With one solo performance under my belt (my solo debut on the Reykjavik Jazz Festival last month), I was invited to perform solo piano during a lunch break at the international music conference You Are In Control. It was definitely interesting to perform my compositions sort of as a cocktail pianist, with movie directors and music industry people networking and chatting all around, wondering if I was too loud or maybe not being heard. It wasn't a concert but not just for ambiance either. It remains to be seen if I actually reached any ears.

I attended some of the workshops and lectures being offered, in search of inspiration or ideas to reach a wider audience. Máni Svavarsson, composer for TV show Lazytown; Ralph Simon, head of London based Mobilium Advisory Group; and Sigurjon Sighvatsson, producer and owner of Palomar Pictures all talked about one having to believe in oneself. (I must mention that I got a kick out of how Simon kept pronouncing Máni's name "money." He is, after all, the composer bringing in the most royalties in Iceland.) Alicen Schneider, NBC gave insights into how music is selected for scenes on TV shows (so of course, I handed her a couple of CDs and said that Heros needed Icelandic jazz), and listening to Hampus Kivimae, Sony/ATV Publishing Scandinavia made me rethink whether I should get a publisher.

Panos Panay gave a presentation on his platform Sonicbids. That looks really interesting although the jazz genre is currently a bit small. I got a chance to speak with him afterwards and found out that jazz is close to his heart, so he offered me a membership and invited me to give them feedback on how to improve the jazz genre.

The final roundtable that I attended was titled "Where Is My Money?" (Yikes! That's kind of what everyone in Iceland is asking after the collapse of the economy.) Some interesting ideas about how to fund projects were discussed, and one of the recommendations given by many was not to try to do everything myself but to reach out to my listeners for help and support, since time is money. So here goes.

• Is there a DJ in your area that you think would play my CD?
• Do you know of a writer or a blogger that you think would be interested in my music?
• Is there a jazz venue in your area that I should know about?
• Do you have a friend that you think might like my music? Send them a link to my downloads page for some free mp3s:
• Would you go on facebook and suggest my page to your friends?
  Here is the link (Click "Suggest to Friends" under my picture.)

To save me time researching jazz djs and bloggers on the net would you send me your recommendations and/or recommend me to them? Maybe you can leave a comment on a site or send an email with a link to my site. That would be so appreciated and would give me more time to write music and book a concert in your town.

I always love to hear from people whether it is via email, a comment here, on my facebook page or twitter. So send me your suggestions, comments and words of support. I'll send you a hug back.