Workshops teach business to artists, plus more promotion ideas for musicians

Musicians and music students who want to learn more about the business side of the arts can take advantage of the latest installments in an ongoing series of low-cost workshops presented by the St. Louis Volunteer Lawyers and Accountants for the Arts (VLAA).

The Business Edge seminar series for individual artists of all disciplines continues in March and April, with a couple of events of potential interest to musicians. From a recent VLAA email:

"Anatomy of a Contract (Mar. 5) Attorneys James W. Reeves and Kim Kirn will cover the basics, including negotiation, the elements of a valid contract, when you should consult a lawyer, and the benefits of mediation as a dispute resolution tool.

Copyright Clinic (Apr. 16) Here’s a chance to learn the basics. Then you'll have an opportunity to spend 15 minutes talking to a volunteer lawyer. Consultations will be scheduled in person that evening and may not be available if you do not register in advance."

The series also includes some other subjects that will be of interest primarily to visual artists, including sessions on Artist-Gallery Contracts (Mar. 19) and Licensing Art and Design (Apr. 30).

Seminars are held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Regional Arts Commission, 6128 Delmar, across the street from the Pageant and just west of the Delmar MetroLink station. The advance registration fee is $10, and registration at the door is $15. For more information, call 314-863-6930, or visit VLAA’s Web site

On a related subject, musicians and groups looking for a handy overview of music business and promotional ideas may find some useful information in Beatnik Turtle's Indie Band Survival Guide, described by its authors as "everything we’ve learned so far: Research, articles, stories, and practical know-how about the music industry written from an independent band’s perspective."

The free, 101-page collection covers topics such as recording, copyright, major label contracts, commercial radio, promoting your music, band websites, distribution, filesharing and live shows, and can be read online at the link above or downloaded as a .pdf file here. While it's written from the perspective of a band playing rock music, there's no reason that many of the ideas could not be adapted by musicians working in other genres as well. Found recently via Metafilter, and worth a look.

And as long as the subject is music business and promotion, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention my old friend and colleague Bob Baker, who's been dishing out all kinds of music business and promotional advice at his Web site, The Buzz Factor, for years now. Like any good capitalist, Bob sells books, reports and other materials - but he also shares a lot of information, tips and ideas freely through his site, blog, email newsletters and so on. Check out the Buzz Factor here.

Again, while Bob's ideas are often presented in the context of rock bands or singer-songwriters, musicians from many genres may find things they can use. And based on my own experiences covering local jazz and blues bands, I'd say there's plenty of room for improvement on the St. Louis scene. There a handful of local jazz and blues acts who do a good job promoting and publicizing themselves, but there are also many who are musically worthy, yet do very little to let the world, the media and potential fans know who they are.

So, here's hoping someone out there finds these items useful, and if any readers can recommend more good Web sites and/or online resources related to music business and promotion, please feel free to share your information in the comments.