Version 5.0: the first time I’ve gotten this right

Presenting edwardatkinson.com version 5.0: the first time I’ve gotten this right.

For 32 years, I lived in a script authored by a committee of strangers. I had a chair at that writer’s table, sure, but it was just one chair, and an uncomfortable one at that. I’d pitch a bold idea every now and then, and the group might approve. Too often, the committee would tell me I was veering off a mysteriously pre-charted path. Things got testy. But, that’s all history now.

Some time back, I fired the writers.

That’s why I made this website. There is exactly one curious author writing the script, and there are only a few rules:

• Enthusiastically make mistakes.
• One day at a time.
• Share the best in life.

Here on this website, I will not be creating art or content based on clicks, taps, or views. Pages will not be tested for conversions. There will be no A/B testing on design choices and no gaming the algorithm.

This project is a human with a single voice: my own.

I shared an early draft of this website with Brother Angelus, my younger monk brother, who noticed that it was different from anything I’d done in the past. He told me to tell you what I told him: I don’t need to perform anymore. I’m not here to please the audience. I’ve been starving the wolves of insecurity for years now, and have no intention of ever feeding them again.

I am here to do my best work, to trust my own instincts, to explore what is interesting, and to share it with you. Come along if you like the sound of that.

Virginia Zeani said to me once, “To sing is to thank God you are alive.”

There is no more meaningful reason to create art: to thank God you are alive. Her words are on the bottom of every page on this site for that reason. (And I always appreciate the reminder.)

Here is what I’m working on now

• Podcast with the working title: “Enthusiastic Mistakes by Edward Atkinson.” Interviews with professional poker players, Met stars who perform successfully under extreme pressure, creatives who do the work, humans who conquer demons and embrace the messiness of life, mini-deep-dive series on big topics, and an ethos of embracing mistake making.
• Online courses for singers
• YouTube series of 10-minute conversational videos on sacred music directed to congregations who’d like to better understand what all the fuss is about and how to engage with the subject without the tribal “worship wars” silliness.
• YouTube series of 10-minute videos directed to priests and music directors. Church music usually stinks. (I mean, let’s be real here.) It doesn’t have to, and I’ll show you how. No BS. Straight to the point.
• Recordings of Gregorian Chant to become an album
• A secret video project with a friend (details TBA)
• Formatting my 15 years of sacred music resources into a couple of pages, to jump start anyone starting out in the field
• Tightly edited videos of voice lessons, where the student goes from bad to great, followed by a breakdown of how we made that happen

What I will work on in the near future

• Projects suggested to me by my patrons
• Resources for directors of music programs and priests that are stupidly easy to implement
• Consult with music leaders about their particular obstacles and issues, and share the answers publicly
• Commission and record new sacred music
• Design an exceptional children’s choir program, and share 100% of the resources publicly and for free
• Create a training course for beginner choir members to go from zero to hero that any choir director can give to first time choral singers

Some past projects can be seen here, and I look forward to growing that list drip by drip.

Join the Party

Join the party and become a patron. 1,000 patrons of Edward Atkinson at any level, by May 2021: that’s my goal. We’re at 100 already, which is inspiring and beautiful.

I believe deeply in the power of true patronage, instead of transactional patronage and commercial art. True patronage incentivizes and influences the artist to create his best work and not his most-likely-to-be-liked work, and that’s no small thing. It does more than that too.

So join the party and become a patron! We could use a few new faces in the New Renaissance. (900 more to be exact.) My deepest thanks and gratitude to those who have helped kick things off already. I, quite literally, couldn’t do any of this without you.

Patron or not, I’d love to have you join my Infrequent Updates mailing list or invite a buddy to join because (1) I do not want Facebook and Google to control my relationships with friends, fans, and patrons, (2) I rarely send out emails, and (3) when I do, I only send out the best stuff.

I delete 98% of the emails I receive. (Sound familiar?) I work hard to craft those 2% emails.

Thank You

Please get in touch. Share your point of view. Suggest a project. Send me a photo of your cat.

Most of all: thank you.