For Both Listeners And Musicians Alike
When You Become A Donor
Deepening Your Connection To Creative Music Becomes Our Mission
As You Help Us Grow
We Now Help You Grow
Even A One-Time $1 Donation Gives You
Lifetime Access To Our New Creative Portal
Designed To Inspire New Experiences In Creativity
Behind Every Experience
We Will Design For You
Lies The Ultimate Mission:
Unlocking Your 'Music Mind'
Living With Creativity
Flowing In The Moment
In Both Life And Music
The Legacy Of Karl Berger
What Is The Music Mind Experience?
The Music Mind Experience is not just a manual for creative music. It is a manual for creative living. For all people, both musician and listener.
It is the opus of our co-founder, Karl Berger. It's the culmination of a life dedicated to creative music, transformed into practical wisdom for all.
With both progress and sorrow, we mourn the unexpected loss of Karl on April 9th, 2023. Karl was a profound, radiant, and caring guiding force for all of us at CMS.
Reflecting on Karl's life and vision has not only strengthened our resolve. It broadens our vision for how CMS can move forward with more strength, purpose, and longevity than ever: exploring more ways to give back to the people who keep us going - our donors.
It Starts With Rediscovering Your Ears
Discover How To Listen Like A Creative Musician
Ingrid Sertso calls it tuning. And every workshop she leads starts with this exercise in deep listening.
Because knowing how to listen is knowing how to create, how to live, and how to deepen your relationship with music.
But how do you foster this - and everything else - that leads to Karl's Music Mind Experience?
Introducing A New Lifetime Home For All Our Donors - Regardless Of Donation Size
This Is Your Personal Portal Built For Exploring And Expanding Your Music Mind
This Is A Growth Platform Built For Creative Musicians And Creative Music Lovers
Introducing You To New Ideas, New Inspiration, And New Sounds You've Never Heard Before
This portal is for all: Even a one-time donation of a dollar is enough to access hours of inspired creative music and Music Mind explorations.
And to access everything inside requires only a modest monthly or yearly recurring donation.
And once in, it will become clear: you don't need to play an instrument to experience the Music Mind and the lifestyle of the creative musician.
When you donate today and access your portal, we're confident you'll begin exploring a new listening experience unlike any you've encountered before.
Everything Waiting Inside:
CMS Workshops On-Demand
Celebrated Musicians Guide You Through Their Own Process Of Listening, Playing, And Living Through Creative Music
Available with a monthly or yearly donation
Yes, musicians will find this to be an unparalleled exploration of creative music - making it, improvising it, and finding your sound. It's a library of over 50 90-minute online workshops with guiding artists on the cutting edge of creative music.
But the vast majority of these workshops are not talking about anything technical. In the spirit of Karl's Music Mind, these workshops explore the philosophy of creative music in all you do.
CMS Streaming Radio
New Sounds For New Ears
It's more than the growing collection of over 84 tracks. It's more than just 16 hours of music on-demand. Much of this music comes directly out of the CMS Workshops, where the focus always started with how we listen. Listen for the love and enjoyment of the music. Or listen with the ears of the Music Mind.
You'll explore the music of guiding artists like Leroy Jenkins, Naná Vasconcelos, Fred Firth, Cecil Taylor, William Hooker, Marilyn Crispell, George Russell, Carla Bley, Wadada Leo Smith, Dumisani Maraire, Derek Bailey, Evan Parker, Karl Berger, Ingrid Sertso, Art Ensemble Of Chicago, and more.
The Compete OUTLOOK Collection
Legendary Musicians Share Their Wisdom, Stories, And Opinions On Music - How To Listen, Play, And Live By It
Available with a monthly or yearly donation
Read a single article, read an entire issue, or search these enhanced PDFs for any theme, word, or musician. Read the stories, wisdom, and ideas of musical greats - in their own words.
OUTLOOK Introspectives
Find Quick Inspiration And Curious Ideas To Explore
Scan the page and find the words that jump out at you. Coming from the archives of our OUTLOOK: Creative Music Quarterly publication, these quotes from our guiding artists contain ideas, questions, poetry, and thoughts you can carry with you.
The Daily Feed
A Daily Shot Of Creative Music In 2 Minutes Or Less
Every time you log into the portal, you're greeted with a new video idea and Introspective to explore. Take it in and continue your day, or use it as a jumping off point to explore more.
High-Quality Performance Replays
Relive Recent Performances From Anywhere In The World
Performances include CMS Orchestra, the Operatic Orchestra, our Benefit Concerts and more, including those conducted by Karl Berger. See how his Music Mind philosophy translated to the creation and direction of improvised music.
Artist-Curated Playlists From The Archives
Experience How Creative Musicians Approach Listening
Listen to curated playlists of music from the CMS archives made by our guiding artists. They share insight into what, why, and how they chose and what you can listen for.
Archival CMS Workshops From The 1970s And 1980s
Learn From Creative Musicians That Defined Generations Of Music, Creativity, And Improvisation.
Listen to archival audio from workshops led by artists like Pauline Oliveros, Don Cherry, and Anthony Braxton
And Coming Soon
Experimental Topic-Specific Micro-learning Powered By Your Inspiration
Available with a monthly or yearly donation
A new approach to education modeled after the way creative musicians find and explore new sounds, techniques, and innovations: inspiration-driven explorations of a single topic from different angles.
Searchable On-Demand Access To The Full CMS Archives
Available with a monthly or yearly donation
For the first time ever, the entire CMS Archives - digitized with the support of a grant from Columbia University - will begin to roll out to the general public.
More Performances, Radio Streams, and Workshops
This portal will become the digital home of everything we've made and curated - and everything we make and curate into the future. As donors, you'll have first access to everything we make public.
Become A Donor
Join Our Community
And Grow With Us
What Are You Supporting?
Your ongoing support is pivotal as we forge ahead. The momentum of community and program building has been exceptional, and we must not lose this opportunity to further support artists, students, and listeners alike.
Below, you’ll discover a list of programs requiring your urgent support in the upcoming year. As an incentive beyond everything above, your donation today is backed by a dollar-for-dollar matching grant of $7000.
If we raise $7,000, it will be matched by $7,000 and your support will be doubled.
CMS Improvisers Orchestra
The Continuation of Karl Berger’s Legacy
The CMS Improvisers Orchestra in Concert and in Workshops
Open Box Workshops
Established and hosted by CMS Program Manager Gabby Fluke-Mogul.
Free community workshops for musicians from diverse backgrounds.
Goal: Two workshops per month throughout 2024 in Brooklyn, Manhattan, & Kingston, NY.
The OUTLOOK Collection
Access writings from past and present CMS luminaries.
Future expansion to include audio and video interviews.
Expanding The CMS Creative Portal
Everything mentioned above: From a platform sharing improvisation methods featuring maverick artists associated with CMS, live instruction and interactive audio/video for a worldwide community, automated listening station integrated into the portal experience, access legacy archives, a constant stream of inspiration, and more.
Live Event Programming
Presenting CMS Ensembles and Workshops at our newly established locations:
IBEAM in Brooklyn, Houghton Hall Arts Community in Manhattan, & Handbell Studio in Kingston NY
Featured Program
OPEN BOX
Established and hosted by CMS Program Manager gabby fluke-mogul, Open Box are free community workshops for musicians from diverse backgrounds.
Why it matters - in the words of a participant:
Hi gabby - Wanted to send a quick line about Open Box. I only joined in December, but it felt like my most nourishing group improv experience since I moved to NYC in 09. I got back into playing over the pandemic, and I’ve been craving a space to connect with improvisers. The community and format felt both accessible and incredibly inspiring. I can’t wait to join again in 2024. Thank you for convening this community!
Our goal with your support: Two workshops per month throughout 2024 in Brooklyn, Manhattan, & Kingston, NY.
Choose Your Level Of Giving Below
Make A One-Time Donation
What's Included Inside Your Portal
CMS Streaming Radio
Currently featuring 84 tracks with over 16 hours of archival music. New stations will be added as we grow
OUTLOOK Introspectives
Find curious ideas and quick inspiration to explore, curated from our OUTLOOK newsletter series
Your Personal Daily Feed
A daily shot of creative music ideas and inspiration in two minutes or less
High-Quality Performance Replays
Performances from CMS Orchestra, the Operatic Orchestra, and more
Archival CMS Workshops From The 1970s And 1980s
Learn from creative musicians that defined generations of music, creativity, and improvisation
Artist-Curated Playlists From The Archives
Curated archival playlists made by our guiding artists.
COMING SOON: More Performances and Radio Streams
Curated archival playlists made by our guiding artists.
$1 minimum donation for portal access
The Most Impactful Way To Give
Make A Recurring Donation
Reserved For Recurring Donors:
CMS Workshops On-Demand
Currently over 50 90-minute workshops across a range of topics and lead by a diverse group of guiding artists
The Compete OUTLOOK Collection
Legendary musicians share their wisdom, stories, and opinions on music - how to listen, play, and live by itt
COMING SOON: Inspiration-Powered Topic-Specific Micro-learning
COMING SOON: Searchable On-Demand Access To The Full CMS Archives
COMING SOON: More Performances, Radio Streams, and Workshops
Plus Everything Included For All Donors
CMS Streaming Radio
Currently featuring 84 tracks with over 16 hours of archival music. New stations will be added as we grow
OUTLOOK Introspectives
Find curious ideas and quick inspiration to explore, curated from our OUTLOOK newsletter series
Your Personal Daily Feed
A daily shot of creative music ideas and inspiration in two minutes or less
High-Quality Performance Replays
Performances from CMS Orchestra, the Operatic Orchestra, and more
Archival CMS Workshops From The 1970s And 1980s
Learn from creative musicians that defined generations of music, creativity, and improvisation
Artist-Curated Playlists From The Archives
Curated archival playlists made by our guiding artists.
Why a recurring donation is the most impactful way to support our work
Recurring donations take it one step beyond the financial support. It gives us the ability to predict and rely on funding, so we can make bigger and bolder investments without relying on grants and constant fundraising. By giving a recurring donation, you are helping free our time to remain focused on the mission.
$19/month or $190/year
You can cancel or pause your donation at any time. Simply email support@creativemusic.org.
© CREATIVE MUSIC STUDIO
THE CREATIVE MUSIC STUDIO ™ AND CMS™ ARE TRADEMARKS OF THE CREATIVE MUSIC FOUNDATION, INC., A 501(C)3 NONPROFIT CORPORATION FOUNDED IN 1971.
Creative Music Foundation's programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.