News

One Platform for Global Access to Arts Education: Connecting Learners, Educators, Artists, and Arts Organizations

Christine Matovich

Nov 1, 2021 — 5 min read

In my current position at the International School of Stuttgart in Sindelfingen, I teach performing arts and coordinate outreach and performances. It was my first year at the school when COVID-19 hit. We had been planning for visiting artists, outreach programs with the Stuttgart opera, and more, but then COVID-19 took center stage. My arts program was paused.

We, the arts educators, had been prepared to teach online, but we found ourselves suddenly using Microsoft Teams, Zoom, or Skype. All of these platforms are made for meetings, not for arts education and especially not for music education. We were forced to vie for space on platforms shared by billions around the world.

The absence of visiting artists, community culture days, and trips to arts organizations was even more problematic. These are essential experiences that engage students’ developing skills and cultivate creative, curious, and respectful arts consumers. As our schools closed, I and thousands of other arts educators turned to the internet to search for these arts experiences for our students. What we found was that artists were pivoting too. Artists were making the best of the situation and using whatever tools they could to keep the arts alive and promote their craft. However, these artists, who were scattered across the internet, were offering their crafts for free. Arts organizations, meanwhile, had shut their doors and shuttered most of their performances. This situation has not improved.

Free isn’t sustainable. An artist cannot create if they cannot afford to live. An arts organization cannot inspire its audience if it cannot fund its artists and programs. And an educator cannot engage their students in the arts if artists or arts organizations disappear.

What if artists could connect with learners around the world, and earn a living doing so? What if arts organizations could reach an international audience? What if arts educators could easily access the resources they need? What if every student — every learner — had access to arts education?

What if all of this could be found on one platform? It’s time for the Downbeat.

Welcome to CommonTime. Let’s move the arts forward, together.

CommonTime is an online booking platform that provides global access to arts education. It is a growing community of artists, arts organizations, educators, and learners.

How it works

If you’re looking to have great arts experience, visit CommonTime.online to begin. Create a free Educator or Individual account. Search our roster of vetted teaching artists to find the one that is right for you. View the artist’s schedule and choose a time slot that works for your schedule. Chat with the artist if you have questions. Book the artist for a custom, interactive session. Enjoy livestreams and masterclasses from arts organizations. Whether you are an arts educator looking for ways to inspire your students, or a parent looking to jumpstart your child’s creativity, or an individual learner looking to take the next step in your arts journey, CommonTime has what you need. Every step of the process takes place on CommonTime. From searching to discovery, from booking to checkout, and from chatting to learning, CommonTime takes care of it all. CommonTime is not Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or Skype. It is a stable platform that is purpose-built for arts education. CommonTime is a growing community of artists, arts educators, arts organizations, and arts lovers. CommonTime is your home for the arts.

**On CommonTime, All the World’s Your Stage.**

Are you a teaching artist looking to connect with educators and learners around the world? Sign up for free with CommonTime as an Artist to offer sessions, share your craft, and get paid for your expertise. Indicate your area of expertise, the skill and age levels you teach, your availability, and your rates. Once you pass the vetting process, you are ready to begin engaging learners and inspiring the next generation of artists!

Are you an organization looking to build up your marketing, audience outreach, and funding through virtual offerings? Or are you looking to fill a programme that has been cleared out by COVID-19? Sign up for free with CommonTime as an arts organization to expand your reach to a global audience. Host livestreams, interactive learner series, and performance recordings, and book artists to round out your outreach programming, all on CommonTime.

No matter your role in arts education, you have a place on CommonTime.

With CommonTime, the arts and arts education are more accessible than ever. A publicly-funded school in Panjim, Goa can dial in a world-renowned percussionist from Hong Kong to engage their students. A father in India can book a theatrical storyteller from Slovakia to teach his daughters. An American retiree can reach out to a wax encaustic painter from Belgium to discover a new passion. All the school, educator, or individual has to do is pay the session rate and ensure a strong internet connection. And on the chosen day and time, there is the artist, giving an interactive session with the school’s band director and aspiring percussionists, with the Indian daughters, or with the American retiree. Sessions, webinars, and livestreams are delivered directly into classrooms, lecture halls, performance spaces, home offices, conferences, and more.

Bassoons in Botswana? Theatre Costumes in Tasmania? Kathakali in Kansas?

On CommonTime, of course!

CommonTime has no borders. It supports Cultural Preservation by providing a way for artists all over the world to share their craft. Why learn from a YouTube video when you can get a LIVE expert to share their craft and culture?

On CommonTime, make real cultural connections in a virtual space.

What art forms are part of CommonTime?

Every art form you can imagine. Theatre, Dance, Visual Arts, Design, Music and everything in between. All of the arts are at your fingertips on CommonTime.

Who can join CommonTime?

Individuals who want to learn. Educators who want visiting artists in their classroom. Arts Organizations who want to share to a wider audience. Teaching Artists who want to share their craft and get paid.

Https://commontime.online/sign-up

We look forward to welcoming you to the CommonTime community.