As suggested in Writing your biography part 1, in many ways bio basics are no different to the established musician but it is good to recognise there is not a truly good or bad biography – just there are different kinds. I’ll discuss three types:

The traditional

Core purpose of this approach – to state the facts. You’ll see this a fair bit in the classical world, particularly in festival and orchestral programme notes and more often than not used by those who have been in the industry for quite some time.

The musician’s life events tend to be in chronological order and usually in the form of a laundry list of impressive degrees, experiences, scholarships and awards. Although remarkable, it will usually leave the reader feeling overwhelmed with information, an inferiority complex (“How has this person achieved all of this and maintained a functional outlook on life?” “I must be an idiot”), and not really knowing the true person behind the music-super-human – therefore, no “written handshake”. When we consider that audiences want to make a connection with the person first, the music second, then that latter point is quite valid. In short, if you want to do this – fine, but perhaps write your own Wikipedia page and place the link in your bio.

However, this approach can be quite useful if given a limited word count (like 50 words) where there is no room for anything but the facts. Boring can still be functional but this approach is not great for grants as the panel wants to be inspired by you and for you enough to hand over the money you are requesting.

Advice: It’s ok if you don’t want to give anything personal away to your public – goodness knows so much about us is already online and the concept of privacy is nearly legend and myth. So, start the bio where your life begins to be truly impressive and only goes up from there – it was great you played music in the local primary big band but save that fact for your memoirs and alumni awards presentations night 😉

For the web

Websites go through phases of being text-heavy, then almost not at all, then text-heavy again. Any web-page has limited real-estate i.e. space that the viewer will read above “the fold” – the area first seen by the viewer on their laptop, tablet, iphone etc (and it all loads differently on each device). Because of this, biographies tend to have a couple of lines then a “read more” button that you can click on that will expand the text you see on the site. It is useful to have this as it calls the reader to action and encourages them to click further around your website – which is really what you want to happen. Therefore, it is necessary to place the most impressive element of your biography first to persuade your reader to be curious enough to continue on reading. Another thing to consider is adding hyperlinks within the bio – this is like a blogging technique where you can have particular words or events you have performed or perhaps written that will lead to other areas of your site. What we need to understand is that the audience’s attention span is not so much limited, rather there is so much “online noise” competing for eyeballs and interest. Considering this, it is safe to assume that people have become more discerning about what they will spend their precious time on. So if it is not interesting – your reader will literally go away.

Advice: start with the most impressive and maintain your audience’s interest with a storyline of your achievements interwoven with your ambitions and musical passion. Always always always place your contact details (email, fb page, Instagram account) at the end and be open to receiving contact from your audience.

For your audience

This is usually written when you already know who your followers are – and not just their demographics but also their values (life, music, beliefs etc). It is usually more informal, often with some kind of comedy involved and more often than not leaves the reader thinking more deeply about what it is that you do. This could be your website biography – but the criteria is that you must already have a following that “gets” you. It is no use unleashing a quirky sense of humour, or giving insight to your esoteric “out there” approach to life if no one knows you. This could lead to misunderstanding, or worse, a negative reputation. Remember – people talk.

So – to play it safe:

• Write the most impressive in the first sentence/paragraph – this is because your bio WILL get cut short by the technology you are using or by someone else.
• Remember that EVERYONE knows you have written your own biography – calling yourself a “rising star” is ok if that is what you truly are. But if you are not … remember what goes up may come down.
• That said – avoid being too self-effacing – we can be assertive without being delusional.
• Endorse any statements with specific examples. It is not enough to say you have been a member of the jazz scene for 5 years – the reader will be automatically asking “but what groups have you played with?” – list some of the bands and then an idea about the music that you play will be made by your reader.
• Add the personal element and inspire your colleagues and those people that do or will look up to you in the future.
• Always find ways to let your bio “walk” for you – links, contact details, memorable discussion points, references to availability, are all useful.
• If you cannot say the sentence you are reading in one breath – then it is too long
• Avoid starting each sentence with your name – the sameness starts to sound like the “Jack be nimble” poem …
• For all musicians but composers in particular – you will need to be able to describe your sound/style.
• If you have endorsing quotes/reviews from people – do use them where possible.

Let’s take a look at how we can convert some simple facts into an engaging biography that does not “reek” of “student”:

• John Smith is a second year Bachelor of Music clarinet student at the Queensland Conservatorium.
• He possesses a Sir Samuel Griffith Scholarship to fund his degree
• He is currently studying with Paul Dean
• He performs in the Queensland Youth Orchestra Wind Symphony and Conservatorium Ensembles
• Has 3 private students
• Would love a job in an orchestra but realises the competition and longevity involved and aspires to further study
• Is in a clarinet quartet
• Likes to surf and has a dog.

This can be transformed into a 200-word biography:

Sir Samuel Griffith Scholarship recipient John Smith, realised his passion for the clarinet listening to the Mozart clarinet concerto, aged 10, on his grandmother’s record player. Since inspired, he has performed extensively in local and national competitions such as the Australian Clarinet and Saxophone Festival (Melbourne, 2014) and as a Bachelor of Music candidate at the Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University.

Guided by former Australian National Academy Director, Mr Paul Dean, John continues to showcase his virtuosic skills with the Queensland Youth and Queensland Conservatorium Wind Symphony, performing regularly at established venues throughout Queensland such as the iconic Queensland Performing Arts Concert Hall.  To feed his obsession for chamber music, John performs frequently in a sell-out subscription series at the 4MBS Studios performing crossover jazz with his clarinet quartet Ebony4 hailed as “outstanding” by the Brisbane Times.

Currently enthusing students at his growing private studio business in Coorparoo, John is also looking forward to travelling to Eastman School of Music to begin a Masters of Music with Kenneth Grant, principal clarinettist with the Rochester Philharmonic. In his spare time John can be found enjoying surfing the waves with his dog “Acker” at Currumbin Valley. For more information please visit www.clarinetsmith.com.au

More reading on how to write your biography can be found at:

Cutler, D. (2010). The savvy musician: Building a career, earning a living, and making a difference. Pittsburgh: Helius Press.
Myles-Beeching, A. (2010). Beyond talent: Creating a successful career in music. New York: Oxford University Press.

Remember that EVERYONE knows you have written your own biography – calling yourself a “rising star” is ok if that is what you truly are. But if you are not … remember what goes up may come down