocket? What is the recital and rehearsal schedule? How many students need an accompanist? How difficult are the pieces?
The Rest
Everything else is a piece of cake, using the Recital Preparation Checklist, which also includes a recommended time frame for when to accomplish certain items. Some of the things you'll find on this checklist are:
- Notify parents/students of recital and rehearsal schedule (include dress standards, what to bring)
- Choose repertoire with each student
- Rehearse with collaborating musicians
- Invite/remind people to come (I now have a post with downloadable, customizable recital invitation templates! They're free!)
- Arrange for any refreshments, certificates, awards, etc. to pass out
- Prepare written programs
Hopefully this will help you stay organized so you can worry about what really matters: MUSIC!! Let me know how your recital goes! If you have additional tips and advice or questions about planning a studio recital, please leave a comment below.
I would love to pick your brain about using the LDS Church for recital! I am planning a flute recital and already have it scheduled for in the cultural hall, but my number of students is quite small and I would like to create a more intimate atmosphere. (The RS room dampens the sound too much) Any thoughts???? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your question. It’s a good one. I have yet to use the cultural hall, but I can give my experiences and maybe a few ideas for the cultural hall.
DeleteI did use the Relief Society room once, because I wanted to create a more intimate setting, and my numbers were few at the time. Yes, the sound was dampened by the carpet, but it wasn’t too much of a concern for that particular recital. The students were all beginners or intermediate, and no one was playing a huge concerto that needed a big space. It worked out just fine. I’ve also used the chapel, and felt the classical music we were performing was appropriate for the space. The piano was definitely the best in the building. I then instructed people to sit in the front of the chapel and on the side where the piano is. I found the sound to be fine, and because everyone was sitting clumped close to the front, it had the feeling of intimacy, even though the space was big.
So, for using the cultural hall, I would say maybe apply the same principle. When setting up the seating, keep them closely clumped to the front, perhaps to one side of the hall, whichever side you will have the piano and performer on (rather than using the whole width of the room). If there is an accordion-like partition door in your cultural hall, I would definitely close it off. You may consider having the performer on the floor in front of the stage, rather than on the stage, because that will bring them closer to the audience and make it feel smaller. You may decide against this, however, depending on how big your group will be. You definitely want the parents to be able to see their children while they play. Beyond that, I’m trying to think what else you could do to make it feel smaller. I’m thinking of a wedding reception that I went to which used some nice free-standing partitioning things they had rented, which brought in the walls. You probably don’t want to spend money on something like that, but I was thinking maybe you could get your hands on as many of those chalkboards on wheels, that are so common in meetinghouses, as you can. You could roll them into the space and put one or two to the side of the seating you’ve set up, to section it off from the side of the hall you aren’t using. This might look cheap, but you could consider covering them with pretty cloth or even use the chalkboards to display pictures of your students or fun things you’ve done since your last recital, maybe you can display the recital program up on the boards with a projector, or write a welcome message, or hang a poster with fancy lettering. You can use this as a backdrop to take pictures with the students afterward. Another thing that would help it feel smaller is to play with the lighting. If you can turn off some of the lights, and have it lighted only at the front where the performers are, this will also give it a smaller feeling. Some buildings even have spotlights, if you want to try that route.
Whew, that’s long. Hope it gives you some ideas. Let me know what you end up doing, and good luck!
Thanks for the great ideas! The rolling chalkboards are brilliant. I was considering using the stage and setting up a rear projection to flash up a different background for each student (we're going around the world) but pregnancy laziness has set in so maybe using the non-stage half and partitioning it is the way to go. I'm also reconsidering the RS room...it would be easier. I'm just worried the piano is going to drown out my little beginning flutists!
ReplyDeleteThanks again for the reply!
So the recital was this last weekend and it went GREAT! The RS room did drown them out too much (I tested with a student)so we had it on the stage and it turned out just fine. The girls said it felt very "official" onstage. It didn't seem too cavernous once everything was set up. I had a table by the entry with programs and coloring pages for siblings. The piano was wheeled in to stage left so seating was pushed back to the basketball boundary line with 5 rows of 8. A little farther back was a long table set up with refreshments. Behind that was the curtain that divides the cultural hall in half. I didn't need to use any mics and the stage was an advantage when I conducted the quartet from the floor so everyone could still see the girls. Thank you for brainstorming with me!
DeleteI'm so glad that it went so well! And what a great idea to have coloring pages for siblings. I might have to try that next time! Congratulations on pulling off a great recital. Glad we could brainstorm together.
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