What Would Mozart Do?
50 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 3 years ago -More than ever before, musicians have to think outside the box as reinvention is inevitable in a new era for the performing arts. By asking "What Would Mozart Do?" each episode features musicians who discuss how they have transferred the skills that music had taught them into other fields of work.
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Episodes
047 - Keeping Music(ians) Strong
June 19, 2021 12:00 - 51 minutes - 35.7 MBToday I am talking to flautist Angela McCuiston. In our chat Angela passionately shares her story of how a series of playing-related injuries have caused her to become a Fitness Trainer for Musicians. Angela McCuiston is a NASM-CPT, CES, SFS and CETI-CES (Certified Personal Trainer and Corrective Exercise Specialist, Senior Fitness Specialist and Cancer Exercise Specialist) and owner of Music Strong, a business that specializes in personal fitness training for musicians. Winner of the 200...
046 - The Lucrative Artist
May 28, 2021 00:00 - 30 minutes - 21.3 MBToday I am talking to baritone and entrepreneur Brian Witkowski. In our chat we talk about the path that brought Brian to starting his own business called the Lucrative Artist, a platform where artists are helped to identify their purpose, to recognise their worth, and realise their value. Brian Witkowski is a singer, actor and voice teacher turned business coach for entrepreneurial artists and educators. As the Founder and CEO of the Lucrative Artist, where he provides boutique business c...
045 - Embracing the Unknown
May 21, 2021 10:00 - 59 minutes - 41.2 MBToday I am talking to soprano Henriikka Gröndahl. In our chat we discuss how career trajectories can change over time and the possible influence of relationships and parenthood on negotiating a singing career. Henriikka Gröndahl is a versatile lyric soprano with one foot firmly in the chorus of the Royal Opera House in Stockholm, and the other foot happily freelancing. Her career began with a boom at the Theatre Royal, Glasgow in 2004, when she stepped in as the cover of Mimì in La Bohème....
044 - On Art and Opera
May 07, 2021 19:00 - 34 minutes - 23.9 MBToday I am talking to mezzo-soprano Carolyn Dobbin. In our chat we discuss Carolyn’s career trajectory from art teacher to opera singer, and how her creativity carried her through loss and grief during the Covid-19 pandemic. Northern Irish mezzo-soprano and Samling Scholar, Carolyn began her career as a teacher of Art and Design before graduating from the Opera course at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. Carolyn was Associate Artist at Welsh National Opera in 2010 and spent two...
043 - Nutrition on the Operatic Stage
April 28, 2021 04:00 - 41 minutes - 28.4 MBToday I am talking to baritone Duncan Rock. In our chat we are discussing how Duncan’s dedication to fitness, nutrition and a healthy lifestyle influences his international career as an opera singer and how by developing his own nutrition brand Duncan combined health and art through his involvement with the Voice Care Centre in London. Duncan Rock MMus, PGCert (nutritional science) - has an active international career as an operatic baritone. He has performed roles at the Metropolitan Opera...
042 - Designing A Career In Fashion
April 21, 2021 06:00 - 49 minutes - 34 MBToday I am talking to Hendrik Vermeulen, a South African Couturier, fashion designer, singer-songwriter and producer. In our chat we talk about the importance of time management and structuring in order to enhance creativity and we discuss how careers develop through honest and good personal relations. At the atelier of multifaceted artist, Hendrik Vermeulen, it is not merely about fashion… It’s about expression, it’s about art. The garments are made with the utmost care by expert hands, w...
041 - Keys to a Different World
April 14, 2021 06:00 - 37 minutes - 25.8 MBToday I am talking to pianist Peter Jablonski. We discuss piano repertoire in and outside the canon, how careers take time to develop, and wonder about the influence of social media on the longevity of a career in music. Peter Jablonski is an award-winning internationally acclaimed Swedish pianist. Discovered by Claudio Abbado and Vladimir Ashkenazy, and signed by Decca in his seventeenth year, Jablonski went on to perform, collaborate, and record with many of the world’s leading orchestras...
040 - Creative Minds over Linear Matter
April 07, 2021 06:00 - 56 minutes - 39.1 MBToday I am talking to countertenor Daniel Keating-Roberts. We discuss the importance of creative minds channeling over linear matter, we consider potential ways in which the pandemic has left a positive mark on the performance industry, and Daniel shares his enthusiasm and interest in performance psychology. Daniel studied in Sheffield, before completing his Masters at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, with awards from the Foyle Foundation and the Countess of Munster Trust. He also w...
039 - Short Circuits of Creation
March 31, 2021 08:00 - 43 minutes - 29.8 MBToday I am talking to Frederick Robin a composer and perfumery artist. In our chat Frederick talks about the synergy between his music and processes that brought about creating a series of nine fragrances as well as his passion to collaborating with other artists across the boundaries of various disciplines. A strong sense of minimalism guides the artistic philosophy of Frederick Robin as he creates contemporary-classical musical and olfactory works in synergistic collaboration with other ...
038 - Leading from the Chorus
March 10, 2021 07:00 - 50 minutes - 34.9 MBToday I am talking to tenor Karl Marx Reyes. During his studies as a pre-med student he was scouted for the chorus of Seattle Opera. Karl now holds a hybrid position performing compramario & featured roles. In our talk we discuss the career from the perspective of the opera chorus and how Karl’s experience in medicine not only enabled him to maintain a long career in opera but also how it created a safety net for him particularly during the pandemic. Karl Marx Reyes is a Filipino/American ...
037 - Growing Through Music Education
March 03, 2021 07:00 - 46 minutes - 32.2 MBToday I am talking to mezzo-soprano Lydia Jane Haynes. In our chat she shares her story of how suffering from cancer influenced her work and led her to becoming a teacher before embarking on her postgraduate studies to become a professional singer. Lydia Jane Haynes is a 25 year old Mezzo-Soprano currently studying voice on The Guildhall School of Music and Drama Vocal Masters programme. Lydia's journey into Music has been a remarkably complex one that saw her overcoming the diagnosis of Th...
036 - Fiona Composes
February 24, 2021 21:00 - 48 minutes - 33.4 MBToday I am talking to the Irish composer Fiona Linnane. In our talk we discuss her experiences of collaborating with various singers as she is often drawn to composing operas and song cycles, or any works that specifically involve the human voice. In 2020 she was recipient of the Art Council of Ireland Music Bursary Award. Current projects include No.2 Pery Square, a site responsive opera, in collaboration with Limerick based production company Opera Workshop (funded by the Arts Council of ...
036 - Fiona Composes
February 24, 2021 21:00 - 48 minutes - 33.4 MBToday I am talking to the Irish composer Fiona Linnane. In our talk we discuss her experiences of collaborating with various singers as she is often drawn to composing operas and song cycles, or any works that specifically involve the human voice. In 2020 she was recipient of the Art Council of Ireland Music Bursary Award. Current projects include No.2 Pery Square, a site responsive opera, in collaboration with Limerick based production company Opera Workshop (funded by the Arts Council of ...
035 - Encore! Speaking Up
February 17, 2021 07:00 - 26 minutes - 17.9 MBToday I am talking to baritone Jonny Venvell who is the Head of Artist Relations at Encore, a UK-based musicians booking platform that brings together clients with Musicians to make their events as special as possible. In our chat we talk about Jonny’s experience working for, and developing, Encore as well as the impact that the pandemic has had on the music industry. Jonny Venvell graduated with a music degree from Cambridge in 2015, specialising in choral singing and oboe. He joined Encor...
034 - Connecting the dots
February 10, 2021 21:00 - 53 minutes - 36.6 MBToday I am talking to Micah Coston, an associate consultant at Perrett Lever, the leading international executive search firm that brings together diverse and visionary leaders to mission-driven sectors worldwide. Micah has had a varied career path that started in music, moved on to the dramatic performance arts, then travelled through research and now is developing through his consultancy work. We discuss how the seemingly disparate aspects of Micah’s experience come together in propelling...
033 - Where's My Freaking Dressing Room?!
February 03, 2021 07:00 - 49 minutes - 34.3 MBToday I am talking to Alexander Simpson and Helen Daniels who are both classical singers and presenters on the podcast “Where’s My Freaking Dressing Room?!” In our chat we talk about a variety of topics regarding the impact that the pandemic has had on young singers and how a shift in time management has revolutionised the way in which Alexander and Helen approach their work. British countertenor Alexander Simpson is a versatile young singer who enjoys performing a wide range of repertoire ...
032 - The Pleiades Project: Telling Women's Stories
January 27, 2021 07:00 - 45 minutes - 31.4 MBWelcome to Caroline Miller and Elizabeth van Os of the Pleiades Project that is based in New York. Their project focuses on telling the various different facets of women’s stories which are often neglected in the general operatic canon. Caroline Miller is a “warm soprano [with] emotional bite,” praised as a compelling singer-actor with vocal flexibility and dramatic intensity, who is “especially adept at comedy.” In the 2019-2020 season, Caroline was a Resident Artist with Toledo Opera, ap...
031 - Music's Healing Voice
January 20, 2021 07:00 - 42 minutes - 29.2 MBToday I am talking to soprano Emily Thorner who specialises in contemporary classical music but is also the CEO of moon rising, her company where she helps people as an intuitive healer. In our chat we talk about various issues, highlighting similarities between growing as an artist through the process of learning and performing music to the process of healing and being fulfilled in life. International "ultra-soprano" (Second Inversion, WA, USA) and "new music rising star" (The Stranger, WA...
030 - The Musician as CEO
January 13, 2021 07:00 - 53 minutes - 36.8 MBToday I am talking to contralto Cindy Sadler. In our chat Cindy talks extensively about the various issues that affect creating and maintaining a portfolio career in the arts and she highlights the importance of accepting the responsibility of being the CEO of one’s own career. Cindy Sadler’s eclectic operatic career represents the benchmark of entrepreneurial artistry. A standout performer in any cast with her rich, abundant contralto and charismatic characterizations, she has made herself...
029 - Transforming Business through Music
January 06, 2021 07:00 - 37 minutes - 25.7 MBToday I am talking to Tessa Marchington, a businesswoman, entrepreneur and pianist. In our talk we discuss Tessa’s extensive work of transforming the corporate business sector through music participation and highlight how she transferred the skills typical to her work as a collaborative pianist to the world of business and management. Tessa Marchington is a businesswoman, entrepreneur and pianist. After finishing her studies at the Royal Academy of Music, Tessa set up Music in Offices (MIO)...
029 - Transforming Business through Music
January 06, 2021 07:00 - 37 minutes - 25.7 MBToday I am talking to Tessa Marchington, a businesswoman, entrepreneur and pianist. In our talk we discuss Tessa’s extensive work of transforming the corporate business sector through music participation and highlight how she transferred the skills typical to her work as a collaborative pianist to the world of business and management. Tessa Marchington is a businesswoman, entrepreneur and pianist. After finishing her studies at the Royal Academy of Music, Tessa set up Music in Offices (MIO)...
028 - Leading from the Bassline
December 30, 2020 09:00 - 53 minutes - 36.5 MBToday I am talking to Noah Reitman who is the assistant principal bass of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. In our chat Noah and I are talking about the influence that Covid-19 has had on our work as performers and teachers, and how the music industry is changing. Noah also talks about how his interaction on social media, his new found skills in accountancy and sound technology continue to prepare him for the future. Noah Reitman has been assistant principal bass of the Vancouver Symphony s...
027 - The Translator's Voice
December 23, 2020 07:00 - 42 minutes - 29.6 MBToday I am talking to translator and baritone George Roberts who is currently doing a postgraduate degree in voice at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. In our chat George talks about the rhythm and melody inherent in the written word, the fascinating journey of translating a text from German or Italian to English, and how his work in the publishing industry and his love of singing influence each other daily. George Robarts is a baritone and prizewinning translator based in ...
026 - The Intuitive Listener
December 16, 2020 11:00 - 34 minutes - 23.7 MBToday I am talking to Donna Kim who has had a varied career ranging from a music teacher to an orchestra manager, from a high end wedding planner to a grief recovery specialist. In our chat Donna talks about the different kinds of grief one can experience and she highlights the skill of being a good listener to have been at the core of all her career ventures. Donna Kim, Owner of The Perfect Details, has made a career of bringing her creative and artistic influences to bear across pursuits ...
025 - Researching Social Media
December 09, 2020 07:00 - 42 minutes - 29.2 MBToday I am talking to musicologist and podcaster Annablle Lee. Annabelle’s research focuses on the way social media has influenced the classical music scene and our talk today explores how recent developments in technology has influence the various facets of the classical music industry. Dr. Annabelle Lee graduated from Royal Holloway, University of London with a PhD in Musicology, funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. Her thesis investigated the effects of social media market...
024 - The Cellist as Speech Pathologist
December 02, 2020 07:00 - 41 minutes - 28.5 MBToday I am talking to cellist Alana Chown. She has supplemented her career as professional cellist and music teacher by training as a speech pathologist. In our chat we talk about the similarities between the need for paying attention to detail both in music and speech pathology. Alana speaks enthusiastically about the joy of connecting with the world through music and speech, also highlights the importance to create a livelihood that would sustain you in the emergencies that life can bring...
023 - The Skill of Storytelling
November 25, 2020 11:00 - 47 minutes - 32.9 MBToday I am talking to mezzo-soprano Kathryn Hannah who first studied fine arts and then went on to having a multi-faceted career as a singer, a fragrance expert and is now a leading merchant in oriental rugs. In our chat Kathryn draws on her professional experiences as she highlights various transferable skills that her work has taught her. For Kathryn, perhaps the most important skill she has learned is the ability to connect with people through storytelling. Kathryn originally has an art ...
022 - Performing Care
November 18, 2020 08:00 - 38 minutes - 26.2 MBToday I am talking to soprano Roisín Walsh who is both a professional singer as well as an agent nurse. Roisín discusses how she unwittingly transfers shared skills between her work as a nurse and as a singer, she highlights the flexibility of freelance contracts which have a similar traits in both fields, and reminisces about the importance of her family’s support of her career. Roisín is an Irish soprano who began her training with Olive Cowpar in Limerick, Ireland before studying at Guil...
021 - Finding Your Voice
November 11, 2020 06:00 - 51 minutes - 35.6 MBToday I am talking to Marrianne Town Smith, a dramatic soprano who found her voice much later than what is the usual trajectory for classical singers. Having had a highly successful career, Marrianne’s life in marketing was halted due to changes in her personal circumstances. And then she found singing. In our conversation Marrianne tells about her experiences of stepping into the daunting realm of a music conservatoire in her early forties, she explains of what makes communication a primary...
021 - Finding Your Voice
November 11, 2020 06:00 - 51 minutes - 35.6 MBToday I am talking to Marrianne Town Smith, a dramatic soprano who found her voice much later than what is the usual trajectory for classical singers. Having had a highly successful career, Marrianne’s life in marketing was halted due to changes in her personal circumstances. And then she found singing. In our conversation Marrianne tells about her experiences of stepping into the daunting realm of a music conservatoire in her early forties, she explains of what makes communication a primary...
020 - Emporwering Musicians beyond the Pipeline
November 04, 2020 07:00 - 42 minutes - 29 MBToday I am talking to Dana Lynne Varga. Dana is on the faculty of the Longy School of Music of Bard College in Boston, Massachusetts. In addition Dana is a career coach, founder and artistic director of the Boston-based opera company, MassOpera, as well as the founder and CEO of the Empowered Musician, a company which does just that—empowering musicians through guidance both artistically as well as in business and career development. In our chat Dana speaks frankly about the problems in aca...
019 - The Pianist at Law
October 28, 2020 08:00 - 49 minutes - 33.8 MBToday I am talking to Maite Aguirre, a Spanish pianist, conductor and music teacher who has made a shift into the world of law. Maite is now halfway through her studies, and she shares what music has meant to her, how her work as a musician has influenced her decision to make a career change and what her future looks like as a lawyer. After a career in the music industry spanning over a decade, Maite is now a Future Trainee Solicitor at the international law firm Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner...
018 - Speaking Up for Your Art
October 21, 2020 06:00 - 59 minutes - 40.6 MBToday I am talking to Gráinne Gillis. She is a versatile performer with a portfolio career which includes working as an actress, singer, voice over artist. In addition to her varied work across various artistic and creative fields, Gráinne has taken her skills outside the artistic arena into fields such as hospitality, marketing, education and consultancy. With her philosophies such as “be the best at what you do, whatever it is you do” and “instead of asking what the art world can give to ...
017 - A Mezzo's Mission
October 14, 2020 05:00 - 47 minutes - 33 MBToday I am talking to Elena Armijo, an executive and leadership coach. Elena trained as a mezzo-soprano and she transferred her passion of generosity through performance to empowering people through life coaching. In our chat we discuss our love for music, the parallels between stage performance and goal setting, and how to communicate with your audience, however big or small. Website: www.ElenaArmijo.com Powerful Women And Change: www.powerfulwomenandchange.com/elenaarmijo Instagram: @elen...
016 - Listen to the Voice Inside
October 07, 2020 05:00 - 51 minutes - 35.2 MBElle Luna is a designer, painter and writer, and the author of “The Crossroads of Should and Must.” She facilitates a global art movement, #The100DayProject, where participants create and post something every day for 100 days. She has played a key role in shaping some of the defining products and applications of our time, working as a designer at IDEO, Mailbox, Medium, and Uber. After years as a designer, Elle faced her own crossroads. In a powerful Medium post that went viral, Elle descr...
015 - From the Conductor's Podium
September 30, 2020 07:00 - 1 hour - 47.6 MBMy guest today is conductor and coder Holly Mathieson. In our chat Holly shares about her experience as an international conductor and the influence orchestras can have on communities at large and how her projects often reinvent the role of leadership traditionally associated with the conductor. Although only six months in, Holly’s new venture as a coder has already helped her to identify how the world of music can be enhanced further by the programming community. https://www.hollymathieson...
014 - From Diva to Doula
September 23, 2020 07:00 - 35 minutes - 24.4 MBMy guest today is mezzo-soprano Kezia Bienek. Having worked as an opera singer Kezia recently branched out her career to becoming a doula. In our chat Kezia shares her experiences as a young opera singer, how motherhood has influenced her work and how, as a doula, she now supports women through the time of their pregnancy as well as supporting them in the first weeks after they have given birth. Find out more about Kezia at www.keziabienek.co.uk Follow Kezia on Instagram: @yourbirthingfrien...
013 - Engineering Sound
September 16, 2020 07:00 - 39 minutes - 27 MBMy guest today is Duane Harvey from Detroit, Michigan. Daune is a drummer and jazz musician, whose professional career has been that of a technical engineering professional with Specific experience in the battery development, automotive, audio, and RF technology fields. He ascribes the skill of acute listening, something he developed through his music, as the catalyst for moving into the field of audio technology. Website: https://duaneharvey.net/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/duane-harvey-86...
012 - Mentoring Musicians
September 09, 2020 06:00 - 48 minutes - 33.3 MBToday's guest is cellist, teacher and mentor Oliver Mansfield. Taking inspiration from three role models in his life, Ollie negotiated a busy career performing and teaching. At the height of this career burnout struck and Ollie was forced to make drastic changes to his lifestyle and work ethic. In our conversation Ollie shares details about his own experiences, he talks about how he dealt with the dilapidating effects of burnout and how his inner need for helping people has spurred him on to...
011 - On Theatre and Therapy
September 02, 2020 07:00 - 46 minutes - 32.2 MBThe British tenor Ed Lyon recently completed his training in therapy and coaching which focuses on helping performers with issues such as performance anxiety, phobias, habit breaking as well as general confidence building. In our chat Ed shares the specific incident which was the catalyst for his turning to therapy, first as a client and later becoming a therapist himself. He clarifies the benefits of cognitive behavioural and hypnotherapy for performing artists, and the importance of introd...
010 - Make A List That Brings You Joy
August 26, 2020 07:00 - 25 minutes - 17.4 MBBobby Huebner is the managing director of “The Accomplished Traveler,” a lifestyle travel concierge company. Our paths first crossed when we were studying at the University of Michigan and today we caught up after many years. In our chat we talk about what Bobby did to create a life he loves and how his background in music influences his work in the leisure travel industry. https://accomplishedtraveler.com/
009 - Through the Lens of a Cellist
August 19, 2020 06:00 - 44 minutes - 30.9 MBMatthew Johnson is a cellist and photographer. In our chat he shares how his experience in music is influencing his work as photographer and how networking has helped his portfolio to grow, connecting him to various of the UK’s most prestigious classical music festivals. www.matthewjohnsonphotographer.com/
008 - The Importance of Criticism and Failure
August 11, 2020 23:00 - 56 minutes - 38.6 MBToday’s conversation is hitting closer to home as I invited my brother Pieter de Villiers, co-founder and Chief Product Officer for Macanta Software Ltd, to have a chat. Pieter grew up playing various instruments and ended up being a professional drummer. He is now running a successful company. But he had to travel a long way to get to this point in his life. In this episode Pieter talks inspiringly about the importance of failure, the creative power of criticism and the need for both musi...
007 - From Piano to Politics
August 05, 2020 06:00 - 1 hour - 49 MBSarah Kerr is a councillor for the Liberal Democrats in Wokingham, England. In our conversation we touch on how the skills of performance, negotiation and research learnt from her career in music impacted Sarah’s work in influencing social issues and legislation in her Borough.
006 - From Music and Management to Law
July 29, 2020 00:00 - 47 minutes - 32.8 MBSam Robinson who studied to become a tenor is now about to commence his studies in Law. Having trained as a tenor and having worked in artist management, Sam’s story tells of the vast web of transferable skills which he has been able to carry over from music into various career streams.
005 - Music in Vision - casting a career for musicians in film
July 22, 2020 06:00 - 56 minutes - 38.7 MBWhen cellist Kathleen Wallfisch identified a niche in the market of casting extras in film, she started her own business, Music in Vision, to develop effective casting of musicians in the visual media production world. Subsequently, she developed The Musician Method, a series of online courses designed to help professional musicians position themselves as business owners and generate more income. https://kathleenwallfisch.com/ https://www.musicinvision.com/ https://musician-method.thinkific...
004 - Music and Business
July 15, 2020 20:00 - 56 minutes - 38.8 MBChris Elliott, a tenor and headhunter, talks straight about the need for music students to look outside the secure bubble of education. He shares ideas about students' need to set up their networks in such a way so they can fund their studies as well as maintain a quality of life in which their musical careers can become fulfilling rather than a burden to make ends meet.
003 - Doctor Opera and the NHS
July 08, 2020 07:00 - 56 minutes - 38.9 MBThe UK’s National Health Service or NHS celebrates 72 years this week and Alex Aldren, a doctor and tenor whose singing in hospitals during the corona-virus epidemic inspired people as far afield as Argentina, joins me for a chat. We talk about his journey through medicine, his studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London, the impact of music on well-being and health, as well as the value of the arts and the need to maintain a constant two-way conversation between those who create the art...
002 - From Strings to Code - Paula's Journey
July 01, 2020 10:00 - 1 hour - 46.7 MBMeet Paula Muldoon. A fantastic violinist and award-winning coder. In our chat we go beyond finding the similarities of code script and a musical score. We talk about the subtle art of communication among musicians, point out the skills that music teaches as a discipline, talking openly about defining identity when having made a career change. Look up Paula's links: https://paulamuldoon.com/ especially for - "Learn to code" - "Violin with Paula" (her YouTube channel) Kreutzer Challeng...
001 - The Musician's Quarter Life Crises
June 25, 2020 15:00 - 55 minutes - 38.3 MBSoprano Rachael Marsh chats about how she ended up in music via her studies in linguistics and obtaining a Post-Graduate Certificate in Education. She is now currently undertaking her Masters in opera. We draw parallels between life experiences and performance, highlighting the similarities between talking to a class of seven year-olds and performing to an intimidating opera casting panel, keeping a balance between focusing on a goal while having a broad perspective on life.