Today we’d like to introduce you to Don Jones.
Hi Don, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I began my career as a professional piano player in New York City back in 2000. I worked as a freelance musician for cocktail parties at all the swanky hotels and restaurants in New York while I was in college. Upon graduating, I became a full-time theatrical pianist where I played keyboards for multiple Broadway productions, including Wicked. I also conducted the orchestras for over 100 musical theatre productions. I was a good sight reader (meaning I could play almost any music anyone put in front of me without practicing it), so I ended up also making a name as an audition pianist for Broadway and regional casting agencies. While in New York, I accompanied more than 20,000 singers for auditions.
Once I turned 30, my girlfriend at the time (wife now) and I decided that the tumultuous life of being a professional musician was not something we wanted to rely on as we got older. So we moved to Atlanta to be closer to her family and we both completed our MBAs, mine at Georgia State University. I enjoyed finance and the stock market, but I ultimately decided that I wanted to combine my newly discovered business acumen with music and open my own performing arts company here in Atlanta. The long-term vision is to have multiple locations throughout the metro area.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Opening a performing arts company, where classes are taught in a group setting, was not particularly easy to do during the Covid pandemic. In fact, my wife and I decided to delay the opening over a year because we were concerned about the spread of the disease and the interest (or lack thereof) among the community. After vaccinations began coming out and the world started to reopen, we jumped on an opportunity which allowed us to open the business as quickly as possible.
Building a local brand is not easy in 2022. I hear all the time that social media posts need to be five seconds or less and print material is largely unread. Further, a lot of kids have access to the arts in school. But I firmly believe that the product I am offering is something unique to The Studios Brookhaven and goes well beyond what kids and adults will learn anywhere else. So I am willing to take risks!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about The Studios Brookhaven?
The Studios Brookhaven is a performing arts facility. We have three core competencies:
1. Private music lessons in piano, guitar, voice and strings
2. Musical theatre training for high school and professional actors
3. Children’s group classes.
Our model is to have quality instruction occurring all day long. In the morning, we offer classes for ages 2-5 in ballet, tumbling, yoga, music, piano, and even mommy and me style for ages 1-3. In the afternoons, we have after-school programs for ages 5-12 and private music lessons for all ages. In the evening, we offer beginner to advanced musical theatre courses in auditioning, acting through song and building repertoire. We are also adding a masterclass program in partnership with Pullman Yards. We will bring in A-list Broadway/film composers and performers to work with select students, then those teachers will perform in the evening at Pullman Yards.
The Studios Brookhaven focuses on quality arts education from successful performing musicians, dancers, actors etc. When you sign up for a class or lesson with us, you will get real-world training, not something someone learned in a classroom but never executed themselves. I also treat my employees extremely fairly in terms of competitive wages, cancellation policies and autonomy while teaching. I love the saying (which has been changed through time but Lee Iacocca originated it), “Hire great people and get out of their way.”
As a professional musician with over 20 years of experience, I have seen it all when it comes to education- the good, the bad and the ugly. I am certain that The Studios Brookhaven provides the very best training in the Atlanta area and probably the Southeast. I’ve taken my 20 years of experience teaching and playing on Broadway and for television and put it front and center while creating programs at The Studios Brookhaven and hiring instructors. I’m so excited for people to discover us!
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
I absolutely believe in risk and reward, as long as it’s calculated. At age 30, I contemplated changing careers and ultimately went back to school full-time at the age of 33. That was a big risk! What I learned in business school largely gave me the confidence to open a company that I believe will remain successful. As I get older, my risk/reward tolerance certainly grows more conservative, but I truly believe that you get one shot at this beautiful thing called life, and I’ve grown to never settle for monotony or anything less than what makes me genuinely happy.
Pricing:
- $25/Group Class
- $35+ for Private Music Lessons
- Musical Theatre Classes from $125
Contact Info:
- Website: www.thestudiosbrookhaven.com
- Instagram: @
thestudiosbrookhaven - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100073471039623
