Recently, our Artist Development Manager Kyle James Hauser sat down for a virtual conversation with Music Supervisor Joe Rudge, whose supervision work includes Midsommar, Hereditary, The Lighthouse, and The Big Sick, among many others, as part of our workshop series called The Launchpad. Joe had a lot to share when it comes to the role of music supervisors, a role that acts as the critical link between a director’s vision and the music industry to find and create the music to support that vision. Using the film The Big Sick, Joe gave us a ton of real-life knowledge and examples from his work o ..read more

It’s hard to believe, but the Music District campus hasn’t been open for over 3 months as of this blog post. Although we aren’t physically present on our campus, we are still working hard to produce content and programming to help you find your place in music! Let’s take a look at some of the ways you can stay connected to the Music District these days. Groundwaves Groundwaves is back for 2020 in a brand new online-only format. MCs from across the Rocky Mountain region will have their content featured during a monthly YouTube Livestream hosted by Murs. Just like last year, Groundwaves is focu ..read more

In April, my sister and I hosted a livestreamed online “rent party” benefiting Neighbor to Neighbor. The evening featured more than 30 Northern Colorado musicians covering Men at Work’s Business as Usual album in its entirety, plus a handful of live performances, and even a video hello from singer-songwriter/celebrated Men at Work frontman Colin Hay. The event raised nearly $13,000, with donations continuing to roll in. I’m fielding lots of questions from the community about the planning and production of the livestream, and it seems like a goo ..read more

As event and festival cancellations start to extend into the summer months, musicians have increasingly turned to livestreaming to stay connected to their audience and make up some of the money they may have lost from cancellations. The Music District tech team has put together this guide to livestreams to help our musicians level up their livestreams. Whether you’re a seasoned streamer or new to the game, you will find useful information and gear recommendations below. Once you feel ready to stream, drop us a line to book some time with one of our tech team staff members to test out your setu ..read more

As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues around the world, we wanted to update you regarding the Music District’s temporary closure. The Music District will now be closed through at least May 31st, 2020. In order to keep our employees, partners, and community healthy, on March 13th we made the decision to close through May 3rd. We have decided at this time it is best for the health of our community to remain closed until May 31st. We are monitoring the situation on an ongoing basis to determine an appropriate date to re-open. We will continue to listen, learn, and adapt as we diligentl ..read more

Dr. Brian Claxton, musician and music teacher, walks you through the best practices, creative ideas and flexible approaches for transitioning to teaching music lessons online. Watch the 40-minute workshop and 20-minute Q&A here, which was streamed live on Friday, March 27th, 2020.   Quick Takeaways: Be prepared, stay organized and have good lesson plans. You can download Brian’s example Lesson Worksheet here. Play to your strengths as a teacher! If you aren’t a tech wizard, don’t get bogged down by new equipment but rather keep it simple. Often, your computer’s internal microphone a ..read more

In light of the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak happening around the world, we wanted to update you regarding how the Music District is implementing precautionary measures in order to help our employees, partners, and community stay healthy. The Music District will be closed to the public March 14 through at least May 3. During this time, all scheduled Music District events and activities will be either canceled or made virtual as circumstances allow. All bookings from March 14 through May 3 will be refunded by Friday, March 20. As a music-centered gathering place, we acknowledge that man ..read more

Hey there – This is Mickey, the new Business of Music Manager at The Music District. As someone new to both the Music District AND to Fort Collins, I’m excited to meet more of you as we roll out a bunch of new music business programs this year. Making a living (or a side hustle, or a sustainable hobby) in the music industry isn’t formulaic, and most people who currently do so took a winding path to get where they are today. Our music business programs – from our coworking space to workforce development to new programs in 2020 – are designed to be a place for conversation, exploration, and exp ..read more

When I was a kid — this, mind you, was a long time ago — my parents would take my sisters and me to stay with our grandmother when they needed babysitting support/added sanity. Grandma lived outside of town, on farmland, which meant there was an excellent amount of space to play outside, yay! It also meant a restricted number of television channels, ugh. Cable didn’t make its way out to the country until much later, and in the meantime, we were stuck with a network channel or two … and good ol’ PBS. At an age when I was too grown up and cool for Sesame Street (thank goodness I’ve since grown o ..read more

*Guest Blog by Jen Zidon – Executive Director of STAMP and participant in ArtUp Week 2019* ArtUp Week sessions are great ways for artists to learn more about using their inherent gifts beyond performance and practice. At STAMP, we are always interested in helping artists learn ways to be more sustainable in their business practice. Artist, Teachers and Teaching Artists-Everybody Wins! was a lively session about how our local artists can supplement their income by becoming a teaching artist. This, in itself, isn’t new information but these panelists including staff members of the nonprofit ..read more