November 2017 TMO Community Outreach
Despite the Thanksgiving holiday week, December remained a busy month for TMO community outreach.
The Texas Music Office, City of San Antonio, San Antonio Sound Garden, and the San Antonio music community all joined forces on November 29 for the TMO’s first San Antonio “Music Friendly Communities” workshop, moving San Antonio one step closer to receiving the official recognition from the TMO.
“The point of this program is to create real communication, real networking, and real change for the music industry as a whole in the state,” TMO Director Brendon Anthony said.
The workshop at Freetail Brewing Company also served as the official public release of the 2017 San Antonio Sound Garden music industry study. The economic impact study, commissioned by the City of San Antonio, was conducted by the San Antonio Sound Garden; it charts the economic impact of music within the San Antonio metro area.
On November 2, TMO Marketing Coordinator Marc Fort joined the City of San Antonio’s Kyrstal Jones where they co-presented a panel discussion on “How Government Can Help the Music Industry” at CBI’s National Student Electronic Media Convention. Then on November 3, Fort made a presentation the Texas Heritage Songwriter’s 2017 class as a part of their weeklong songwriting workshops led by Texas country music star (and 2018 GRAMMY award nominee) Jack Ingram.
On Monday, November 6, the Texas Music Office joined the City of Austin’s Music & Entertainment Division at Austin’s City Hall where the TMO announced during a televised press conference that Austin has received the TMO’s official “Music Friendly Community” designation. Austin’s Mayor Steven Adler attended and spoke about how important music is to the Austin economy. Several Austin-based non-profits – including representatives from SIMS, HAAM, Austin Music People, and Austin Music Foundation – also attended and spoke the press, showing the strong support system central to the success of the Austin music community.
Tuesday, November 7, the TMO facilitated an educational forum between the Austin Music Venue Alliance and the Stockholm Alcohol Control Office. The small delegation from Stockholm, Sweden were visiting Texas as a part of trip to learn best practices from the Texas Alcohol & Beverage Commission, as well as from Texas music venue operators.
On Thursday, November 16, Anthony met with City of Dallas in advance of Dallas’ participation in the Music Friendly Communities program. During the DFW-metro area trip, Anthony also joined Korg’s Tiffany Stalker in presenting the NAMM Foundation’s "Best Communities for Music Education" award to Frisco ISD, Fort Worth ISD, and West ISD.
Friday, November 17 saw the TMO presenting a talk to Austin Music Foundation’s "Leaders in Austin Music" class about all of the resources available at the TMO for the various sectors of the music industry.
Tuesday, November 28 saw Anthony being interviewed on Central Texas’ FOX 7 Good Day Austin morning show. Anthony discussed the recent Texas music industry economic impact study, as well as ways in which all people can get involved and help the music industry.