Info

THE GRITTY MUSICIAN | A Podcast for Musicians in Progress

My name is Bruce, and I am a university music educator. My journey towards a full-time career in music took many twists and turns – some so jarring that I wondered if I had what it took to survive the trip! What came out of these struggles was my grit. Why grit? Grit combines passion, ambition, toughness and strength of character. If you want a career in the arts, grit will be what separates you from the pack. Are you scared about where your career in the arts is headed? Do you wonder if you have what it takes to endure the journey? The Gritty Musician Podcast is here to help you!
RSS Feed Subscribe in Apple Podcasts
THE GRITTY MUSICIAN | A Podcast for Musicians in Progress
2021
July


2020
October


2019
October


2018
July


2017
September
June
May
April
March
February


2016
December
November
October
September
April
March
February
January


2015
November
October
September
August


All Episodes
Archives
Now displaying: 2016
Dec 30, 2016
Get Some Grit Podcast Episode #31 - 2016 Reflections
 
Welcome back to Get Some Grit, the show where we learn the many ways that grit can serve artists as they press towards their goals. You can find us on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, TuneIn, and iHeartRadio! No matter what you’re going through, GRIT is the armor that will protect you from the barrage of attacks that can stifle creativity and output!
 
This week's show is built in two parts:
 
Part One, reflections on past holiday seasons when I had the choice between giving up and persevering, and Part Two, how a late night "mind dump" into the microphone changed my perspective on the show, and helped me define what the show means to me, and how to move forward.
 
 
If you love the show, let someone know!  Lots of ways to reach us.  If you want to help, tell someone who could benefit from the content.  If you want to do more, SUBSCRIBE!  If you are Santa’s biggest helper and want to do even MORE, leave us an iTunes review!  If you aren’t tech savvy and want some help with subscribing or leaving a review, email me at getsomegritpodcast@gmail.com and I will walk you through it.
 
Take care of each other this holiday season.  There will always be someone more fortunate, and someone less fortunate.  Do what you can, where you are, with what you have.
 
Thanks to Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com for the use of "Thinking Music."
Dec 19, 2016
Get Some Grit Podcast Episode #30 - To Grad School or Not to Grad School?  That is the question.
 
Welcome back to Get Some Grit, the show where we learn the many ways that grit can serve artists as they press towards their goals. You can find us on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, TuneIn, and iHeartRadio! No matter what you’re going through, GRIT is the armor that will protect you from the barrage of attacks that can stifle creativity and output!
 
"Work or Grad School Next?” was the clear winner with 58% of the vote, so that is our topic for this week.
 
 
Things to remember about the “work or grad school’ conundrum:
 
  1. If you have a mentor teacher, reach out to them and get their honest opinion.  Professionally, they should know you better than anyone at this point.
  2. Each person’s path is unique.  What worked for me was the opposite of what worked for my wife. Revisit the decision regularly and consider as many angles as possible.  If you think it through, it’s hard to get wrong.
  3. Some consider grad school another hoop.  Others cherish life long learning. If you are the hoop jumper, consider going straight to work, use what you have learned right away, and see if the allure of grad school comes to you later.
  4. If you are a “natural” learner, you can go right ahead, but remember that the benefit of working first is that you can really gain a laser focus on what you want to learn more about.
 
If you love the show, let someone know!  Lots of ways to reach us.  If you want to help, tell someone who could benefit from the content.  If you want to do more, SUBSCRIBE!  If you are Santa’s biggest helper and want to do even MORE, leave us an iTunes review!  If you aren’t tech savvy and want some help with subscribing or leaving a review, email me at getsomegritpodcast@gmail.com and I will walk you through it.
 
Take care of each other this holiday season.  There will always be someone more fortunate, and someone less fortunate.  Do what you can, where you are, with what you have.
 
Credits to Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com and the good people at freesound.org for the use of their music!
Dec 12, 2016

Welcome back!  Episode 29, "Failing Forward" is a bit of a mixed bag of a show.  Follow along as best you can!

First and foremost, GSG is now on iHeartRadio! We are expanding our reach to serve you, the listener, better each week.  Check out the weekly Twitter poll for your vote on future episode topics! @getsomegrit

On my most recent Indiana road trip, I listened to the entirety of Steven Pressfield's The War of Art, and consider it one of the finest books I've read in recent memory. Three big "take aways" include:

  1. Pressfield struggled with early professional failures, and his biggest commercial success only came about because he didn't listen to those who told him it would be a failure.
  2. Don't fall victim to comparison!
  3. Resistance to our work is very real, and evil!

You can learn more about Mr. Pressfield at his website, www.stevenpressfield.com

This is followed by a discussion on how to "fail forward" in all that you do, and the dangers of diminished grit once you reach your goals.  

I believe that this is one of my better recent episodes, so please don't wait to check it out!

---

Enjoying the show?  Let me know and tell a friend!  I would love to hear from you, whether it be an encouraging word, your questions, or ideas for future shows!  Our listeners are our lifeblood and why we do this show! 

"Eyes Gone Wrong" and "Jingle Bells" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Dec 5, 2016
Tomorrow marks the last day of classes on my college campus, and final exams begin on Wednesday.  When I was a student, I felt like I had a pretty good plan to get through exam week each semester, but now when I look back on it, I wonder how I made it through.  Here are five tips that can help you get through finals relatively unscathed and ready to enjoy the holiday season:
  1. When you have the choice, do something selfish each day for 20 minutes.
  2. When you have the choice, don’t wait on deadlines.
  3. When you have the choice, spread out your studying.
  4. When you have the choice, drink water and eat a balanced diet.
  5. When you have the choice, choose sleep.

f.lux is available for download at justgetflux.com

---

Enjoying the show?  Let me know and tell a friend!  I would love to hear from you, whether it be an encouraging word, your questions, or ideas for future shows!  Our listeners are our lifeblood and why we do this show! 

"Eyes Gone Wrong" and "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
Nov 29, 2016
Episode 27 is a call to action episode!  This week, I take a few minutes to talk about why growth of the show is important to me, and why my original plan for this week's episode fell through.  :(

Like the show? Tell a friend and spread the word on social media, using the links below!
 
Thanks to Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com for “Eyes Gone Wrong" and "Acid Jazz."
Nov 22, 2016

Just a short message during Thanksgiving week! Frustrated because your "recipe" for life doesn't seem to be working?  It's OK!!!

Have a great holiday, everyone!  We all have lots to be thankful for.

Like the show? Tell a friend and spread the word on social media, using the links below!
 
Thanks to Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com for “Eyes Gone Wrong.”
Nov 14, 2016
After more than a year, we’ve finally reached the milestone of 25 episodes.  Rather than celebrate, of course, I dig into why things happened this way, and what I can do to learn from my experience. :)
 
I spend lots of time analyzing my behaviors, and trying to find patterns, to break the bad ones and nurture the good ones.  This spawns a talk on the role of “should be” in our lives and how it paralyses us from massive action.
 
Thanks for listening and sticking with me through everything!  This episode, like all others, is for you!!!
 
Like the show? Tell a friend and spread the word on social media, using the links below!
 
Thanks to Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com for “Eyes Gone Wrong.”
Nov 7, 2016

Hey friends!  This week's episode is about the worth of the product you create, and how the pursuit of perfection shouldn't stifle you from sharing your art with the world!  Whether you make music, paintings, sculpture, write books, etc, it is important to remember that there is merit in your creation, even if it isn't yet everything you want it to be. 

Here is a link to the Ira Glass video I mention:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ResTHKVxf4
 
Like the show?  Tell a friend and spread the word on social media, using the links below.

Thanks to Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com for "Eyes Gone Wrong."

Nov 4, 2016

Don't worry, despite the title of this week's show, your host isn't going anywhere!  

In this week's (late) episode, Bruce answer's a listener's email which asks the question, "Should I stick with it, or is it time to go do something else?"  This is a question everyone eventually faces, and Bruce's answer, of course, is nowhere as simple as "yes" or "no," because complex questions require thoughtful answers!

Enjoy the show?  Tell a friend.  Want to help?  Subscribe on iTunes.  Already subscribed?  Leave an iTunes review if you find that the show adds value to your week.  Shoot an email to getsomegritpodcast@gmail.com if you aren't sure how to leave a review.  :)

Thanks to Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com for the cool "A Current Affair" styled bumper music at the beginning of the episode.

Oct 24, 2016

This week's episode is a gentle reminder that there may be forces at work in the world around you that cause the funk so many of us feel this time of year.  Hang in there, my friends!

Like the show? Tell a friend and spread the word on social media, using the links below!

Thanks to Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com for “Eyes Gone Wrong” and “Memory Lane” music.
Oct 17, 2016

Hey friends!  This week's episode is centered around a list I found on a faculty member's door several years ago during grad school that really convicted me.  I felt like he had written it specifically for me!  The list comes from David Gordon, Oregon based musician and teacher.

You can learn more about David Gordon at his website, www.spiritsound.com, which contains over 600 pages!!!  The specific list can be found at http://www.spiritsound.com/stressed.html

Like the show? Tell a friend and spread the word on social media, using the links below!

 

Thanks to Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com for “Eyes Gone Wrong” and “Memory Lane” music.
Oct 10, 2016

I love technology! Don’t you? If you’re a musician, you use it for all sorts of things.  Practicing, listening, networking…

At home and abroad, I Instagram pictures of my food and bad misspellings on signs. I tweet inspirational quotes and random musings. I create podcast artwork and record my episodes on my Macbook.

At work, I record student lessons and my own practicing, dig through a mountain of email, and use Finale notation software regularly. I use my iPhone and iMac so much that they seem to have made all of my older gear obsolete. Why carry around all of those gadgets when everything is on the iPhone or iPad?  I’ve bought into tech in a major way, just like many others seen to have.

Hopefully, this episode will help you shake up your practicing by digging some old tools from bottom drawer of your desk or your “old tech” drawer (admit it, we all have them!) to practice like it’s 1999. This “unplugged practicing” has really helped me freshen things up!

Remember that tech is here to help you improve efficiently.  Tech is only a tool, and does NOT take the place of the hard work.  Enjoy the episode!

Like the show? Tell a friend and spread the word on social media! I’d love to hear from you!!!

Oct 3, 2016

In this episode, Bruce talks about the role of the past in our current lives, and how anger and pain can be a direct result of dwelling on a past that we can no longer change.

Crucial to "living in the present moment" are the teachings of Eckart Tolle, who's book "The Power Of Now" is known world over for changing the lives of countless people.

Tolls quotes from this episode include:

"The past has no power over the present moment."

"The primary cause of unhappiness is never the situation, but your thoughts about it."

"What a liberation to realize that the "voice in my head" is not who I am. Who am I then? The one who sees that."

"Where there is anger, there is always pain underneath."

Like the show? Tell a friend and spread the word on social media!

getsomegritpodcast@gmail.com

www.facebook.com/getsomegrit

www.twitter.com/getsomegrit


Thanks to Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com for "Eyes Gone Wrong" and "Memory Lane" music.

Sep 19, 2016

Come along for 18 minutes of my opinions about a topic that has helped my grit tremendously, but one that is very much outside of my public speaking comfort zone - my faith. This isn't an episode that evangelizes to anyone - it's more of a rant on some of my fellow Christians out there. We have to do better! Hope you enjoy it.

Opening and closing music by Kevin MacLeod at www.incompetech.com. Thanks Kevin for having all sorts of music to guys like me without production skills to use.

Enjoy the show? Tell a friend. Want to help? Give us a review on iTunes. 

Email: getsomegritpodcast@gmail.com
Web: www.getsomegrit.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/getsomegrit
Twitter: www.twitter.com/getsomegrit

Apr 12, 2016

This week, after a couple of weeks break, talks about the moment I like to call “The Spark” when I first found the thing in life I do that I am not only passionate about, but love sharing with others.

What was your “spark” moment?  More importantly, what are you doing now to help others have their spark moments?  A short show, but in my totally partial opinion, I think it’s a good one. :)

Are you enjoying the show? Tell a friend! This podcast grows when you share it with people you care about.

On the web: www.getsomegrit.com
Email: getsomegritpodcast@gmail.com
Twitter: @getsomegrit
Facebook: www.facebook.com/getsomegrit

“Funkorama” and “Memory Lane” by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) 
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

 

 
Mar 22, 2016

This week is sort of an "a la carte" show.  We start with some stats about you, the listener, followed by a brief discussion of research on the topic of grit, and then wrap with the beginnings of my own spring break and how I came up with this week's title.

Links from this week's show:

Grit Research Article by Emily Hanford: http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/tomorrows-college/grit/angela-duckworth-grit.html

University of Pennsylvania Grit Survey: https://sasupenn.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_06f6QSOS2pZW9qR

Angela Duckworth's TED Talk on grit: https://www.ted.com/talks/angela_lee_duckworth_the_key_to_success_grit?language=en

Are you enjoying the show? Tell a friend! This podcast grows when you share it with people you care about.  :)

On the web: www.getsomegrit.com
Email: getsomegritpodcast@gmail.com
Twitter: @getsomegrit
Facebook: www.facebook.com/getsomegrit

Voiceover intro by Joel Sharpton at www.joelsharpton.com

“Funkorama” and "Memory Lane" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) 
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Mar 13, 2016

Today's show is a somber one - one that I struggled through multiple attempts before finally completing.  I will not go into a lengthy description here, but fair warning - the topic is suicide, and this week I discuss my faith and quote multiple Bible verses. If that isn't your thing, please feel free to pass on this specific episode and catch up with me next week.

Links from the episode include the following:

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)

http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org

Passage from Romans 8 from the New International Version (NIV) of the Holy Bible available for free at www.biblegateway.com

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

More about the show:

On the web: www.getsomegrit.com
Email: getsomegritpodcast@gmail.com
Twitter: @getsomegrit
Facebook: www.facebook.com/getsomegrit

Feb 29, 2016

In this solo episode, Bruce discusses how he finally stepped foot into a gym for the first time last Sunday night is the final "action step" needed to follow through on a discussion from over a year ago - and quite possibly the most important action step of his adult life up to this point.

Gary Doherty's book, The Ignition Point: Striking the Match, can be ordered here: Order on Amazon

Gary's Blog: http://namastesia.com

Check out Episodes 22 and 28 of the Marketing Music Education podcast with Kathleen Heuer. She has a great mission with her show, and I'm proud to be associated with her mission!

 

 

 

Feb 22, 2016

After several "one man shows," Get Some Grit finally has finally conducted an interview!  This week, we welcome our first guest, Michael Swann! Michael is an old friend from the trombone world who stays busy with all kinds of musical endeavors, despite a few bumps and bruises along the way. You can learn more about Michael by following him on Twitter @meswannjr 

 

Feb 15, 2016

In this episode, Bruce explores a few tips needed for a successful beginning to a freelance career. Young professional musicians just starting out, listen up!

Topics discussed include:Getting and Staying Organized, Speaking with gig contractors, How to pay your bills while you wait for your "big break" plus more!

Feb 11, 2016

This short, three minute track is a bonus for any Get Some Grit iTunes subscribers and a "thank you" for taking the extra step to subscribe to the podcast feed, rather than listen via the website. I have a new recording space treatment, and wanted to give this a try right away. :)

Are you stressed? Do you need three minutes to relax and breathe? Check out my narration of Max Ehrmann's Desiderata. It may be nearly 100 years old, but it is just as applicable today as it was when it was first penned.

"Fresh Air" piano track courtesy of Kevin MacLeod at incompetech.com.

Feb 8, 2016

In this episode, Bruce talks about two important things he is doing to shift thinking from a mindset of scarcity to one of abundance, and why it is so important to do so for long term health and happiness.  Check it out and spread the word!

Links from this episode: www.fiveminutejournal.com

Weight Watchers: www.weightwatchers.com

Check out Cliff Ravenscraft at www.gspn.tv and Greg and Jennifer Willits at www.gregandjennifer.com. Support their shows and let them know you heard about them from me.  

Thanks to Joel Sharpton for the new voiceover intro!

Are you enjoying the show? Tell a friend!
On the web: www.getsomegrit.com
Email: getsomegritpodcast@gmail.com
Twitter: @getsomegrit
Facebook: www.facebook.com/getsomegrit

Voiceover work by Joel Sharpton at www.joelsharpton.com

“Funkorama” by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) 
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Feb 1, 2016

Hey GSG friends, I've been trying to record Episode 14 today to no avail - my voice is leaving me.  Here is a short, short update just to keep everyone updated.  We will resume normal recording as soon as my voice returns!

Jan 14, 2016

In the first episode of Get Some Grit in this new year, Bruce talks about his "leave of absence" from the show, his 2015 holiday season, and a new outlook for 2016. Lots of good stuff in this episode, if you're OK with really honest and frank talk! Enjoy! Are you enjoying the show? Tell a friend! On the web: www.getsomegrit.com
 Email: getsomegritpodcast@gmail.com
 Twitter: @getsomegrit
 Facebook: www.facebook.com/getsomegrit "OctoBlues" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) 
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

1