OK, now that the GPS Music website is up and running... what's our next step? We have over fifty products available already, but of course the more quality material we can make available to you music educators, the better we can serve you and the more we can grow as an organization...so we can serve you even better.
But to truly follow that path, your "music guidance system" needs some guidance of its own! What categories do we need to expand in most immediately? Right now Gordon has some more marching shows and choral music in the pipeline, but are there areas in which you would prefer more choices? Or...are there entire areas that you'd like to see us expand into? We're going to stick to what we know, but there are options in orchestra, warm-up literature, music ed pedagogy, and classroom/program management that can be addressed at a moment's notice if there's a call for them.
So... let us know! And bookmark this site (as well as the GPS Music web page itself!) for easy access and regular reference!
- Gordon and Melissa Smith, publishers, GPS MUSIC
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Frequently-Asked Questions...
- So, um...what IS "GPS Music", anyway?
We wanted a way to make Gordon's music available to music teachers throughout Idaho, originally, and we were tired of the red tape that all the 'traditional' publishers seemed to be wrapped in. (And the size of the publisher didn't seem to matter - the lead time for one company we enjoyed dealing with was over a year to publication!) Thanks to this new thing Mr. Gore invented called the 'Internet' (try it! It's cool, and it's not entirely pornography!), we discovered that we can make Gordon's music, marching material, and much more available at a moment's notice, and at a fraction of the cost, to anyone with web access anywhere in the world!
- But, uh... isn't it still JUST a music publishing company? So what's the big deal?
The difference, we hope, is plural:
> We ship your music via PDF files if you choose - so you get it IMMEDIATELY.
> You have complete copying priviledges for your group - none of that, "buy another copy to get another score" baloney. Make ten thousand copies for your world's largest choir for one low price.
> We'll adapt the music to fit YOUR group - so if you have a soprano sax, we'll create an appropriate part for him. Gordon used to teach violins in his band program when he was at schools without orchestras; GPS MUSIC can create violin parts for your band arrangements. You name it - we can tweak it!
> The music and field shows are inventive! Gordon's music has always been funny, interesting, and extremely engaging for students and audiences alike, and we saw a niche in the market that wasn't being filled. Take a look at the marching band pages in particular - his field shows are like nobody else's!
> We want this to FEEL like a community. GPS Music is run BY music educators FOR music educators, and we know what's important to you band and choir teachers: music that's interesting, educational, and inexpensive. Beyond that, though, we want to use Facebook and Blogspot to encourage you to interact with not just us but each other - what are the questions you have with your program that the GPS community can help you answer?If there are products we can provide you, so much the better - but maybe all you need are suggestions! Let's help you find the answers!
- What's in this for you, Melissa and Gordon?
Philanthropically, we want to give back to the music education community for the three decades of joy it gave us...but of course, every motivation is internal if examined sufficiently. Obviously, we're hoping to make a profit (and because of our business model, our overhead is MUCH lower than most publishers, so our prices can be, too!), and we want to share Gordon's music with as many people as possible.
- Would you be interested in publishing anyone else's music, too?
It depends on whether you share our business and music educational philosophy, and if your writing fits what GPS MUSIC is all about. Contact us and we'll visit.
- Gordon and Melissa Smith, publishers, GPS Music
We wanted a way to make Gordon's music available to music teachers throughout Idaho, originally, and we were tired of the red tape that all the 'traditional' publishers seemed to be wrapped in. (And the size of the publisher didn't seem to matter - the lead time for one company we enjoyed dealing with was over a year to publication!) Thanks to this new thing Mr. Gore invented called the 'Internet' (try it! It's cool, and it's not entirely pornography!), we discovered that we can make Gordon's music, marching material, and much more available at a moment's notice, and at a fraction of the cost, to anyone with web access anywhere in the world!
- But, uh... isn't it still JUST a music publishing company? So what's the big deal?
The difference, we hope, is plural:
> We ship your music via PDF files if you choose - so you get it IMMEDIATELY.
> You have complete copying priviledges for your group - none of that, "buy another copy to get another score" baloney. Make ten thousand copies for your world's largest choir for one low price.
> We'll adapt the music to fit YOUR group - so if you have a soprano sax, we'll create an appropriate part for him. Gordon used to teach violins in his band program when he was at schools without orchestras; GPS MUSIC can create violin parts for your band arrangements. You name it - we can tweak it!
> The music and field shows are inventive! Gordon's music has always been funny, interesting, and extremely engaging for students and audiences alike, and we saw a niche in the market that wasn't being filled. Take a look at the marching band pages in particular - his field shows are like nobody else's!
> We want this to FEEL like a community. GPS Music is run BY music educators FOR music educators, and we know what's important to you band and choir teachers: music that's interesting, educational, and inexpensive. Beyond that, though, we want to use Facebook and Blogspot to encourage you to interact with not just us but each other - what are the questions you have with your program that the GPS community can help you answer?If there are products we can provide you, so much the better - but maybe all you need are suggestions! Let's help you find the answers!
- What's in this for you, Melissa and Gordon?
Philanthropically, we want to give back to the music education community for the three decades of joy it gave us...but of course, every motivation is internal if examined sufficiently. Obviously, we're hoping to make a profit (and because of our business model, our overhead is MUCH lower than most publishers, so our prices can be, too!), and we want to share Gordon's music with as many people as possible.
- Would you be interested in publishing anyone else's music, too?
It depends on whether you share our business and music educational philosophy, and if your writing fits what GPS MUSIC is all about. Contact us and we'll visit.
- Gordon and Melissa Smith, publishers, GPS Music
The Forty-Five: GPS Music
The Forty-Five: GPS Music: As you know, I'm occasionally able to bring you the websites of dear friends who have stretched their own wings in one way or another. Toda...
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Up and Running! (Again...)
Running a business can be frustrating, as many of you already know! Of the two of us, Melissa's the more experienced business-person; Gordon spent three decades teaching, creating, and the like. He often says that he liked the classroom because he felt he could control his environment there, and certainly composing must lend itself to that same feeling.
But there have been so many details in getting the GPSMusic.biz website off the ground that haven't gone as smoothly as we would have liked - glitches in the software, difficulties getting the right hardware in place, the logistics of getting all fourteen pages looking good and accurate even as the product library continues to build. We re-published the site again this evening for the third time, and it's still not how we really want it...the one major issue is with the buttons linking the various pages to each other. To reassure you: there are NOT three identical commission pages, and there IS a page of choir music (at this instant, it happens to be attached to one of those duplicate buttons!). The order form isn't always coming up, either, so if you need to order something and the order form page stays hidden from you - just send us an email and we'll take care of it for you!
Melissa's spent hundreds of hours getting the website right for you, just as Gordon's spent hundreds of hours getting the music right! If it takes a few more...so be it. It's worth the effort.
- Gordon and Melissa Smith, publishers, GPS MUSIC
But there have been so many details in getting the GPSMusic.biz website off the ground that haven't gone as smoothly as we would have liked - glitches in the software, difficulties getting the right hardware in place, the logistics of getting all fourteen pages looking good and accurate even as the product library continues to build. We re-published the site again this evening for the third time, and it's still not how we really want it...the one major issue is with the buttons linking the various pages to each other. To reassure you: there are NOT three identical commission pages, and there IS a page of choir music (at this instant, it happens to be attached to one of those duplicate buttons!). The order form isn't always coming up, either, so if you need to order something and the order form page stays hidden from you - just send us an email and we'll take care of it for you!
Melissa's spent hundreds of hours getting the website right for you, just as Gordon's spent hundreds of hours getting the music right! If it takes a few more...so be it. It's worth the effort.
- Gordon and Melissa Smith, publishers, GPS MUSIC
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Welcome to the GPS Music Community!
This is the on-line discussion board for the writers, customers, and patrons of GPS MUSIC, our internet publishing company for original, outstanding and unique band and choral works.
We encourage you to join in the conversation! Tap into a conversation thread, leave a question, add a thought or request, or just delve into a topic that interests you (and hopefully the rest of our cloud community!).
We'll be throwing our thoughts up on the wall to see which ones stick - occasionally, we may be asking you about possible ideas for field shows we're considering working up for you, or types of choral or concert band compositions. Other times, it may be regarding our own philosophy of music, music education, or the like. Surely there will also be significant events in the real world relating to our line of interest that will be worth noting.
Always, of course, we'll keep it clean and respectable, as we expect you to do as well. We look forward to this method of interacting with our customers, clients, patrons, and anyone else interested in joining the conversation!
- Gordon and Melissa Smith, publishers, GPS MUSIC
We encourage you to join in the conversation! Tap into a conversation thread, leave a question, add a thought or request, or just delve into a topic that interests you (and hopefully the rest of our cloud community!).
We'll be throwing our thoughts up on the wall to see which ones stick - occasionally, we may be asking you about possible ideas for field shows we're considering working up for you, or types of choral or concert band compositions. Other times, it may be regarding our own philosophy of music, music education, or the like. Surely there will also be significant events in the real world relating to our line of interest that will be worth noting.
Always, of course, we'll keep it clean and respectable, as we expect you to do as well. We look forward to this method of interacting with our customers, clients, patrons, and anyone else interested in joining the conversation!
- Gordon and Melissa Smith, publishers, GPS MUSIC
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