SITE Search
Enter text in the search box for results 

Standing out in a crowded market with your creative work is tough. It takes more than just skill; you need a smart strategy and real connections with your audience and industry. Being talented isn't sufficient; you must also find new ways to get noticed by the right people. In this article, Gentle Haven Music Web Design shares a variety of strategies designed to boost your visibility and make sure your creative pursuits shine. Maximizing Exposure Through Charitable Contributions Offering your creative services to support charity events or auctions is an impactful way to gain visibility while also contributing to worthy causes. This strategy allows you to display your talents to a wide and varied audience, all while aligning your work with positive, philanthropic goals. The positive image cultivated through such contributions can significantly enhance your reputation, opening doors to new opportunities and connections that might otherwise remain closed. Expanding Reach With an Online Store Creating an online store on your website is a direct method to showcase and sell your work worldwide. Emphasize user-friendly design to highlight your products and improve accessibility for potential buyers. Prioritize secure payment options and SEO optimization to attract and retain customer interest effectively. Gentle Haven Music Web Design can help ! Establishing Professional Credibility With an LLC Selecting the appropriate business structure is crucial for creatives aiming to get discovered. Sole proprietorships offer simplicity but expose owners to personal liability, while corporations provide liability protection but can entail extensive paperwork. An LLC offers a balance by providing limited liability, tax advantages, and flexibility in management, making it an attractive option for many creatives. It's essential to research the specific requirements of establishing an LLC in Oregon to ensure compliance and avoid excessive legal expenses. Gaining Media Attention Through Strategic Pitches Pitching your ideas to publishing or media outlets can lead to valuable exposure opportunities. Clearly communicate the unique value of your work, whether you aim for a feature article, collaboration, or coverage. . A compelling pitch sets you apart, captivating editors and producers eager for fresh and engaging content. Crafting an Irresistible Press Kit Present your work in the best possible manner through a comprehensive press kit featuring high-quality images, an engaging artist statement, and detailed contact information. This organized package provides media professionals with easy access to showcase your creations, boosting your chances of gaining public recognition. Ensuring all essential elements are included maximizes your opportunity for exposure and success. Creating Buzz With Personal Events Organizing your own events or showcases is a dynamic way to attract attention and engage directly with your target audience. Whether you’re opening a gallery, performing, or setting up a temporary exhibition, personal events allow you to craft the narrative around your work and offer an immersive experience to attendees. Such initiatives can significantly increase your visibility, helping to build your network and stimulate conversation around your creative output. Connecting With the Community at Local Art Festivals Participation in local art festivals or fairs is an excellent strategy for displaying your work and forging new connections within your community. These events not only provide a platform for direct sales but also offer invaluable opportunities for feedback and networking . Immersing yourself in the local art scene can elevate your profile and help establish a loyal following. Enhancing Creativity With a Dedicated Studio Space Creating a versatile studio space at home enhances both creativity and property values . This dedicated area seamlessly blends work and inspiration, fostering a private haven for creative pursuits. Additionally, it can double as a venue for showcases or meetings, expanding professional opportunities. Boosting the visibility and recognition of your creative work requires a varied approach, including offering services at charity events and forming an LLC, alongside using the internet and connecting with your community. By hosting events, crafting media pitches, preparing a professional press kit, and investing in a studio space, you set the stage for a successful artistic journey. These strategies aim to garner attention for your creative pursuits and help them thrive in a competitive environment. Image via Pexels

This is such a wonderful time of the year for everyone both young and old to experience the joy of Christmas! If you'd like to have real and lasting peace besides this once a year celebration, you need to know and have a relationship with the One who is the source of life and the reason we celebrate this season: Jesus Christ! Amidst all of the misinformation and confusion that our world throws at us, the one source of absolute truth is the Bible. The second book of the New Testament was written by the first century Doctor Luke. He tells the wonderful story of Jesus' birth: ”At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, to whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them. That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished,“ ‭‭Luke‬ ‭2‬:‭1‬-‭18‬ ‭NLT‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/116/luk.2.1-18.NLT Have a Merry Christmas and God Bless you and your family from mine and Gentle Haven Music Web Design! And, if you'd like to hear Linus explain to Charlie Brown in Peanuts what Christmas is all about, I've added it here.

Paul Baloche leads worship with Michelle Shepherd on backup vocals Yesterday, my wife and I returned from Tacoma, Washington where I attended the 20th Christian Musicians Summit. If you are a Worship Leader and have never attended one of these, you need to! I had the pleasure of attending with the bassist from our Worship Team as well as the Audio-Visual Technician from another church in town. We had a blast! My wife asked me what my favorite part of the summit was. I said: the WORSHIP! How often can you worship with fellow musicians? It was like being in the throne room of God Himself! Please understand though that I love to worship with everyone who calls on the name of the Lord. This was just a very special time ordained by God Himself to call similar talented people to join together in worship, learning, and expanding the kingdom of God through music. What a pleasure it was! Norm Stockton playing Christian Jazz Fusion After the morning sessions were done on the first day, Norm Stockton formerly of Lincoln Brewster's band, gave an artist showcase. His five-string bass was lit up by tracks he's recently recorded called: Grooves and Sushi It just goes to show that worship music isn't limited to straight 4/4 three chord songs. Worship Team Discussion with from left to right - Bobby Hartry, Norm Stockton, Brenton Brown, Aaron Blanton, and Ed Kerr One of the most enjoyable highlights of the summit was the Working as a Band discussion. This was led by Brenton Brown who wrote the song: Everlasting God. It stressed how important it is to first, listen to God. Second, listen to each other, and third, play as a unit without stepping on each other. Very cool! Another session that was mostly for electric guitar players was hosted by Bobby Hartry. His discussion was generally about the setup he uses when touring as can be seen below. Bobby Hartry with one of his touring pedal setups Something that Bobby said that I found interesting was that he uses three different overdrive pedals to get different sound out of his performance playing. He also bemoaned the travails of flying to different gigs as he used to play a Gibson SG for many years. After one flight on an airline, the headstock on his SG was broken off. He now uses a steel attached neck with an older Stratocaster body. Such are the challenges for traveling musicians... Sigh There you have it! That's my summary of the summit which really only covers a small amount of what we all experienced. There were also vocal workshops, leadership lectures, AV technical discussions and vendors willing to share their products and experiences. I encourage you to check out the Christian Musicians Summit when you can. It's definitely worth attending and there will be another in 2023! God bless, Matt

Since it's the beginning of 2018, I thought I would begin publishing a blog on musician tips every week. I need some help though as to subjects you, the reader, would like to hear about. You can contact me on Facebook at the Gentle Haven Music Page: https://www.facebook.com/GentleHavenMusic/ or email at: Info@GentleHavenMusic.com . There are so many topics we could discuss here, but I would like to know what you think and are wanting to learn about. My only ask from you is: Be nice! Let me give you an example of something I encountered when I was teaching guitar. A student said to me: "Dude, I want to learn how to play like Eddie Van Halen in six weeks." Okay, so first of all, don't call me 'Dude'. Second of all, only Eddie can play like Eddie. Everyone needs to develop their own style. So, let's have some discussions about musical style, musicianship, vocals, harmony, performance, and things like that. Let me know what you think and let's start 2018 with some musical sparkle! #Musicians #Musicartistry #performance #guitar

It's 2018 and you're wondering, 'I have a musical talent but I'm nervous about sharing it or performing in front of others'. Every, and I mean EVERY performer gets nervous. I've never meant one who doesn't. That little or maybe a lot of adrenaline is what gives one the 'edge' they need to stay focused and concentrate on what they're doing. Now there can be a problem when one has too much fear and can't actually do what they'd like to. How do you overcome that? One of the long held secrets is that you learn not to focus on the crowd, but on what you're doing as well as who you're doing it for. For me, I love to lead worship because I'm rejoicing in my Creator, Jesus Christ. When I focus on Him, my worries slip away. When I start thinking about the people in front of me, then I start having problems. Maybe you don't have a relationship with Jesus like I do. Then it's imperative that you find a purpose in what you're doing and share that. The other good news-bad news factor is that no musician can play well unless they've practiced. Because your fingers, voice, breath or whatever means you're using to express yourself have what we call ' muscle memory ', practice is the key! Again I hope these short tips are useful to you. Please contact me ( Info@GentleHavenMusic.com ) with subjects you'd like to see in future blogs and get out there and make some music! #Musicians #Musicartistry #performance #worship

This week’s blog installment, (Number 4 for 2018), is the follow-up to last week: Music and Math. We left off with the question: How do you, the musician, use analytical processes to get the most out of your music? To answer that, let’s use an illustration. When you’d like to buy something and don’t have the money, you typically save up enough until you do. You may keep track of the difference between what you need, call it ‘x’, versus what you have and the sum total of what you want. Music is no different. If you want to be able to play something that you’re not currently able to, then you have to invest time to be able to perform it as you’d like to. It could also be called ‘x’. I hear someone commenting as they read this: ‘I don’t want to spend all that time practicing!’ Okay, I get it. But, what values do you invest in your musicianship? Do you want a half-hearted musical performance or one that moves and inspires? Do you think that someone will really like your music if you haven’t worked on it? As has been said: “Rome wasn’t built in a day!” You may also say: ‘Some people just have natural talent and it comes easy for them.’ While the first part of that statement is true, the second part is not. No one can get around the requirement to work on their craft! It’s as natural as the day is long. Tip: Find what interests you in your musical endeavors and pursue it relentlessly. For me, learning music theory and how it correlated with my guitar playing helped me understand what I was striving to achieve so much better. The mathematical enumerations of scales and composition just fascinate me to this day! Another important aspect of working on your music is that it becomes ever more 'natural' to you. Just as walking is a learned response as a child, music is a learned art that must be repeated over and over. Eventually it will be become second-nature. So you don't want to miss that opportunity by giving up, do you? That’s all for this installment. There is a lot more that could be discussed and written on this subject, but the point of this blog is to stimulate YOUR thinking and YOUR creativity. If there's another aspect about the relationship of music and math you'd like to hear more about, drop me a line at: Info@GentleHavenMusic.com and I’ll address it in another blog. #Musicartistry #Mathematics #musicians

Hello again to all of you music aficionados. This is installment #10 for the year of this blog. I'm continuing again the discussion about music theory. Last time I left off discussing scale structures and formats. This week I would like to discuss and describe the use of intervals. Before doing that, I would love to hear some feedback from you if there is a question on something discussed here. Please let me know via email at: Info@GentleHavenMusic.com . I can answer a question via email or discuss it further on this blog. Let's move to intervals. Intervals are the joining of two different tones to makeup a harmonic tone. Most people would recognize a harmony interval when they listen to singers in a song or piece of music. The most common interval to the ear is a major third. This would be the joining of a tonic and mediant tones. For example: C to E. There are two whole steps between the two tones which classify it as a third or what we call a major third. If the E was lowered one-half step to Eb or the C was raised one-half step to C#, then it would be called a minor third. The difference being there is a half and whole or whole and half step combination. Before going any farther, it would help the reader to take their instrument and try this out. If you’re on a keyboard, find middle C, then E two whole steps above it. Play the two notes together. That is a major third. Next, lower the E one-half step to Eb or raise the C to C#, each being black keys. This is a minor third. If on a guitar, go to the second string, find the note C and play it along with the open first string. This makes a major third interval. To make a minor third, raise the C one-half step to C# and play the first string open. You've now learned something about intervals. I'm going to stop there this week because I would rather not overload anyone who's just learning on this concept. It can seem confusing at first. But I would like you to pat yourself on the back and say: Well done! Intervals art an essential part of harmony that, when used well, will enhance the musical atmosphere tremendously. Like any tool they must be used judiciously so that the audience isn't stunned or overwhelmed. I'm going to end today's blog with a humorous story. In Austria about 100 years ago, two men are trying to find Ludwig Van Beethoven 's tomb. They finally locate it and open the crypt door only to find the composer frantically erasing on manuscript. "What are you doing Beethoven?", they ask. Beethoven replies: "Isn't it obvious? I'm decomposing!" #Musicians #Theory #Music

Welcome to my blog where I offer tips for musicians. If you're following this blog, then you know that this is installment #8 for 2018. We're already into March. Whew! Where does the time go?? You've probably already realized something I'm going to focus on in this week's blog in your own life. It takes money to have a decent quality of life. In fact, it takes quite a bit of money especially in the United State to live day-to-day. The cost of living in the U.S. alone can easily exceed one's income. I heard an interesting fact the other day from Rick Warren, who teaches on numerous subjects affecting human behavior from a biblical perspective. According to him, European Countries' households typically save about 18% of their income per month. The Japanese save about 25% of their income. (I did Google some of these figures and found them to be fairly accurate according to CNBC.com and Forbes.com.) In the U.S., we spend 1% more than we make! That's astonishing but it makes sense given our national debt. So what do these figures have to do with music? Well, let me explain. A few years ago I purchased a very inexpensive mic on Amazon. It works fairly well, but I was thinking that it didn't have the resonance I was looking for. I borrowed an Audio-Technica condenser mic from a friend and was astounded how much better it sounds! Not only does it sound better, it records everything so much clearer. It's amazing. So I decided to invest in one myself. (On credit, but I get the Amazon points and have the cash.) The point of my blog this week is to try out different equipment and then invest in something that will be worth it in the long run. I've seen musicians and groups try to use outdated broken-down equipment. It's frustrating! They say to each other: "Well, we can't afford anything else. This is all we got." Baloney! Save your money! Buy something that will be worth it. There's a quote that Theodore Roosevelt once said: "Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty…" There's so much truth in that statement. Or ask yourself, would I like to sound mediocre or great? I'm sure you'll come to the same conclusions I have. If you have a subject you'd like me to write about in this blog for musicians, let me know. My email address is: Info@gentlehavenmusic.com. Until next time, keep going forward! #determination #Musicians #Money #musicians

Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends! If you've ever visited a circus or carnival, you may have heard that expression before. It was also used by a famous band from the 1970's called: ELP or Emerson, Lake, and Palmer. Their song, Karn Evil 9, from the album 'Brain Salad Surgery' uses that line to introduce the listener to the cacophony of sound that's about to take place. In the world of entertainment, that's what's known as a 'hook' to entice you to watch, listen, or get involved with what the entertainer is about to do. As I mentioned last week, there are many, many options for music these days. It can be very overwhelming to find something that one likes as well as on the converse side, to produce a product that the listener will want to consume. Unlike fifty years ago, music has proliferated through the use of digital medium to the point that some bands are releasing two to three albums per year. * Wall Street Journal Article - 3/26/2018 The question is: How does one create a music and web presence that is unique, appealing, and has value? If you can answer these three points, you're on your way. I propose taking a methodical, non-impulsive process of doing this. It may seem counterintuitive, but bare with me while I explain this. I am assuming that most readers of this blog are musicians of one level or another. When you first learned to play, you had to: Pick out an instrument Learn how it works Read or learn to read music Find music for the instrument Take Lessons Practice Similar to a flowchart, this is a process of steps that you did to achieve your goal of playing. It may work in a different order at times, but you get my drift here. Why then, would it be any different when creating, recording, promoting, and distributing your own music? It's a process that will take time, energy, patience, and persistence to achieve. The missing ingredient in so much digital music, (I've listed to a lot over the past several years), is that of Quality! There are tons and tons of digital releases out there with very little value because the quality wasn't added into the work done. There are many exceptions, but in general, the quality has been missed. So, if you REALLY want to make a go at this, you need to invest time to do it well and build something that has quality. Anyone can make a so-so product, but not everyone can build a high-quality recording. That's why when I do a recording, I go back to it numerous times and re-engineer what I didn't like or I ask someone else to listen to it and give me honest feedback. I may then tweak it or leave it until I've thought it through, but it's a process. I hope this has helped someone out there. If you need assistance, feel free to contact me at: Info@GentelHavenMusic.com and I will try to give some heartfelt feedback. Until next time, step up to the mic! #Music #Musicrecordingsoftware #Digital #determination

I've recently embarked on an adventure with a friend of mine from forty years ago. We've not been in touch for more than thirty years, but through the magic of technology, we reconnected recently. My friend Dave is a very gifted flautist, saxophone player and writer. He retired from the teaching profession a few years ago and like most musicians, is still involved in writing new songs and learning new technologies because they appear every day, practically every minute it seems! Dave is using a virtual studio done either through an App or their website called SoundTrap. SoundTrap is similar to other Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs) in use including Studio One that I utilize on my desktop. The difference is that it's an online studio rather than a stand alone DAW. You can send a nudge to another musician to join you in the studio for a virtual recording session any time. At this point you're probably wondering what this has to do with the title of this post. Good question! Having worked with numerous writers and musicians over the years, I've found there are some very basic similarities. The first commonality is gifting. Every writer I've known had a gift for writing. This is what I call divine providence. God in His wisdom gives everyone gifts. This one I believe is a gift. The second commonality is a creative drive. Musicians, writers, poets, and others HAVE to create! It is in their soul to produce something creative. The third common attribute is the desire to hone their work product. It comes under the adage: If you want to do something well, it requires a little blood, sweat, and tears. Lastly, each one of these craftsmen or craftswomen never think what they created is good enough. It can always be better. Sometimes it falls under the perfectionist trap, but that's another topic for another day. This article is really a simplification of the creative process and how individuals execute it. Each person is going to go about things differently, but there are some commonalities as I've outlined. Now I'm going to encourage you to get at creating some music yourself! You may never have a vast audience of listeners as some do. However, you can still enjoy creating something you can call your own! * As a side note, there are other blog articles on this site that can help with becoming a better musician or writer.