Today we’d like to introduce you to Siobhan Cronin.
Siobhan, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I grew up in a neighborhood of suburban Detroit and was lucky enough to have the opportunity to go to an incredible school (by the name of Cranbrook Kingswood) that placed a heavy emphasis on performance and creativity. Learning to play a musical instrument wasn’t an option – it was a requirement, and participation in the arts was considered a necessity to a well-rounded education. So I chose to learn the violin. I had already been taking piano lessons since the age of 4, so music was already in my blood. The metro Detroit area has always been incredibly rich with extracurricular music programs so I was quickly enrolled in a number of youth music ensembles and orchestras. In my private lessons, I studied with a roster of excellent musicians, primarily from Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
I was fortunate in the sense that I grew up in a family of entrepreneurs with a mother who had owned a retail store for many years, followed by a marketing and advertising company that is still very successful to this day. She was always throwing me out into the world of performing. I took my violin with me everywhere, and whether it was family gatherings or an event she was producing, I found many opportunities to play for people. And it wasn’t just for fun. I did my first professional gig at the age of 12. In between performing at school and for youth orchestras I was making a modest paycheck as a musician before I was even eligible to work a normal job. I seized every chance I got to perform, whether it was for weddings, parties, events, or recitals.
When it came time to go to college, I chose to attend the University of Michigan, where I enrolled in the music school as a violin performance major as well as in the college of arts and sciences to study economics and French. (I ended up receiving a fellowship award to remain there to do my master’s degree in performance also.)
While in college I had an opportunity to perform a show with the Trans Siberian Orchestra. I had never done a production of that size, and I had no idea I would be walking out on stage in front of 15,000 people. I was fascinated by the fact that classical concerts often struggled to sell tickets, and here was a show, with music taken directly from classical composers, but revamped in a way that they could sell out entire arenas twice a day across the entire country for the entire months of November and December. It became apparent to me that the problem was not that there is a dying audience for Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven. People came to see it in droves. It obviously just needed to be packaged differently.
As it happened, the lead contractor for the band met me at this show and liked my playing, so he soon reached out to me to do a number of additional shows. Over the years I became progressively more involved and was soon performing on the majority of the east coast tour dates, where I led the string sections and also hired and organized other local talent for those shows. TSO is where I really got to learn all of the elements that go into taking music and turning it into a spectacular show. And it wasn’t just the visual elements, it was the way that the producers took content from the classical world and turned it into a full-on rock/metal show.
Playing with TSO allowed me thrill of performing a rock show for a wild audience without giving up all the elements of a classical concert. Accompanied by lights, fire, a moving stage, and hundreds of other pieces of production, I would get up and play music taken from Mozart, Vivaldi, and Beethoven with drums, electric guitars, and singers. Following my early years with TSO, I wanted to get as much experience learning from other major artists as I could. In the following years, while continuing to do the winter TSO tours, I performed other major artists such as Michael Bublé, Rod Stewart, Josh Groban, and Sarah McLachlan.
From the skills I gained working on so many different large scale arena productions with major artists, I was able to refine my own product, and sought to bring together all different styles on my own to create a performance that had the virtuosity of classical playing with the visual elements of the many shows I had done over the years. Over time I began getting inquiries to do solo performances and special appearances for private events in which I would showcase these customized violin-centric performances of contemporary, rock, metal, pop, or hip hop music.
A lot of this was happening while I was still completing my undergraduate and masters degrees. When I finished my studies in 2014, I got in my car and drove to Miami with the hope that this city would be a good place to get more experience. As a rapidly developing city, Miami seemed like the perfect place to experiment with my various interests, and seemed to have a space for artists and musicians who sought to go down a unique or untraditional path. It is certainly a city with a strong entrepreneurial spirit, and that really resonated with me. After relocating, I quickly became involved in the classical scene, while also continuing to do solo gigs and performances for various clients in South Florida.
In 2017, I was contacted by the tour manager of an internationally touring cinematic rock band that was seeking a violinist to be featured as a part of the group, and it was then that I became a member of STARSET, the band I continue to tour with to this day. Since joining, I have had the opportunity to tour the United States and Canada multiple times, as well as Europe, Russia, and Japan. Compared to a lot of the arena shows I had done with other artists, STARSET has been a unique experience for me. It has allowed me a lot of room to grow and learn and develop new skills and to observe the operations of a rapidly developing musical brand from a much closer perspective.
Currently, I am working on a number of projects outside of touring and the performing I do locally. This year I have been an active member of Miami’s Nu Deco Ensemble, as well as the Miami City Ballet, and continue to do a number of feature solo performances both as a classical and rock violinist for concerts, events, clubs, fashion shows, art openings, etc. Most recently I have done appearances for organizations such as Emirates Airlines, Allstate Insurance, and Ferrari.
In the last few years, because of my experience as a violinist with a number of bands and productions, I have been lucky enough to be invited to write and record on a number of projects with other musicians around the country. One of these projects, called Symphinity, is a massive symphonic metal album that arose from a budding collaboration among some of the biggest names in the rock and metal world (being released soon).
I am also in the midst of writing and recording on an album with a writer based in Boise, Idaho for a project called 92 Keys, which brings together the best elements of violin and piano. That album will go into production this summer.
At this point in my career I get so many inquiries and requests to perform many different styles of music – a lot of electronic and house music, hip hop, rock, and metal, so my focus in the upcoming months and years will be on really growing and refining my own product, writing some original music (which I am already in the process of doing) and hopefully producing a show that can be my own creation from start to finish. It is one type of fulfillment to be hired for your talents to an existing group and it is another level to go off and create your own.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Nothing about studying music or working in the music industry is easy. There is always the stress and disappointment of losing auditions or being rejected from jobs or musical groups. And interpersonal dynamics with managers, agents, conductors, and other musicians can often serve as a source of stress or difficulty in managing the work that you already do have.
I can’t even begin to count the number of times I have been rejected, or lost an audition, or had to deal with a difficult colleague, conductor or manager. I am lucky to have surrounded myself with a coterie of wonderful friends and mentors that have all been very supportive and encouraging of me, but I have certainly had my fair share of experiences being told I wasn’t good enough, or that I was wasting time “working” or “playing shows” in my university days when I “should be practicing instead.”
What a lot of young musicians may not realize is that teachers don’t always have the right answers. And often, their perspective on the correct path to follow is colored by the unique experiences they had in their lives, and the type of mentorship they received. I was in music school studying with professors who came from a very traditional school of violin pedagogy, with a very dated approach to training and preparation for a career. The curriculum was built on creating one type of musician, when in fact the industry was rapidly changing and making room for so many different possible paths in a music career. But my teachers didn’t grow up in the industry that I was about to step into as a young graduate. And if I listened to everything they said, I probably would have failed or quit a long time ago. In many ways, my teachers viewed my unique musical interests as a waste of time, rather than considering the fact that any skill or experience in creativity is useful.
Since landing in the professional setting, there is also the constant struggle of wearing multiple hats and managing multiple different demands. As artists, we often have to be the expert, the performer, the secretary, the bookkeeper, the accountant, the manager, the publicist, and the agent all at the same time. There are no set hours, you never really clock out, and it involves having to constantly make choices about which direction to go towards, and how to balance short and long term goals in developing your career. Every step you make in one direction is a step you aren’t taking in another direction, and multiple steps can lead to a far distance traveled over time. Every decision we make about where to perform, who to work with, and how to present ourselves, sets us up for what we will continue to do. And it shows to others what we are willing to or not willing to do. Now is the time to do everything, and it takes a while to understand that there will never be a better time to take a leap or do something different, or to be bold and give up something secure in order to pursue a project that may not have any real guaranteed outcome.
Some of the people I admire most know exactly what they want, and they just go out and do it. And contrary to the school of classical music training, in which we have to report to teachers and mentors and leaders, some of the greatest musicians I have ever worked with don’t have any formal education – they are just so convinced of their own tastes that they go out and create it, with or without approval. It is easy to fall into the comfort of security, and to make sacrifices in your personal interests or projects in order to make money doing something else, but in order to be truly satisfied, I have had to go against the grain in a lot of ways and resist the path of comfort in order to very deliberate about the path I am pursuing. It continues to be a difficult task for me. It routinely involves having to turn down stable work with real immediate money and benefits in order to dedicate the time to something that will take longer to pay off.
On another note, in reference to the #metoo movement, I will also say that, as a female working in the entertainment industry, there have been numerous times I have been offered work or asked to collaborate on projects only to find out later that I am being pressured to engage in something romantic or sexual. I have had to develop a tough sense of self-respect and integrity, especially when working on large productions and highly lucrative shows. We have only begun to scratch the surface of the number of transgressions that actually happen in the industry every day. And as just one woman among the millions that work in acting, music, theater, production, and numerous other creative and performance-based industries, I personally have many experiences and know of several other women just in my immediate circle that can say the same.
In my years working with the Trans Siberian Orchestra (this also being the reason I discontinued working with the organization in the last couple of years), despite all the positive musical and artistic inspiration I gained from it, I had numerous disgusting and disturbing experiences with the contractor who hired me, who was verbally abusive and sexually solicitous of myself and many others in unwarranted and unwanted ways, who manipulated his power to rescind work anytime I refused his advances, and retaliated against me anytime I entered in a romantic relationship with someone. He would make empty promises of jobs and gigs that would only be fulfilled if he was given what he wanted. His transgressions are known in the industry, he has been placed on numerous do not hire lists, and despite my numerous attempts to notify the Trans Siberian Orchestra of his transgressions, that can be backed up by several other women, he has continued to be hired by them without question and his behavior is swept under the rug. So, as proud as I am to observe all of the women seeking justice from their past experiences, and to observe all the organizations who are beginning to step forward and hold those with histories of this behavior accountable, there are clearly numerous organizations that don’t want to reveal the poison behind their brand.
Siobhan Cronin Entertainment – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Although I am a classical violinist by training, my career is truly as a multi-genre performer, and I would say that one of my most unique qualities is that I am equally steeped in both the classical world as well as the rock, pop, and commercial world.
It isn’t hard to find someone now who plays the electric violin. You can go on YouTube and find hundreds. However, finding someone who can easily switch from Mozart to Metal with an equal level of proficiency is rare. Although many classical violinists have the technique to be able to play difficult music, achieving the style of non-classical music is a different skill set. Having the ability to improvise fluidly, or being able to quickly compose an arrangement isn’t a skill that all classical musicians have or are comfortable using. On the flip side, not all electric violinists who spend the majority of their time performing rock or pop music can easily pick up a classical piece and play it well. And because we are in the age where anyone with an internet connection can have a web presence, the market is so highly saturated with mediocre products, to the point that a potential client may not realize what a truly solid violinist sounds like. The product I offer aims to maintain all of the integrity and class of Bach and Beethoven while incorporating a modern visual element that is both beautiful and sexy. A beautiful visual should only ever enhance the quality of the product, not replace it. And I hope that in the concerts and shows I do, that people notice the difference.
When I get asked to perform on electric violin – everything that I do is heavily influenced by my years of classical training as well as my continued participation and experience performing as a classical violinist. If I am asked to do a feature performance of electronic music written by someone else, I don’t just play the simple melody, I write complex improvisations that showcase the versatility of the violin and of my technique. I am vigilant about staying committed to maintaining my strength as a classical player and have to be careful about regulating the balance between “work to make money” and the unpaid work I need to do for myself on a daily basis just to keep up my chops. I am in a constant mode of self-improvement. Inertia is my greatest enemy and I have found it vitally important to constantly seek improvement. This is part of what has allowed my career to develop the way it has.
We always love to ask about the support network – have there been people, perhaps mentors or advisors, who have played a big role in your success?
My mother has probably been the most important and influential force in the development of my professional life. She always taught me from day 1 to dress for the job I want, not the one I have, and to never compromise quality. She taught me the importance of developing a luxury product and creating a price point that honors that, and not undercutting myself for the purpose of getting work. She has always reassured me that if something has unique and true value, there will always be a buyer, and to never compromise integrity in order to sell sooner. She made me believe that I have the choice to pursue my dreams and that I don’t need to ask for anyone’s permission.
I also have to be thankful to one of my dearest friends and colleagues, Caroline Buse, who has also made a valuable mark on the Miami music scene, and who was my biggest teammate and partner in navigating life here in Miami.
My remarkable friend and incredible conductor, Jorge Vazquez, has been a constant mentor and influencer in my professional life. He has helped to serve as my musical mentor and advisor in so many ways when my official teachers were no longer around. He has pushed me to new musical levels and inspired me with his entrepreneurial spirit and drive to create a remarkable musical product. He has pushed me to new limits in performance to help me grow by pushing me beyond my comfort zone.
And of course to my partner in life, Brock Richards, another incredible musician and creator. He has been not only supportive of my growth but has also helped to produce my music in so many ways – encouraging me to be more daring with my writing and composing, and teaching me that it is ok to abandon the rules sometimes.