Here’s a scenario. As a composer, you’ve just completed one of your best piano compositions to date. You are now working toward the goal of getting a well-trained professional pianist to perform and record your work in a studio, as part of a future album. You have no money of your own to pay the pianist. The pianist’s payment depends on whether you obtain some sort of composing grant from a government agency.

Now, try convincing the pianist that he/she should be involved in the project. The pianist may have to begin learning your composition during the grant seeking process. How can you convince him/her to begin a project with no guarantee of payment? What do you say?

There are many instances where a composer has to sell his or her compositions to performers. Believe it or not, a lot of performers are quite open to new music, even if payment for their time and effort to learn the piece is not guaranteed. Here’s how to sell your product:

• It is best to seek performers that you have heard first hand. That way, you can genuinely tell them how you feel about their concert abilities and state why you want them in particular to record your composition(s).

• Mention how proud you are of your new work and give them a score, preferably with an accompanying midi recording.

• Being part of a grant proposal is prestigious not only for the composer, but for the performer as well. The performer is being recognized by the composer as a desirable candidate and is being “name-dropped” to a grant agency… a win/win situation for a performer.

• Offer the potential pianist a free swim in your swimming pool. Of course, you probably don’t have a swimming pool so tell them that they’ll be the first “special” non-family person to have a dip in your future pool; the one that you’re going to have when you make all that extra money from your composing career. If they insist on a dip right away, you could get a little blow-up pool from a retail store and fill it up with some fresh hose water.

The first three bullet points are sound advice. However, occasionally you will find your requests for interest in your music denied. The trick is not to take this personally. Often times, a concert pianist is simply too busy to take on any more work. There are also performers who specialize in only one type of music. In both of these cases, the rejection of your manuscript is not a reflection of the quality of your work.

Here’s one final thought with respect to pianists’ desire for new material. New music fits well into concert programs as a contrast to traditional music. As a composer/pianist, I have often programmed new music just after an intermission. Audiences generally find a debuted work exciting… it’s a conversation piece, to say the least.

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