Creative Arts

A time to take stock and to be thankful

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Apologies for the reflective post, but 2021 has been the toughest of years for me, for both personal and business reasons, (hence the lack of blog writing in the last few months), however there is so much to be thankful for despite all this.

Even though 2022 is already looking very uncertain for many industries (especially the Arts), I would encourage everyone to take a moment to think about what’s really important in our lives at this time of year and be grateful for the simple things.

Savour that mouthful of food, the warmth of the home that you live in and the company of family and friends surrounding you – many don’t enjoy these “luxuries” – and count your blessings that you are safe, well and loved! Gratitude for what we have is something we take for granted far too often!

For those of you who are not blessed with such an easy time of it (and there many I’m sure), I hope that your circumstances improve very quickly and that you can make the best of your situation over the Christmas period and that 2022 brings new hope and better circumstances for you.

To those who have supported me both in my work and personally, thank you so much and I hope that I can reciprocate in some small measure in the future.

I wish you all a peaceful, safe and healthy Christmas and New Year and look forward to a better 2022 for us all.

For more information about Andrew Jones (Trumpeter) and Music for You please go to www.andrewjonesmusic.com

Are the Arts and Culture a waste of time and money – a luxury for the rich and the elite?

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For those of you who are interested in continuous professional development (and looking to treat yourself for Christmas I can’t recommend this book highly enough. As a musician and business owner I try to push myself and my thinking beyond the boundaries of “normal” and this book certainly opens your mind to that.


Interestingly, the author refers to a study conducted by Michigan State University that “… compared Nobel prize-winning scientists with other scientists from the same era. The Nobel Laureates were twice as likely to play a musical instrument, seven times more likely to draw, paint or sculpt, twelve times more likely to write poetry, plays or popular books and twenty two times as likely to perform at amateur acting, dancing or magic. Similar results were found for entrepreneurs and inventors”.

And to think that the arts and culture are not classed by many politicians in the UK as viable and are a luxury? 

Thank you to all of you who have read my blog in 2020. It’s been an horrendous year for so many freelancers and people involved in the arts, including Music for You, but many have suffered far worse so I count my blessings that I’m still here – alive and well! Let us now hope and pray that the new vaccine will be the catalyst that brings an end to this Covid nightmare and sees us return to some semblance of normality very soon.

I wish you all a safe and peaceful Christmas and hope that you will be able to share some time with your loved ones. Now bugger off 2020 and let’s see what 2021 has in store for us!

Merry Christmas/Nadolig Llawen!

Is there any point in attending networking events? Assume at your peril!

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It is over 12 months since I last attended a networking event, (having tried to take the Music for You brand out to as wide an audience as possible), but I’d  become somewhat disenchanted and cynical of people’s’ motives for going to such events.
Having tried to “play the game” by the rules;
getting to know, like, trust people.
hoping people got to know, like and trust me
not being pushy
not expecting loads of business instantly
not talking about ME, ME, ME
and by genuinely tying to listen to others and help them where possible.

Music for You – Networking

I found that the vast majority of the people I met, never even bothered responding to my follow-up e-mail after each event. This strengthened my intention to join the Cynical Society instead, but then I thought “What’s the point, nobody will show up anyway”!
Nevertheless, despite my negativity about the whole process, I was determined to attend an event run by the Cardiff Business Club, where the Guest Speaker was Tim Rhys-Evans (Founder and Artistic Director of Men’s Choir Only Men Aloud) and I was keen to hear him speak about his work as a musician, including his advocacy work for the Arts and The Aloud Charity.

Tim Rhys-Evans addressing Cardiff Business Club

For those of you who actively Network, you will undoubtedly be aware of the Six degrees of separation, which is the theory that any person on the planet can be connected to any other person on the planet through a chain of acquaintances that has no more than five intermediaries.
My point then? Well, apart from an impassioned, informative and extremely enjoyable speech by Tim, who spoke of his own difficult personal journey (dealing with prejudice and bullying) and his love for the Creative Arts, here are a selection of  people who I met that evening:
Person A – I already knew and had done some business with previously, where he had provided my marketing materials
Person B – was an accountant who used to play a flute and was a prospective player for the Royal British Legion of Wales, whom I conduct
Person C – A Chartered Surveyor who previously played a brass instrument and we shared mutual friends and colleagues
Person D – was MD of a Commercial Finance Company, who had financed a fleet vehicle for a band that I have worked with and we shared a number of acquaintances
By the way, Tim, as well as being a singer and conductor also used to play a brass instrument with  brass band that I used to conduct!
So, next time you ask yourself whether attending a networking event will be worth it, or whether you will have anything in common with anyone in the room, think hard before answering! Remember the old saying “To assume, is to make an ASS of U and ME”!
Music for You provides quality live music for all types of Corporate Events. For more  details, please contact Andrew on 07973 869621 or andrew@andrewjonesmusic.com