Episodes

Friday Jul 08, 2022
73. End of an Act and the 3 Keys to Success
Friday Jul 08, 2022
Friday Jul 08, 2022
Life in the Pit is going to go on a hiatus, hopefully a short one. For more details, listen to this episode as David Lane talks about what's going on with the podcast and why. Also, we do a deeper dive into the 3 keys to making it big that was touched on in the previous episode.
This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling. Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.
Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod. Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast. Donations are also gratefully accepted. Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. Thank you for listening.

Friday Jul 01, 2022
72. Subbing on Percussion for Broadway - Dennis J. Arcano
Friday Jul 01, 2022
Friday Jul 01, 2022
Dennis J. Arcano has played for several dozen shows including the national tour of Tick, Tick,...Boom! as drummer and assistant music director. He is also frequently a sub on drums and percussion for Broadway productions such as Follies, Jagged Little Pill, and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. We talk about all of that, the high quality work he's doing as the house drummer and contractor for A Contemporary Theatre of Connecticut, and the wealth of fun and helpful videos he's been creating at his YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/dennisjarcano
This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling. Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.
Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod. Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast. Donations are also gratefully accepted. Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. Thank you for listening.

Friday Jun 17, 2022
71. NAMM experience and Community Theatre Musician Compensation
Friday Jun 17, 2022
Friday Jun 17, 2022
Episode 71 begins with David Lane reporting on his very fun first-time experience at NAMM 2022 in Anaheim. Then he brings up a topic that might be uncomfortable but one that is important and widespread: non-union musicians for community theatre are, for the most part, still being paid the same amount they were receiving at the beginning of the century. David reads comments from musicians all over the nation who have chimed in on this to paint the current picture, and offer some suggestions as to how things might improve. There's also the debate of whether or not they should improve. Are community theatre musicians right to quibble over pay when the actors are often volunteers? Many thoughts are shared. Please feel free to message us through http://lifeinthepitpod.com to share your thoughts and suggestions. This is likely a part 1 of a continued future discussion.
This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling. Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.
Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod. Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast. Donations are also gratefully accepted. Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. Thank you for listening.

Tuesday May 31, 2022
70a. BONUS: Story of a Big Break - Angela McCuiston
Tuesday May 31, 2022
Tuesday May 31, 2022
This is a follow up to Episode 70 with Angela McCuiston, where we chatted about strength and injury prevention for musicians, but we never actually talked about her pit experience. This is a funny story of her "big break", and not in the way that phrase is normally used.
Follow Angela and discover her resources at http://musicstrong.com.
his episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling. Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.
Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod. Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast. Donations are also gratefully accepted. Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. Thank you for listening.

Friday May 27, 2022
70. Strength Training and Injury Prevention for Musicians - Angela McCuiston
Friday May 27, 2022
Friday May 27, 2022
We might not be discussing performance on Episode 70, but don't skip this week, because a reported 90% of musicians will go through some kind of performance-related injury in their career. Angela McCuiston is determined to see that number go down because of her services as a personal trainer for musicians through her company, Music Strong. Angela is not only a trainer, but she plays flute, alto flute, and piccolo and is an experienced pit musician who lives in Nashville. In this episode, we discuss the common physical problems of various musicians and some of the things that can be done.
Angela's book: The Musician's Essential Exercises: Basic Strength Training for Injury Prevention can be found here.
She has a ton of helpful videos on her YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/MusicStrongFitnessTraining
Finally, she is the co-host of the podcast: Tuned And Strong.
This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling. Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.
Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod. Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast. Donations are also gratefully accepted. Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. Thank you for listening.

Friday May 20, 2022
Bonus: Nurturing Your Network or How to Book Your Pit (and not)
Friday May 20, 2022
Friday May 20, 2022
If you're a musician in any field, your network is paramount! If you're a music director who works a local market and are responsible for filling chairs in the pit for your production, are you taking shortcuts and possibly saving time while sacrificing the opportunity to build relationships? This is a mild rant from host David Lane about a trend he's been noticing. Do you agree or disagree? Please message through our website or social media pages.
This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling. Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.
Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod. Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast. Donations are also gratefully accepted. Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. Thank you for listening.

Friday May 13, 2022
69. Into the Woods - Jeff Saver, music director
Friday May 13, 2022
Friday May 13, 2022
Jeff Saver took over music directing sometime around 1988 during the original Broadway run of Into The Woods. He talks about his experiences with that production, his friendship with the late great Stephen Sondheim, and his understanding of collaboration.
This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling. Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.
Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod. Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast. Donations are also gratefully accepted. Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. Thank you for listening.

Friday Apr 29, 2022
68. 14 Habits to Improve your Music Career
Friday Apr 29, 2022
Friday Apr 29, 2022
A lot of talented musicians sit around waiting for work, or struggle with plateauing. Whether you're just getting started or you've been a professional freelance musician for a while and just needing to take an honest assessment and maybe course-correct, David Lane offers 14 habits compiled from himself, past guests, and former listeners that can help make sure that you are doing everything you can control to make the best possible living as a freelance musician.
Do you agree or disagree with this list? Or is there something important that got omitted? Send your feedback through our website or message us on Instagram or Facebook.
This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling. Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.
Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod. Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast. Donations are also gratefully accepted. Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. Thank you for listening.

Friday Apr 15, 2022
67. Annie and All That Jazz - Arnold Gross, music director and pianist
Friday Apr 15, 2022
Friday Apr 15, 2022
Arnold "Arnie" Gross began his professional career as a pianist, and that included working on shows such as Company and Cabaret. For over 5 years, he was the music director for the original Broadway production of Annie. He was also the dance music arranger as well as the on-screen pianist in the 1979 film All That Jazz, starring Roy Scheider and directed by the legendary Bob Fosse. Arnie is long retired from the theatre, but has plenty of stories from this golden age of Broadway and cinema.
The video (mentioned in the episode) of Arnie Gross conducting Sarah Jessica Parker as Annie on The Bob Hope Special can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPJ4T1ysrbQ
This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling. Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.
Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod. Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast. Donations are also gratefully accepted. Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. Thank you for listening.

Friday Apr 01, 2022
66a Listener Questions - To Accept the Gig or Not, Time Management
Friday Apr 01, 2022
Friday Apr 01, 2022
This is the first listener-generated episode, where David Lane answers two questions:
The first question is asking about the pros and cons of accepting a theatre gig that doesn't pay much beyond travel expenses.
The second question is asking about tips for managing a day job, family, and even meal times with evening gig life.
This was produced as a video episode, which you can watch here: https://youtu.be/8r113bDw6DA . Be sure to subscribe to our channel for more upcoming videos.
This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling. Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.
Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod. Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast. Donations are also gratefully accepted. Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. Thank you for listening.