Uniquely cool opportunity

Nowadays so much of being a collaborative pianist is being versatile and entrepreneurial.  Here's a great opportunity to work - for free - with a group that has made a name for themselves for being both exactly that (and excellent, to boot).  

Some quotes from their page:

"Eighth Blackbird is excited to be announcing plans for a new summer training program, the Blackbird Creative Lab (“The Lab”), focused on both cutting­ edge musicianship, dynamic performance aesthetic and savvy inventive development.

The Lab’s mission is to inspire the next generation of performers and composers to share in the ensemble’s vision: to champion a distinctive, dynamic and engaging performance aesthetic.  This intensive, human-centered experience will immerse lab fellows in a learn-by-doing, exploratory process of creating new work. By discovering and developing an audacious curatorial vision, lab fellows will be launched on their paths as provocateurs and visionaries in the arts.

Activities:

Annually at the end of June, The Lab brings together a number of artists and resources for an intense two-week immersion set on a secluded campus setting at the Besant Hill school in Ojai, California:

• 30 Tuition-Free Fellowships, inclusive of room and board – 24 instrumentalists and 6 composers will be invited to participate each year based on their talent, technical proficiency, ability to communicate, personality, curiosity and creativity.  The tuition-free component is essential in order to be competitive with other summer programs and attract the highest quality fellows without regard to need.  
• 9 Faculty – The 6 members of Eighth Blackbird will be joined by 2 professional composers of contrasting styles and 1 choreographer/director at the top of their field.
• Guest Artists – Periodic and ongoing visits by creative experts in a diverse array of fields will added based on the selected fellows’ creative project proposals.
• Key Partners – The Besant Hill School will provide the facilities and community connections that allow The Lab to achieve its lofty artistic, educational and audience engagement goals.  

Over the course of the two-week experience, fellows will participate in:

• Coaching Sessions – Daily two-hour sessions lead by faculty and guests
• Salon Hours – Gatherings before dinner for informal performances, cocktails and other non-musical activities
• Guest Lectures – Structured and unstructured opportunities to talk about a variety of musical and professional development topics with faculty and guests
• Individual Practice – Time for fellows to practice and study on their own
• Performances – Two culminating public performances to be captured on video"

Apply now!!  Deadline is January 15th, 2017!!

https://www.eighthblackbird.org/lab/application-information/