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Issue #297-- Tuesday, April 27, 2010  |
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Living between genres
Kristen Toedtman navigates life
as double diva
It's the rare artist who can maintain careers in two very different, if related, styles, and all without the Hollywood entourage. Kristen Toedtman (pronounced 'Tedman'), however, has managed to do just that, and this is why she's our Featured Lister for April. With solid classical training and a flexible voice, she has the goods to keep up with the best, and she's become a sought-after choral singer across the local area. But while she sings with award-winning groups such as the LA Master Chorale, the Concord Ensemble and the Los Angeles Chamber Singers, she also writes and performs in the alt-pop world, maintaining and supporting a growing, successful presence on the indie music scene.
 Kristen's new CD, The Fall, is available on iTunes and CD Baby, and she was named 'Artist of the Month' for April 2010 by the closely-followed indie blog, Music Zeitgeist. She performs at a variety of venues around town, including centers of hipness such as The Mint, Room 5, and the legendary Whisky. In a town with thousands of indie artists vying for attention, it's a tough road. But with a strong following and smart marketing, she's doing great work, and is making more than a dent.
There's no secret: Kristen's appeal is firmly rooted in her natural charisma -- everyone loves her. But beyond her considerable talent and infectious music, market savvy is also a major key to her success: by being accessible to
multiple audiences and always being herself, she manages to cross
over with authenticity, which is a rare feat. But she's doing many things we could all do, regardless of genre, as the tools she uses are easily accessible to most artists: First, she makes excellent use of the Internet to communicate with followers and build her fan base. With well-developed pages on MySpace, YouTube and Facebook, in addition to her own blogsite, she offers photos, videos and music, updates her status regularly and connects with a wide variety of people. She's connected with a variety of web radio stations, and her music is included in their playlists. But a good deal of energy and focus also go into clever marketing campaigns for live performances, using MailChimp (similar to Constant Contact, which we use for this newsletter) to send attractive and user-friendly email flyers to a growing mailing list. Her designs are eye-catching and intriguing, going far beyond the standard "come see me" flyers ubiquitous in both pop and classical environs. This is no plain Jane -- she rocks, and backs it up with serious skills and know-how, making Kristen a role model of professional focus and ingenuity.
Learn more about Kristen Toedtman,
her music and her upcoming shows here.
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Two adieus
The classical world loses two champions
Alan Rich, former music critic for LA Weekly and more recently, freelance writer and blogger, passed away on Friday, apparently of natural causes. His passionate and irrepressible love of music and support of new works and modern composers had an immeasurable impact on musical society in Southern California and beyond. Fellow critic Alex Ross, quoted in the LA Times, calls Rich 'a hugely important force'. He has also been eulogized in, of course, LA Weekly, as well as the OC Register, the NY Times and several other noteworthy publications. Melvyn Zerman, founder of the book publisher Limelight Editions, created and restored a large collection of books onperforming arts books, including classic works resurrected in paperback form, as well as new titles already considered classics within the genre. Limelight Editions became part of Amadeus Press in 2004. Zerman worked tirelessly to promote creative work and draw attention to important artists. He died in New York on April 19, at the age of 79. His New York Times obituary is here.
Rest in peace, Friends.
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