Sounds of Wizedom
Topics related to the art of music production.
Sunday, May 29, 2016
Monday, September 15, 2014
Saturday, September 13, 2014
Alternative Funding Sources
While examining potential funding for startups, I came
across a few alternative-funding opportunities and we will take a look into a
few of them. The Community Development
Venture Capital Alliance or CDVCA provides equity capital to businesses in
underinvested markets. According to its website www.cdvca.org,
“CDVCA is working on many fronts to build and strengthen the CDVC field. It
promotes the field by combining advocacy, education, communication and
best-practice dissemination through conferences and workshops.” Some of the
requirements other than becoming a member is to have businesses in
underinvested markets and will provide good jobs to low-income individuals and
communities. CDVCA also provides workshops, seminars and consulting services.
For more information visit www.cdvca.org.
More funding opportunities can be found at the U.S. Economic
Development Administration website, www.eda.gov/funding-opportunities/.
Among the opportunities are the 2014 Regional Innovation Grants which according
to the website, “support
commercialization and entrepreneurship as described in the America COMPETES
Reauthorization Act of 2010.” The EDA also accepts applications from companies
in rural and urban areas that support construction and technical assistance
among other programs. The website also provides a resources directory by state
or territory which gives visitors the opportunities to explore possible funding
and support.
First Nations Oweesta Corporation provides funding and
resources for economic growth within Native American communities. The website www.oweesta.org provides information on their
Training and Technical Assistance programs along with research and Lending and
Capitalization programs. According to the website, “First Nations Oweesta
makes loans to various types of Native community development financial
institutions such as small business loan funds and credit associations that
make consumer, business and housing loans.”
Overall each of these companies offers excellent information
and resource material for your start-up or existing businesses. There are
plenty of funding opportunities as well. Due diligence and research are
required to determine if you or your company qualifies for the funding
opportunities available.
There are plenty of advantages to alternative funding,
such as an abundance of resources and support. One of the disadvantages would
be that the criteria for these programs could be very particular and your
company might not fall under the specifications required to receive funding
from these organizations.
First
Nations Oweesta makes loans to various types of Native community
development financial institutions such as small business loan funds and
credit associations that make consumer, business and housing loans. -
See more at: http://www.oweesta.org/services#sthash.ioesjgX5.dpuf
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Sunday, August 10, 2014
Expert Views on Business Plans
The experts that I have chosen to research are Carl
Schramm and Andrea Cockerton. Carl Schramm is an entrepreneur and PhD economist
who many have referred to as the “evangelist of entrepreneurship.” He is also
the former CEO of the Kauffman Foundation, a philanthropic foundation that
happens to be one of the nations leading funders for entrepreneurship research.
Andrea Cockerton is a pitch expert, helping entrepreneurs pitch for funding.
She has held entrepreneurial workshops in the UK and helped more than 350
entrepreneurs. Cockerton is also an MIT Enterprise Forum board member.
According to the experts some key components that investors
are looking for in a business plan are targeting a growing market, groundbreaking
ideas, and that there is a plan to action. It is essential to target a growing
market that has a need for your service or product. A growing market tends to
not be overly saturated with products and services and allows for opportunities
for growth and expansion. Groundbreaking ideas have the potential to grab
investor attention and stand out amongst competitors business plan. If your
idea, product, or idea grabs the investor’s attention, it has the potential to
grab the publics’ attention. Carl Schramm shared his views in regards to
characteristics of an entrepreneur, “They see things differently…” Having a
unique point of view can assist in coming up with groundbreaking ideas,
products, or services. An investor is more likely to consider business plans
with a plan to action. The plan of action has to be specific to your industry.
Knowing your industry has a lot to do with your plan of action. Research is key
in this regard.
The suggestion that I am considering for my business plan
involves having a more detailed plan to action. I plan to lay out my initial
12-month business and marketing strategies in regards to my industry. Having
this plan will work as a guideline with room for change and flexibility. My
involvement in the music industry means that my business must be flexible in
order to survive the ever-changing climate of this industry.
Sources
Expert Views on Business Plans. (n.d.).
: Andrea Cockerton & Angelo Meneguzzi. Retrieved August 10, 2014,
from http://bpexpertviews.blogspot.com/2012/08/andrea-cockerton-angelo-meneguzzi.html
Expert Views on Business Plans. (n.d.).
Expert Views on Business Plans. Retrieved August 10, 2014, from http://bpexpertviews.blogspot.com/
Gleeson, B. (2013, February 25).
Searching for Angels: The 10 Best Ways to Attract Investors. Forbes.
Retrieved August 10, 2014, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/brentgleeson/2013/02/25/searching-for-angels-the-10-best-ways-to-attract-investors/
How formal choral scholar Andrea
Cockerton turned the Dowsing Sound Collective from a hobby to a business.
(n.d.). Cambridge News. Retrieved August 10, 2014, from http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/Business/Business-News/How-formal-choral-scholar-Andrea-Cockerton-turned-the-Dowsing-Sound-Collective-from-a-hobby-to-a-business-20140129145347.htm
Schramm, C. (2014, June 1). Why
Immigration Is Crucial To The Revival Of America's Cities. Forbes.
Retrieved August 10, 2014, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/carlschramm/2014/06/01/why-immigration-is-crucial-to-the-revival-of-americas-cities/
Sunday, July 13, 2014
An Awards Show for the Rest of Us!
![]() |
www.pensadoawards.com |
On June 28th 2014 at the Fairmont Miramar Hotel
in Santa Monica the inaugural Pensado Awards took place honoring all of the
talented individuals behind the scenes who make the music you love possible.
With categories such as, Break Thru Mixer Award, Game Changer Producer of the
Year Award, OMG! Mix of the Year, Master of Mastering, and AIR Award for best
assistant, Intern, or Runner, the Pensado Awards set itself apart from other
award shows as a celebration of the underdog and under appreciated.
Dave Pensado and Herb Trawick are co-host of Pensado’sPlace, a weekly show that offers audio techniques and interviews with industry
professionals such as mix and tracking engineers, producers, artist, and studio
managers. Dave Pensado is a Grammy Award winning engineer who has mixed for
some of the industry’s biggest talents.
The Pensado Awards was an all-inclusive event, open to
everyone, including the after party. This awards ceremony gave up and coming
artist and engineers an opportunity to network with heavy weights within the
music industry. The tickets at only $50 per, including the after party, made
this event even more accessible. According to Forbes, “The Pensado Awards
leveled the playing field.” While
receiving the Live/Front of House Mixer Award, John McBride shared his
excitement about the future of the audio industry, “I really believe that the
bar is being raised again….great things are on the horizon and happening
again.”
The amount of information and knowledge that is
being spread online through shows such as Pensado’s Place, I can see John
McBride’s vision and share in his excitement for the future of audio. Not only
is their a strong community within the virtual world of audio, these
communities are also starting to expand and create spaces for professionals and
enthusiast to come together and celebrate their love and passion for music. I
believe that
the Inaugural Pensado Awards just might be the catalyst for more
to come.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
A.I. Mastering
There is a new online mastering service, which goes by the
name of Landr and provides remote, (instant)
mastering services free of charge. That’s right “free” but only for 192 kbps
MP3s. If you want uncompressed wav files you will have to dish out $9-$19 per
month, still not a bad deal if these services are what they say. It is true
that mastering is critical to achieving that “polished” sound, but the reality
is that it can be an expensive undertaking for independent artists. Just think
about how much that an artist has already spent on production, recording and
mixing. By the time a project reaches the mastering phase the budget has been
depleted.
MixGenius claims that
more than 8 years of research went into the algorithms utilized to master the
audio. The website goes on to say, “Our team is composed of music industry
veterans - award winning mixing engineers, top-level DSP programmers,
musicians, producers and label owners - who know exactly what the mastering
process needs to deliver.” With that amount of brainpower and resources, my
expectations that this might actually work increased significantly.
In my opinion, Landr might not be the ideal mastering
situation for the independent artists, but it can work with specific genres
especially if you are trying to compete with industry “loudness.” I can see
these types of A.I. mastering services getting relatively better in the coming
years. Another application that producers and mix engineers may take advantage
of is using Landr to expose potential problems in the mix.
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