Daily Inspiration: Meet Sara Hare

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sara Hare.

Hi Sara, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
I have always been a musician. Even as a young child, I remember putting on costumes, standing on the fireplace hearth like it was a stage, and performing for anyone who would listen. In third grade, I started learning my first instrument – the piano. It came naturally to me. It was easy to imagine the music in my mind and watch my fingers create it on the keys. It all just made sense.

After about a year, my piano teacher encouraged me to try a more difficult instrument – the oboe. Little did she know, that suggestion would shape the rest of my life. I played oboe all through middle school and high school. I braved a grueling audition process and was accepted to a music conservatory for an undergrad degree in oboe performance. Music wasn’t a hobby – it was my identity.

So towards the end of my undergrad degree, when I had the sinking realization that I no longer wanted to become a professional musician, my sense of self crumbled. It took a couple of years, but after some time I finally realized that there was more than one way to be involved in the arts; more than one way to make music happen.

I decided to get a master’s degree in Arts and Culture – basically an arts administration degree – and since then I’ve been working as the Program Director at a music education nonprofit, creating programs and bringing musical experiences to tens of thousands of children and their schools and families around Denver each year.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
When a musician pursues a performance degree, their education is very focused on the instrument. Virtually all you do is learn how to play your instrument and dive deep into the theory and history of the music you’re playing. There is a massive amount of tunnel vision: I need to make reeds – I need to practice – I need to get ready for the audition – reeds – practice – audition. Hours and hours a day, every day of the week, focused on just that.

At music conservatories, there is very little education or support outside of teaching a student how to make music. So during my four-year undergraduate degree, not once did it ever occur to me that I could have a career in the arts outside of performing. It was never discussed. And for months and months after deciding to no longer be a performer, I thought that there was no other way for me to be involved in music.

I thought that was it. It seems so bizarre now that it took me months and months before I even realized that careers in arts administration even existed, but I had spent the previous decade-plus focused so specifically on performing music that it took a massive amount of thought to shift my mental perspective. It would have been great to avoid the mental struggle that ensued as I tried to re-envision my entire identity outside of music, but I’m glad that I did finally figure out a path forward that kept me in the arts.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
As the Program Director at Inside the Orchestra, I get to create amazing, musical experiences for young children and their communities. As far as we know, we are the only professional orchestra in the world that performs exclusively for children, and that means that my job is unique. This has allowed me to create art unencumbered by what my “peers” might be doing.

Our programs are unique in so many ways. They’re immersive – the audience is seated on the floor and encircled on all sides by professional musicians and performers. And the music that we choose and the guest artists we feature are selected with a focus on increasing equity, access, and inclusion in the performing arts.

The orchestra has a history of exclusion, and we’re doing our best to change that in the ways that we can. I’ve deeply enjoyed the work I’ve done over the past eight years unlearning so much of what I was taught in music school. I’ve had to reeducate myself about what great music is and who creates great music. With every new program I create, I learn about composers and performance styles that I’ve never heard of. I get to reimagine the types of performers or ensembles that can be featured in an orchestra

In some programs, I lead the creative efforts as I select repertoire and set a script for a teaching artist that will guide students through the program. And in other programs, I get to work with other amazing and inspirational artists and help to curate their art and combine their inspirational work into streamlined performances.

Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Denver has an amazingly rich cultural landscape – there are so many people and organizations creating amazing art. It would be easy to spend every single weekend going to different performances and visiting new exhibits. Keep your eyes open to what’s happening at venues small and large around the city.

Check out new performances, Pay attention to the leaders and artists who are creating them. As you dive deeper you’ll see the threads that weave around the venues and performances around Denver – the people and organizations that work hard to make the art happen. For arts and culture organizations around town, it’s great to be aware of SCFD (scfd.org) and the resources they have.

CBCA is another great way to network in Denver’s arts community. Small but mighty venues like The People’s Building constantly have interesting programs and performances that give audiences an intimate view of the arts. The key is to find your niche and explore it – because every niche area of performance seems to have a rich community somewhere around Denver.

Contact Info:

• Website: insidetheorchestra.org