The Backstage Lounge

Andrew continues his conversation with dancer and choreographer Lari Lawrence-Gist. They discuss their current project, The Citadel Holiday Spectacular, and how Andrew will be portraying Santa Claus. Speaking to aspects of having a person of color playing a popular character. They go through Lari's process of dance and how she puts together other dancing projects like The Steamed Nutcracker.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained the references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Host, Andrew sits down with dancer and choreographer Lari Lawrence-Gist. Lari is the Director of Dance at The Citadel Dance and Music Center and has been involved in a vast array of events and productions throughout Southwestern Michigan. Having collaborated with her on multiple occasions Andrew had to have her on the podcast.Discussing Lari's journey through dance from starting at a young age to become the Director of a Dance Center. They also discuss aspects of dance on TV and popular culture. Also, the fundraising effort that took place earlier this year and how it set a new standard for collaboration and fundraising for non-profit arts organizations.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew continues his conversation with Sound Engineer Paul Klimson. They talk about their hope for an artistic Renaissance. Also, discuss Paul's time on Late Night TV working with The Roots. They bring up the importance of arts education and also how the youth are shaping the landscape now and in the future.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew has a chat with Sound Engineer Paul Klimson. Having been in the music industry for decades, Paul has been on tour with Justin Timberlake and John Legend. Also was the monitoring engineer for Jimmy Fallon's Late Night and Tonight Show and worked closely with The Roots. Now recently having open a non-profit organization called The Roadie Clinic that focuses on Roadies and their families on and off tours.Instantly discovering how like-minded they are they dive into many topics as they discuss how the pandemic has affected their work but also the art itself. How artists view their self worth and try to stay in the moment. They bring up working with their "gurus" and how important it is to be kind. That and much more.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew continues the conversation with Singer/Songwriter Dena Woods. They discuss the aftermath of the The Pool. Also bring up the difficult but needed conversation about her perspective of being a woman in the music scene and how it not only effects her but others. They discuss Dena's original music, diving into her song, "I Need you". Of course she is asked to offer her advice to artist on her path.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Singer/Songwriter, Dena Woods, is based out of South Bend, Indiana. She performs as a solo artists and also heads her own group, "The Dena Woods Project". She also in involved in healing outside of the music world being a massage therapist and yoga instructor with her venture, Healing Lab Yoga.Andrew finds out as soon as they start talking how a like they are. Leaving no stone unturned as they discuss Dena's journey and the difficulties and real aspects of being musicians. They talk about The Pool, a well known music venue in South Bend that was managed by Dena. Also bringing up the difficult things, how mental health, societies demands and more impacts their careers.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Continuing with Sound Engineer Krystal Davis. I ask her to share her perspective on what it's like to be a female engineer in a predominant male field. We discuss how Covid has changes the landscape in the world of music and how we have adapted to the changes. We talk about her band, Our Name is Taken, they've been working on their first album. And as always I ask her the "Final Question" on what she wants to say to those who desire to follow her track in the arts.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Krystal Davis is a Sound Engineer at Sweetwater Sound in Fort Wayne, Indiana and is also the Lead Vocalist and songwriter for the band, "Our Name is Taken". In this episode we talk about her journey to becoming a sound engineer and also how being a musician has influenced her work behind the mixing board. We reminisce about when we were in college together, being band geeks, and even when she helped record with my group, The Andrew Fisher Quartet. I ask her about some of her work at Sweetwater Sound and we even bring up Taylor Swift.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew and Nicolina continue their conversation around the craft of photography. They go into Journalism photography and how things like social media and Photoshop have changed photography in a modern age. They discuss photographers that have influenced Nicolina's work and another one of her projects called The Glass Ceiling. This leads them to bring up the treatment of women in the photography world.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 UnportedYou're Thinking About That Person Again by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew is joined by photographer Nicolina Holt. She is an award-winning fine arts photographer educator. Having a tenure of over ten years as a photographer instructor, she also has her own photographer business - Nicolinaholt.com - and volunteers at local art centers in her area. During the episode, they discuss her journey as a photographer past and present and dive into aspects like Black and White film photography. And also discuss one of Nicolina's photographer exhibitions call The Irrelevant series. Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew and Isabella are back at it again! Since Andrew hasn't seen Hamilton, he asks Isabella for the "Unfiltered Pitch" which leads to a deep dive into the musical itself. Also reflecting on how it's an inspiration to subvert expectations by how they create art and instruct their students and diving even deeper in to her process for choreographing dance numbers. Andrew also can't resist asking Isabella her thoughts about the reality tv show Dance Moms.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 UnportedYou're Thinking About That Person Again by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew talks with dancer, choreographer, and instructor Isabella Schmidt. They discuss Isabella's experiences as a dancer from her earlier years in competitions to now being a dance instructor. They go in deep into their feelings when it comes to how they express emotionally and how they pass that to our students, to even their own moments dealing with the harsh realities and criticisms of our fields.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew and Michael continue their conversation. Discussing Michael's journey through dance and being one of the only black dancer in the company and then being able to perform "Black" stories. They discuss Michael's Ted Talk in which he and other dancers address the idea of being, "too old to dance". Andrew even asks Michael what he thinks of Ted Talk Dancers.Also Andrew reads a listener response in a new segment, The Backstage Lounge Patron.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 UnportedYou're Thinking About That Person Again by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew sits down with dancer Michael Blake. Michael is currently the Assistant Professorof Modern Dance at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory. His professional dancing career spans over three decades to when he first joined the Murray Louis Dance Company to dancing with greats like Cab Calloway, Broadway tours, and film. They discuss all that and more. Also they bring up We even look at time in Michael's life where he lost his ability to dance and was in need of hip replacement surgery. Be warned, Michael's passion for dance and life is infectious!Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew and Joshua continue their conversation on photography. Joshua flips the scrip and asks Andrew about his music career and also speaks on the times that he took photos of Andrew during his concerts and performances. They discuss how Joshua composes a photo and more of his methods. As well as discuss how amateur photos on social media platforms, like Instagram, influenced professional photographers.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Host Andrew Fisher sits down with photographer Joshua Nowicki as they talk about the art behind the camera lens. They bring up Josh's exploits as he ventures out on Lake Michigan during the winter months to photograph Winter Surfers and as he paddleboards amongst the ice. Also the different techniques of taking nature photography, such as capturing closeups of snowflakes and snapshots of lighting. All the while connecting to the greater world of art and how it reflects not only in front of the camera but behind it as well.Joshua Nowicki is one of the premier photographers for Michigan Tourism promotions and is also a designer and photographer for the Holt Bosse Marketing Agency.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Host Andrew Fisher continues his conversation with Choral Director David Carew. In this episode, Andrew asks David to talk about his process for programming a concert and finds out just how artistic it actually is. Also, they discuss in-depth a choral piece called, "Where Go the Boats". And Andrew brings out "The Choir Director Trigger List".Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

For this episode, host Andrew Fisher sits down with his good friend and Choir Director David Carew. They discuss how choir directors are just as artistic as regular stage performers and how directors express their artistic vision through a choral group. Andrew goes into some heavy subjects like asking David to respond to the saying, "Those who can't do teach." and they discuss the merits of a white choral director programming spirituals for their concerts.David Carew is the Director of Choral Activities at Southwestern Michigan College and also directs multiple community choirs in the Michigan and Indiana areas, most known for the profession choir, Chorllennium.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Andrew and Eric continue their conversation by diving deeper into their experiences as bandmates and musicians. Talking about their journey in playing the music of Stevie Wonder and their tribute concert to him and how those experiences changed them for the better.They discuss the transition from being performers to educators and how they approach teaching their students. Also, discuss the importance of being able to make connections and the importance of being kind to yourself.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong: In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

For the very first episode host, Andrew Fisher sits down with his good friend and former bandmate Eric Oliphant. Discussing how they each started their journies in music, working together as they formed The Andrew Fisher Quartet and how they learned lessons throughout the way. They discuss the methods and emotions behind performing and playing covers like Just Between You Me and the Wall. While introducing new ideas like how music could be considered as a charity and be tax-deductible.Head to the blogpost for further details and explained references for this episode.Follow us on:FacebookInstagramWebsiteCredits:Podcast Image by Findae Photography and DesignSong:In One Place by BarradeenMusic promoted by Free Stock MusicCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Host, Andrew Fisher, introduces the podcast. This podcast is focused on having those conversations with all manner of artists on, off, or even behind the stage. You'll hear the stories, emotions, and the passions that make, drive, and influence all kinds of art. So grab a seat, make your favorite drink, and step through the curtain into The Backstage Lounge