The Space Between the Notes - IV –
The Exhale Crowdfunds 12,575 Swiss Francs

At The Exhale, we have been sitting on hot coals. Those of us who still have long fingernails (most of the team are musicians) surely bit them to the quick. Earlier this year, we set a goal for ourselves to gain financial support.

After a year of nearly non-stop online classes, with more than 90 artists from around the world and over 2,000 members in our community, we felt exhausted. We needed a sign, something that enlivened our collective belief in music and arts, something that echoed back at us and resonated. If we were to be able to continue giving, sharing, and learning together as an international faculty of renowned musicians and somatic practitioners, The Exhale would need monetary contributions to help keep us afloat.

The Courage of Asking for Help

My team and I worked tirelessly to try to get ‘it’ right. “It” being a crowdfunding campaign. We began to prepare page text, promotional material, and a script for a face-to-camera speech. That script was dissected like a lab rat, taken apart and viewed from every angle by Joanne, Ariana, Skye and Michael until we came to a consensus. The latter was a particular moment for me to get out of my comfort zone. I delivered the message straight into camera — no gimmicks, no special lighting, no touch-ups or airbrushing, no prompters or assistants — just me asking for help. Ah, now I remember: it’s the asking for help that I find so challenging.

> watch the speech

Affirmation of Music and Education

Asking for help is often mired in negative associations, particularly in the arts. Only lazy people ask for help, right? Wrong. We should all feel emboldened to reach out to one another, whether we are on our way up or starting out. We can take others with us, lift them up alongside us. Asking for help offers us the opportunity to be vulnerable, to connect, and it gives us strength beyond what we might have imagined. All we need is the courage to do it.

So we asked.

And it happened.

We met our goal. You helped us raise CHF 12, 575. For those unfamiliar with the exchange, that’s a wonderful €11, 458. You were part of the sign we were waiting for. You have lifted us up and affirmed the sense of importance we all have for arts and music. You have helped us achieve more than our set target. You sent us messages and talked to us during our interactive sessions; you shared our hopes for a future where music education can be transformed and brought to you in the most holistic way we can create.

Thank you. We continue. Together, in the name of music.

> view campaign results here

The 9 Second Rule v. the Slow Burn

When an aspiring singer and the 19-year-old daughter of a musician friend of mine mentioned that she had never spent a penny on music in her entire life, I stopped what I was doing to listen. She quickly followed with the remark that she rarely listens to any song for more than 9 seconds unless it’s “really really good”.

Her remark released a murmuration. I considered 9 seconds. Is it really possible to recognise a song and pass judgement on it in just 9 seconds?

> Read more about what happened next, and why the act of ritual and passing on a sense of value for what we do to our children is so important