Bang on a Can Media Workshop at MASS MoCA

Bang on a Can, our special guest faculty John Schaefer and Terrance McKnight, and 6 writers in the early stages of their careers will gather at MASS MoCA (the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, North Adams, MA) to explore the role of criticism and journalism in today’s dynamic contemporary music scene.

The aim of the workshop is to help writers generate a vocabulary, syntax, and context that is most useful for readers/ listeners and to make modern music and criticism more accessible, welcoming, and exciting to all audiences.

The workshop will take place during the final week of the Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival at MASS MoCA — a residency and festival for composers and performers (14 faculty, 20 performers, and 10 composers) and will include daily meetings with faculty and daily writing assignments. Additionally, participants will be “embedded” in the festival activities, attending rehearsals, workshops, and performances, enabling more insights into the process of bringing music to the stage.

Participants in the workshop will:

• Meet with luminaries of the contemporary music field: Bang on a Can’s artistic directors, our performance faculty, and our guest faculty.

• Witness the process of building new works from composition, to rehearsal, to performance.

• Have access to “primary source material” i.e. the performers and composers.

• Learn tools for a successful interview.

• Be a part of a community of peers at a similar career stage.

• Be embedded in the festival experience, do interviews, and write about them daily, to be published on the New Sounds website.

• Learn strategies for a good pitch.

• Generate an “audio story” through recorded interviews with festival participants.

Info for applicants:

Applications are online now! Application deadline is April 4, 2024 at 5pm ET.

Application requirements:

• CV/resume.
• A short personal statement about your current projects and why you’d like to attend.
• Three (3) writing or radio/audio samples. Links preferred for audio samples.

Fee to participate in the workshop:
• $1800 USD
• The fee covers tuition, housing (shared double-occupancy hotel room close to museum), and meals (lunch and dinner Mon-Fri). Participants are responsible for their own travel expenses.

• Participants must be 21 or older.

• New music expertise not necessary, but some experience writing about music preferred.

• There is no application fee.