Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Jacobson.
Hi Lauren, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My story is a love story – for music, for connecting with people through my craft, and for the idea of living in accordance with my values and believing in dreams. I play clarinet, and every step of my journey was a decision to keep playing my clarinet and to see what might happen next. It began as a music education major in Colorado. It took me through my masters degree at The Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, to performing for presidents and dignitaries at the White House and on two national concert tours with The President’s Own Marine Band and Orchestra in Washington, DC (2006-2010), a job for which I enlisted in the Marine Corps. From there I was honorably discharged in order to start a doctorate, was hired in beloved Colorado as Professor of Clarinet at The University of Northern Colorado, and recently stepped away from academia after 12 years of teaching to begin an experimental event series called The Realm in 2023. I am still playing my clarinet every day.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Taking a leap to leave a (vanishingly rare) stable work situation has been a theme. The world of professional classical music is intensely competitive, and jobs that include a salary and benefits are a supply and demand nightmare. I have now had the privilege of attaining and then choosing to leave these career paths. I was told that I was crazy, silly, ridiculous, or delusional by some, and filled with hope by others.
Those choices were very scary to make – will I find a way to survive without this safety net? Will I be able to support myself, and then, my family? First risk: choosing to continue my education with a performance masters degree rather than enter the K-12 teaching world with my undergraduate teaching certificate. Second risk: choosing to leave the military to start a doctorate with the unknown and high-risk future career prospects. Third risk: choosing to leave my tenured position in academia to start an experimental event series. I am in the middle of the third risk now, well below the poverty line financially, though thankfully my spouse now is the benefit-holder, a privilege that gave me the chance to take this risk at this stage with two children and spouse.
I have no regrets, but am filled with gratitude that it has, so far, been OK. And it has allowed me to live in alignment with my values, to play my instrument and connect with others in new ways, and to never stay in a work situation out of fear.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My current endeavor is very exciting. In 2023, I started The Realm, an event series that blends spoken word, live music, and art to build lasting community and provide access to high-caliber artistic experiences for people of all ages.
Each event centers on a theme, and integrates live music, spoken word, and art into a continuous curated narrative. The Realm provides “living room vibes” that allow for movement and audience participation. Each event offers an intuitive art project for people to create, and participants can also bring their own creative work, including knitting, journaling, sketching, and more. Rugs, pillows, and the invitation to move, sit, lie down, or close your eyes make for a casual yet contemplative atmosphere, and kids often lie on the “fuzzy rug” to color or play quiet games.
These gatherings have a feeling of a complete community; a vulnerable willingness from each person to be fully present. This experiment in multidisciplinary, participatory programming and intentional gathering has shown to capture the heart of the purpose of creativity: authentic human connection. I am so excited to be part of it!
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
Fantasy and sci-fi books by women and queer authors keep my perspective vast and creative. Gardening gives my hands connection with the earth and soil. Playing my instrument keeps me creating and sharing my voice. Parenting keeps me working on patience, kindness, and opening my eyes to the incredible value of a child’s-eye view of the world. And connecting with all of the people building The Realm has given me insight into the vast and fascinating world of creative work. The Realm Collective, the curators of The Realm, are a group full of authors, poets, visual artists, musicians, therapists, social workers, scientists, engineers and more who all view their work and lives as deeply creative. If you cannot find your people, build the vessel to bring them together!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.therealmcollective.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/therealmcollective/
