Overview
What is a Biography?
A biography, or bio, is a short overview of your professional and personal life. It should include a mix of your experience, employment, achievements, education, goals, and some personal interests. Depending on the situation, they can vary in length (50-1000 words) and tone (more formal to less formal).
What is Its Purpose?
When you meet someone new in a professional setting, you’ll probably try to incorporate a lot of different information into that introduction. You’ll share relevant information about your career as well as tidbits about your personal life that make you unique. A bio should function the same way, serving as an introduction that can help you form a personal connection with people who haven’t met you yet. It should capture the attention of the reader while being well-written and organized.
When Is a Bio Needed?
We frequently find biographies of composers and performing soloists in concert programs and on websites. Authors of journal articles and books will need biographies for their publications. Artist websites and organizational websites will usually feature bios, and organizations might use a short bio as a way to market an upcoming event.
Steps to Writing a Bio
1. Read Sample Bios
Review bios of musicians and non-musicians, noting how they identify themselves and share their unique experiences. What differences do you notice? What topics do you remember most vividly about each person? What aspects did you gloss over without reading deeply?
2. Brainstorm Your Content
Create a list of past experiences and future goals that you may want to share in a biography. In some ways, this may resemble your resume, but a bio should include more facets of your life than just jobs or ensembles. What’s unique to you that you want the audience to know?
3. Identify Your Audience and Modality
Decide who will be reading this specific bio; will it be concertgoers reading a program, a potential student’s parent looking at your website, or a potential employer? Your accomplishments, personal touches, and tone should all be slightly different depending on the bio’s intent.
4. Lead with Your Brand
Start off drafting your biography by naming your brand; what concrete words describe you best (violist, educator, advocate)? Lead off your bio with these descriptors, describing your mission and goals that relate to the brand. Use this as an outline that guides the rest of your bio.
5. Determine Relevant and Recent Content
As you incorporate your list of items into the draft, remember what this bio is specifically for! If you wear many hats within the music industry, highlight the most relevant and recent topics first, then move on to other interesting aspects of your career. You don’t always need to present these in chronological order!
6. Conclude with your Education and Personal Life
Citing personal anecdotes and your college education should come in the final portion of your bio. Include your previous and current teachers, if you would like, as well as other personal information such as your family and your nonmusical interests or hobbies.
7. Revisit and Revise
As time goes on and your career evolves, you’ll need to update your bio! As you have new experiences, change around the elements of your biography to make it flow as smoothly as possible, highlighting your most recent relevant experiences.
Musician’s Bio Handbook
For further instructions and sample bios, please view our Musician’s Bio Handbook, and listen to our IML Podcast!
“Two days ago, I auditioned for a position with an army band and was offered the position – in my first-ever professional audition! I can’t help but be so grateful to the Institute for Music Leadership office and the Catherine Filene Shouse Arts Leadership Certificate of Achievement for preparing me so well. I learned so much about professionalism, career skills, and interview skills that showed up in my audition.”
Ju Young Yi, ’23E
Bachelor of Music in Applied Music (Clarinet)
