Praised for his elegant and expressive musicianship by Grammy award winner Sharon Isbin, João Kouyoumdjian is a Brazilian-Armenian guitarist of distinction. In the words of guitar virtuoso Paulo Martelli "João Kouyoumdjian is one of the most extraordinary Brazilian guitarists of his generation. His interpretations always displayed refined sensibility and profound aesthetic meaning."

We agree! Ever since we first heard João play, the RocketHub team was captivated. So we're very pleased to have João launching his upcoming Carnegie Hall performance through an elegant and captivating campaign on RocketHub. I connected with João to learn about his background and outlook.

The inspiration behind my project - the concert "Brazilian Guitar in New York" (also known as "Brazilian Guitar: Tradition and Tendencies") - was the desire of performing and advocating for traditional and new Brazilian classical guitar music at Carnegie Hall, the legendary venue where only a few exceptional artists perform. With partial sponsorship of the Consulate General of Brazil in New York, this concert aims to make the Brazilian community in New York vibrate, as well as to bring the joy of Brazilian music to New Yorkers.

In addition, I want to push the Brazilian classical guitar repertoire forward with premieres of new works and establish a continuous working platform for Brazilian musicians in New York through future new editions of the project.

You are successfully bringing together a lot of different ideas and goals. What has your experience been so far? Are you getting the response you expected for your crowdfunding campaign and bigger goals?

The experience has been super exciting because everybody loves the guitar and wants to see it performed all over. In addition, supporters are always thrilled to contribute to the difficult endeavor of bringing Brazilian guitar music to such an emblematic venue as Carnegie Hall. People can feel that that is the dream of a lifetime for me (and it probably was the unmet dream of many…) Thus, when they see a young fellow like me battling against all odds for such a noble ideal, they are happy to contribute.

Supporters also often get excited about accompanying all the steps of your career, from a young local artist to an internationally recognized performer. I struggled to be based in another country, to perform in great venues, to graduate from the highly selective Juilliard School. So when people contribute to my project, I can tell they not only want to contribute to this particular project but they are also happy to recognize my success with this supportive act. Therefore, they are more interested in who you are and what you have consistently been doing over several years than in just one particular project. You take a lesson out of this: write and spread your bio nicely!

A wise lesson! What's your advice for others trying to replicate your online and offline success?

My advice doesn't go too far from what other artists suggest: start your crowdfunding from your own cycle of friends and family and then your network will grow naturally. However, quoting the movie "Field of Dreams," do not believe in the saying "If you build it, they will come" (I actually stole the usage of this saying from RocketHub's founder Jed Cohen, who used it in a presentation). Crowdfunding may seem as simple as posting a project on RocketHub but that's just the beginning: you've got to have a LOT of discipline to make it happen. I found out it was extremely important to map all my potential supporters so I started writing down all my networks, placing people I know in groups. For example: 

-Network from my native town: Roberto, Joseph, Peter, etc.

-Network from NYC: Mattias, Courtney, Hamilton, etc.

-My girlfriend's network: Sandra, Cristina, Edward, etc. 

-My Politicians' network: Sergio Pimentel, Paulo Fonseca, etc.

(so on…)

I first approached people that I thought that could be interested in making large contributions. Then, after some time you can try to make your most interested friends and first supporters spread the word for you. Everything grows exponentially from there and when you realize the campaign gains a pulse and rolls on its own. 

Finally, have materials such as flyers and virtual links (in your mobile and tablet devices) always ready to show to anybody at any time. The most efective way of grabbing someone's attention, rather than email and social networks, is still establishing a one-on-one-eye-to-eye conversation.

I hope that was helpful! Good luck to everybody!

RocketHub Rocks!!!

You are a wise and talented man João. Thank you for your presence and support. Listen to João's music and support his Carnegie Hall dream.

-Vlad