In the Spring of 2012, I organized a small music conference at CUNY which involved a daylong event at Hostos in which music professionals came to campus and discussed the state of the music industry at that time, relevant trends in career development for artists, musicians, engineers, and producers, and the directions the industry might take. There was a discussion panel that I led which was followed up by Q&A with the student audience (CUNY students as well as local high school students), and the day ended with a pared down portfolio review where select music majors could present their production reels to guest speakers for feedback.
Students gather for a industry round table as part of the Next Note Music Conference
The idea here was to introduce students to the music industry as it was at that time and help them understand the directions it might move in so as to prepare them to be flexible and adaptable in their thinking about what a potential career in such an industry might look like.