A year ago, I decided to begin blogging on this site. I was curious to explore the new rage and see if blogging could help me connect to other folks interested in music on the net.  During the year, there were over 9,000 visits to my blog, showing a steady increase on a monthly basis.  In December of 2009, my first month of blogging, I attracted 84 visits to the blog. In October of this year there were 1,678 visits. 

One of the reasons I began blogging, was to promote traffic to my website more consistently. I planned to provide fresh content on a weekly basis to give interested parties a reason to keep coming back to the website (since it is linked in with this blog).

About eight months into this experiment, I noticed that more people were visiting the blog portion of my website, than the static portions. I began adapting the blog, providing more listening excerpts of my work, discussing more of the background behind my pieces, and offering updates about my career. This blog is really just a different vehicle to get that information to the reader.  To me, it really doesn’t matter where you get your information about me and my thoughts about music, it merely matters that you're interested in those things.

I've always been fascinated with the intersection of music and life. This blog provides a format for me to talk about how life inspires music and how music can inspire us to live better lives.

The blog also allows me to relate to people through common experiences that we all share. Unfortunately, many people view classical musicians and composers as being a bit elitist. While some in our ranks are a bit stuffy, at the end of the day, we’re just regular folks with the same struggles and triumphs as anyone else. Hopefully the blog has helped break down some of preconceptions that people have about classical musicians.

And of course, I’ve been blogging to increase my name exposure throughout the country. The marked increase in the number of visitors helps me to conclude that I’ve been successful in achieving that goal. I also recently met an individual in Ames, IA who had come to a concert where I was having a work performed. He mentioned that he was a reader of my blog.  When I asked how he found out about the blog, he wasn’t sure. I thought that was neat!

The world is changing. In this age of social media with the internet looming larger than ever, artists need to think differently about their careers. Blogging is one approach, of many, that can help art reach new audiences all throughout the world. So, if you have an interest in writing, and want to increase the exposure to your art, I’d encourage you to start a blog – you can create one for free on Wordpress.com or Blogger.com. If you have any questions on the process, don’t hesitate to contact me.

So, as I look forward to a new year of blogging, I may begin expanding the range of topics I take on. I have an avid interest in politics, but have been afraid to alienate people by talking about a subject that is socially taboo. We’ll see what the new year brings and how the choice of subjects affects the traffic flow. 

Thanks to all of you for continuing to check out the blog. I’m honored that you have chosen to spend a few moments of your busy lives, checking out what I have to say.

Though the new year may find me tackling some new areas, the primary focus of this blog will always be on music.

After all, it's music that makes me tick!