What to know before you accept a High Holy Day engagement

This was originally posted in our private Facebook group, but I’ve been asked to add it to the blog for general information. The following is inspired by that original post: If you’re new to singing the Jewish High Holy Days, there’s one thing you need to understand before you say yes to a gig: once … Read more

What professional singers are actually weighing

Stained glass window with light ray — Church Hiring in 2026 blog series, Singerpreneur

Church Hiring series, Post 2 Since the first post in this series went up, the response in our community has been immediate and pointed. Directors, singers, and more than a few people who are both have weighed in with observations that deserve to be part of this conversation. What follows draws on those voices — … Read more

When to say yes to unpaid work (and when to stop)

opera singer showing empty pockets as she sings, while a guitarist looks on and accompanies her

There are teachers and colleagues who will always tell fellow vocalists that a professional never works for free — and that position isn’t wrong, exactly, but it ignores semantics and situational details. “Never” doesn’t account for passion projects, learning opportunities, family culture (!), or judgment calls that don’t fit neatly into a rule. Every singer … Read more

The church singer hiring crunch: is it real?

Stained glass window with light ray — Church Hiring in 2026 blog series, Singerpreneur

Church Hiring series, Post 1 Over the past year, I’ve heard a version of the same sentence from multiple church music directors: “We’re having a much harder time filling paid section leader positions.” Not volunteer choir seats or children’s choir enrollment — those are perennial struggles for many congregations. They’re talking about searches for paid, … Read more

High Holy Day singing: What to expect in SoCal

It’s February, which means the first High Holy Day inquiries have begun. Over the next few months, we’ll receive requests from congregations across Southern California looking for singers for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. We don’t contract these services or take a fee — we simply connect temples with singers who are likely to be … Read more

One smile fading

While some indicators in the arts are looking promising and we’re generally feeling vibes of a more hopeful arts community, not everything is moving forward, and the latest casualty is a “set it and forget” charity program that has, in theory, supported quite a few arts orgs in the Southland, across the US, and beyond. … Read more

Great big grant for LA Master Chorale

More than $2.5mil has been granted to the Los Angeles Master Chorale by the Perenchio Foundation over the course of multiple years. This is the largest gift in the organization’s history.

Thoughts on disruption

It’s been a very big week for SoCal arts, with both happy and sad news aplenty. But we’re used to some shaking, right? The Colburn School announced a mammoth $350 million expansion with the help of some architect named Frank Gehry (oh yeah, he’s that guy who likes silver buildings…). Long Beach Opera canceled their … Read more