“It’s hard to write about myself.”
“Am I bragging too much? Am I bragging too little?”
“Should I include a sentence about how I got first chair in All-State band in the 11th grade?”
Have you ever asked any of these questions while writing your bio? If so, congratulations, you are normal. The #1 complaint from artists when tasked with writing a bio is that it is uncomfortable to write about oneself. Yet while it may be difficult, it is one of the most important things you can do as an artist. In fact, it will help you grow.
A bio has a number of “external” purposes, as it can:
- Help people know what you have done.
- Help people know what you are doing.
- Help people know what you are going to do.
But a bio also has a number of “internal” purposes, as it can:
- Help you analyze successes and failures.
- Help you discover holes in your development.
- Help you determine what you are going to do.
Let’s take each section in turn.
External Purposes:
Help people know what you have done.
I received degrees from Northwestern University, Queensland Conservatorium, and the University of Kansas, and was awarded a research fellowship to Institute Fabrica in Treviso, Italy.
This sentence tells people something I have done. Easy!
Help people know what you are doing.
I am an active member of the Los Angeles new music scene as well as a member of the Grammy-nominated Los Angeles Percussion Quartet.
This sentence communicates something I am currently doing. Also easy!
Help people know what you are going to do.
As a percussionist, I specialize in commissioning, performing, and recording new works for solo and chamber percussion.
This sentence gives people insight into what I am looking to achieve. Pretty easy!
When broken down into parts, addressing these points is not terribly difficult. Let’s see what it sounds like altogether:
I received degrees from Northwestern University, Queensland Conservatorium, and the University of Kansas, and was awarded a research fellowship to Institute Fabrica in Treviso, Italy. I am an active member of the Los Angeles new music scene as well as a member of the Grammy-nominated Los Angeles Percussion Quartet. As a percussionist, I specialize in commissioning, performing, and recording new works for solo and chamber percussion.
Not great, but workable. Let’s do some editing, splicing, and dicing:
Percussionist Cory Hills specializes in commissioning, performing, and recording new works for solo and chamber percussion. Hills received degrees from Northwestern University, Queensland Conservatorium, the University of Kansas, and was awarded a research fellowship to Institute Fabrica in Treviso, Italy. Currently, Hills resides in Los Angeles where he is as an active member of the new music scene as well as a member of the Grammy-nominated Los Angeles Percussion Quartet.
Ok, now we are getting somewhere. Let’s analyze the changes:
Order: Start with your vision or what you want to achieve. Follow with past achievements and information that is mostly objective in nature. Follow that with what you are doing now to help fulfill what you want to achieve.
Point of View: I changed from first-person to third-person because it is more formal and informative.
The framework is in place for a good, informative bio. Use these three statements as the skeleton form of the bio. All you need to do is add meat to the skeleton, all while you achieve and develop as an artist. For example, after receiving my Masters degree I was able to add Queensland Conservatorium to my bio. And after receiving my DMA I was able to add the University of Kansas to my bio. You see how this works? But let’s dig deeper.
Opening: “Percussionist Cory Hills specializes in commissioning, performing, and recording new works for solo and chamber percussion.”
This is a perfectly fine opening, but it is not very impactful. So let’s spice it up! First, I am more than just a percussionist. I am a composer, improviser, storyteller, and recording artist. Second, I don’t just specialize in doing these things; rather, I have a tighter artistic vision that I want to convey. What is that vision? Well, I like breaking rules. I always have. I like to find creative ways to solve problems instead of accepting the status quo. Specifically, I love mixing artistic elements, such as music and dance or theatre and music.
How about this?
Multi-percussionist, composer, and improviser Cory Hills thrives on breaking down musical barriers through creative, interdisciplinary projects.
I like it! And I guess I should, since this is the actual opening to my bio.
Body: Like essays you had to write for your high school history class (remember that?!), everything in the bio must relate back to the opening topic sentence or thesis. This works in your favor because it allows you to check your work. After adding material to your bio, see if it addresses something from the opening sentence. If not, edit and rework it. So let’s take my opening again: “Multi-percussionist, composer, and improviser Cory Hills thrives on breaking down musical barriers through creative, interdisciplinary projects.”
I have laid out a clear thesis that needs support. I say I am a percussionist, composer, and improviser so each of these needs addressed at some point within the bio. The easiest way to do this is in sections. Section 1 can discuss my life as a performing musician, Section 2 can discuss how I am a composer, and Section 3 can discuss how I am an improviser.
Now I have a simple structure that dictates how to proceed so I can just, for lack of a better phrase, plug and chug. Of course you don’t have to adhere to this structure, but it is a simple way of organizing your bio, especially if you have never written one before.
Internal Purposes
Above I said that a bio has a number of internal benefits. It can:
- Help you analyze successes and failures.
- Help you discover holes in your development.
- Help you determine what you are going to do.
The key thing to understand here is that professional development is just that: a development. You must take the time to analyze your career. Maybe as you draft your bio you discover that a majority of successes fall under the “performance” heading. Or maybe while you stated you are a composer and performer, you have 500 compositions but only one performance. Yes, these are gross exaggerations, but the point: use your bio to “help you determine what you are going to do.”
This is what it’s all about. Hey, we are the ones who wanted to have a career as an artist! Why did I spend thousands of hours carefully crafting a program called Percussive Storytelling? Well, a) I love it and b) I carved out a career path that I can follow for years to come.
Your bio will help you create a cohesive synopsis of not just your accomplishments but also your goals. And if you constantly revisit this synopsis, then your goals become more realistic and more attainable.
I hope this article helps you to think critically about your bio while also making it a bit easier to write. Remember that this is only my point of view, and feel free to send me any questions or comments.
Thanks for reading!
Multi-percussionist, composer, and improviser Cory Hills thrives on breaking down musical barriers through creative, interdisciplinary projects. He has received degrees from Northwestern University, Queensland Conservatorium, and the University of Kansas, and was awarded a research fellowship to Institute Fabrica. Currently, Hills is an active performer, composer, and recording artist in Los Angeles, as well as a member of the Grammy-nominated Los Angeles Percussion Quartet.
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