Robert van Sice trained with the best — he studied with the legendary timpanist Cloyd Duff at the Cleveland Institute of Music and honed his craft with Japanese virtuoso Keiko Abe. A voracious learner, he absorbed every skill and took advantage of every opportunity that came his way.
But looking back on his training, van Sice recognizes that something was missing.
“I learned so many things about the percussive arts,” he says. “But I never had a single conversation about what was outside of the studio door.”
Despite this gap, van Sice built a remarkable career. In his first year at the Cleveland Institute of Music, he became the youngest-ever winner of the prestigious Concerto Competition. His professional career has included concerto performances, recital appearances, and master classes on four continents. And he’s premiered many of the most important pieces in the marimba repertoire, including works by Martin Bresnick, James Wood, and Alejandro Viñao. Now a faculty member at the School of Music, van Sice is determined to ensure his students don’t face the same void he once did, and that they are ready for life beyond the practice room.
“Today’s musicians are expected to be performers, educators, collaborators, entrepreneurs, and advocates — often all at once,” says Dean José García-León. “With changes in the performing arts economy, funding models, and audience engagement, we must help our students build flexible, sustainable careers that reflect both their artistry and the realities of the world they will enter after graduation.”
Van Sice is committed to doing just that. In and out of the classroom, mock auditions refine his students’ performance skills, guest speakers offer insight into the business side of the industry, and workshops cover essential topics like artist management and grant writing — practical knowledge often overlooked in traditional training. Through these experiences, they gain a firsthand understanding of how seasons are planned, what conductors seek in soloists, and what makes a grant application stand out. Van Sice ensures they aren’t left to figure out the unwritten rules on their own — lessons he had to learn the hard way.
“What if, instead of walking straight into the crosswalk, I pulled you back and said, ‘Be careful — that guy’s going to run over you’?” he asks. “Wouldn’t that be better? I had to learn my profession by getting hit by a couple of cars. My students don’t have to.”
Van Sice sees this work as an essential part of being a teacher — more necessary now than ever. “The level of playing in every instrumental discipline continues to go up and up and up,” he says. “So there are more magnificent players going after fewer jobs and concerts.
Dean García-León agrees: “Career readiness is not really a ‘nice-to-have’ — it’s a necessity. Ultimately, we want every student, regardless of discipline or background, to leave Yale with a toolkit of skills, relationships, and perspectives that will support them for the long term.”
After his arrival in 2023, Dean García-León made career readiness a top priority, expanding and refining an already passionate effort by many at the School. He emphasized the need for a comprehensive, student-centered approach that integrates practical career strategies with artistic development.
Key to this effort is the leadership of Astrid Baumgardner, faculty member and former Director of Career Strategies. A former lawyer turned career coach, Baumgardner brought her extensive experience in executive leadership and a lifelong passion for the arts to help early-career musicians build fulfilling and sustainable careers. She was leading workshops at Juilliard and the Manhattan School of Music when she was invited to Yale in 2010 to give guest lectures and teach at the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival. The following year, she officially joined the School of Music to teach a semester-long course and lead the newly formed Office of Career Strategies.
Her course, Careers in Music, coached students on essential topics that most classical musicians weren’t used to hearing about: personal leadership, goal setting, branding, and practical career skills. “Who are you?” she would ask. “What are your values, strengths, passions, purpose?” The class encouraged students to think beyond traditional career paths and explore how they might bring music into new spaces. Final projects ranged from performances in yoga studios to imaginative collaborations like “Cocktails and Counterpoint,” where students paired live music with mixed drinks.
“It was about giving people permission to think big and think creatively,” she says.
Over time, the course evolved into a leadership-focused seminar — now called 21st Century Arts Leadership. Students work in collaborative groups to tackle challenges facing classical music, using design thinking and audience feedback to conceive and execute projects. “The overarching question is always: how do we keep classical music alive and vital in our culture?” Baumgardner explains. Along the way, students learn skills in communication, collaboration, negotiation, and persuasion — tools essential for any arts leader.
“Our students are really committed to staying in the game,” she says. “They want to perform, they want to teach — and they want to know what their options are.”
Baumgardner’s role and the wider Office of Career Strategies were created in response to what Albert Lee, Associate Dean of Student Life, describes as a “wholesale demand” from both students and the music industry for more intentional career preparation. While conservatories have traditionally assumed that musical training alone would prepare students for the field, Lee has worked to expand that model, building a more comprehensive approach that reflects the diverse goals of students. This includes everything from CV reviews and interview prep to contract negotiation and alumni mentorship.
Like Baumgardner, Lee is particularly invested in dismantling the idea that there is only one path to success. “We inadvertently place higher value on certain career pursuits over others,” he says. “Part of our work is helping students see that there are many ways to build a meaningful life in music.” That means acknowledging different needs, desires, and skill sets, and carefully navigating what belongs in the curriculum versus what should be extra- or co-curricular. Ultimately, the goal is to equip students with “imagination and resilience,” Lee says.
An essential part of that effort is leveraging the school’s alumni network, which Lee refers to as “our greatest asset for career readiness.” That network spans not only recent graduates and established performers, but also those who have transitioned into other fields — offering students a broader view of what a life in music can look like.
Along with van Sice, Baumgardner, and Lee, flute faculty member Tara O’Connor works closely with Artist Diploma (AD) students to create tailored experiences that address both the creative and practical aspects of their careers. Her approach combines big-picture thinking with practical guidance, ensuring that students are not only equipped with the tools for day-to-day career management but also prepared for long-term success in the music world.
“The landscape of a career in music is constantly evolving,” O’Connor says. “Navigating this ever-changing world can feel overwhelming — especially for students who wait until after graduation to consider their next steps. Our shared goal is to equip students with the tools they need to begin building their careers before they leave our doors. We want them to hit the ground running.”
O’Connor plays a crucial role in organizing guest artist visits. Last year, for example, she invited Wu Han, the Artistic Director of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, to speak with the students. The event offered students a unique opportunity to hear valuable insights into the professional world of chamber music and provided them with a unique opportunity to connect directly with a leading figure in the field.
“All of us regularly invite guest speakers — from presenters and producers to performers and industry leaders — to share their perspectives,” says O’Connor. “These sessions offer invaluable insights and give students the opportunity to ask questions, voice concerns, and better understand the many paths a career in music can take. It’s a privilege to witness their curiosity and growth in real time.”
As the School evolves to meet the unique needs of students, Dean García-León says, “Our priority is to ensure these supports are sustained and personalized. Every student has a different path, and our infrastructure must be adaptable and holistic.”
A key part of this growing, adaptable infrastructure is technological fluency. Composer and AI researcher Ted Moore, for example, is preparing students for a rapidly changing landscape. He recently introduced a course on music and artificial intelligence.
“We create our own datasets (to make sure we’re not exploiting other artists’ data) and train small models to build some intuition about how the systems work while considering the relationships between data, algorithms, and the humans that use them,” Moore explains.
In addition to technical skills, Moore’s course prompts critical discussions around creativity, authorship, and ethics. By thinking through questions about copyright and the environmental impacts of AI systems, students gain insight into how AI is reshaping the way audiences, composers, and performers experience music.
“AI is developing very quickly, so it’s hard to predict precisely how it will impact our students,” Moore says, noting that “the best way to prepare for that world is to be informed about the critical questions and ideas surrounding AI.
Similarly, the Center for Studies in Music Technology (CSMT) and the Media Production Department, led by Matthew LeFevre, Director of Technology, play a crucial role in ensuring students are ready for the future. Located in Sprague Hall, CSMT offers access to a professional recording studio and computer lab, designed specifically for musicians.
One of the most popular offerings from the Media Production Department is a free, three-hour recording session available to every student each semester. “We did close to 70 of these last year,” LeFevre says. “Students walk in, record what they need, and walk out with something they can actually use.”
Last spring, LeFevre began teaching a new course on music and technology, grounded in real-world application. “I tried to keep everything incredibly practical,” he says. “We stayed focused on the bigger picture, concentrating on what students found most interesting and useful.” The course continues to evolve based on students’ needs, whether that’s learning how to mic a performance or how to quickly produce a demo under deadline pressure.
LeFevre points to van Sice as a model of this practical, student-centered approach. “His method is so logical and grounded,” LeFevre says. “It makes you think: Wait, there was a time we weren’t talking about these things?”
For Frances Pollock ’25DMA, Yale’s growing infrastructure for career development was instrumental in helping her reimagine her role as a composer. Despite having successful commissions and industry connections before arriving on campus, she saw an inherent instability in the arts sector.
“I had steady opportunities, a growing network, and a strong portfolio,” she recalls. “But I couldn’t make the economics of my career work.”
Immersing herself in what she calls “Yale’s innovation ecosystem” — Tsai CITY, the Entrepreneurship & Innovation Law Clinic, and Yale Ventures — she began to connect the dots between entrepreneurship, cultural policy, and artistic production. “Yale didn’t just sharpen my artistic voice — it gave me the institutional fluency and entrepreneurial support to build something much bigger,” she explains.
Pollock also took advantage of YSM’s in-house resources, seeking mentorship from faculty members such as Martin Bresnick, David Lang, and Chris Theofanidis, as well as Lee and Baumgardner. “They will all tell you that I was in their offices constantly — asking questions, looking for advice, and trying to understand the institutional and financial structures surrounding our field.”
These experiences, Pollock says, helped her “redefine what a composer could be — not just someone who writes music, but someone who shapes the systems through which that music and culture developed.”
Inspired by her experience at Yale, Pollock co-founded MOC Innovations to help artists build lasting, values-driven careers. What started as an artist collective has transformed into a venture studio that supports creative projects in film, performance, publishing, and digital media. “At the core of our work is the belief that sustainable cultural production needs shared ownership and strong business foundations,” she says.
Pollock’s trajectory exemplifies a broader cultural shift taking place at YSM—one that embraces entrepreneurial thinking and reimagines what it means to thrive in today’s musical landscape. “We’ve already seen a shift in mindset among our students: more curiosity, more agency, more vision,” says Dean García-León, noting the School’s job readiness efforts.
Proof of the initiative’s success is in the results. Svet Stoyanoff ’07MM, a former student of Robert van Sice, is now a professor at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami. Ji Su Jung ’09MM, another one of van Sice’s students, made history as the first solo percussionist to receive the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant and now serves on the faculties of the Curtis Institute of Music and the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University. And just recently, Vitaly Starikov ’26AD — another student mentored by van Sice — placed second at the Cliburn International Piano Competition.
The web of mentorship — both within the School and beyond — ensures that students have the support they need, regardless of what kind of challenge arises. As van Sice says, “It’s like being a physician. If your knee hurts and you go to an ear, nose, and throat doctor, they’ll refer you to the right person. That’s what we do here. Whatever career issue comes up, we know who to send you to.”
O’Connor agrees: “One of the extraordinary strengths of this program is its design: it empowers the faculty team to teach these essential topics in a deeply collaborative way. Collectively, we bring decades of experience and insight — both academic and real-world — to our students.”
Each instructor and resource represents a piece of a puzzle. Some offer practical skills, others provide guidance in personal development, and some challenge students to think about their artistic and professional intentions more broadly. Instead of having a single career-focused team, they exist throughout the School, serving as important touchpoints at every stage of a student’s journey.
Thinking back to his own training, van Sice sees these opportunities as a welcome evolution in how young artists prepare for their futures. His students now have access to a network of support and resources that he had to piece together on his own.
“Winning an audition and doing the job are two completely different things,” he says. “The whole idea of our work is to pull back the curtain and show what it’s like to be a professional musician.”