The Artist-Teacher Manifesto: A New Way Forward
For too long, we’ve been told we have to choose—between being serious educators or dedicated artists, between serving others and honoring our own creativity, between stability and passion. This manifesto is for everyone who knows, deep down, that this binary thinking creates a false choice. You don’t have to choose. You were never meant to.
The Moment That Changed Everything
3 years ago, I sat in my classroom after hours, staring at the music stand in the corner gathering dust. My guitar case had been sitting there for months—brought in with good intentions about sharing my music with my students, but never opened. My songwriter’s notebook hadn’t seen a new entry in weeks. My voice felt rusty from neglect.
I was a “good teacher.” My students were learning. My administrators were happy. I was meeting every external expectation of what a dedicated music educator should be.
But I was also dying inside.
Somewhere along the way, I had absorbed the message that to be truly committed to my students, I needed to set aside my own musical voice. That teaching music and making music were somehow competing loyalties. That I had to choose.
I remember the moment everything shifted. Fast forward to this past school year, during a composition unit, a particularly perceptive fifth grader raised her hand and asked, “Miss Brandi, do you still write your own music? Can we hear something you’ve made?”
The question stopped me cold. I fumbled through an excuse about being “too busy lately,” but the truth cut deeper: I had stopped modeling what I was teaching. I was guiding students toward a creative life I was no longer living myself.
This realization launched a journey—one that many of you will recognize. How could I honor both my calling to teach and my calling to create? Was it possible to be fully present for my students while still nurturing my own musical voice? Could these seemingly competing identities actually strengthen each other?
The Artist-Teacher Manifesto emerged from this journey—from conversations with other musician-teachers navigating these same questions, from research into creative identity, from biblical wisdom about wholeness, and from my own experience of rediscovering integration.
This isn’t just a document. It’s a declaration of possibility. A permission slip. A new way forward for those of us living at the intersection of classroom and creativity.
The Artist-Teacher Manifesto
We Believe…
We believe in the power of integration, not division.
Our identity as musicians is not separate from our identity as teachers. These aren’t competing callings—they’re complementary expressions of the same musical soul.
We believe in living music, not just teaching it or making it.
When we embody music in its fullness—both sharing it and creating it—we offer our students and our audiences something authentic and transformative.
We believe that our creativity makes us better teachers.
The vulnerability, curiosity, and courage required to make our own music enriches how we guide our students. Our personal struggles with creative blocks, technical challenges, and artistic expression give us empathy and insight that textbooks can’t provide.
We believe that our teaching makes us better artists.
The clarity, intentionality, and perspective we develop in the classroom deepens our creative work. Teaching others forces us to articulate what matters in music, refining our own artistic vision in the process.
We believe in seasons and rhythms, not rigid schedules.
Some periods will be teaching-heavy, others will be creation-focused. We embrace these natural cycles rather than fighting them, knowing that both callings will be honored in their time.
We believe in boundaries, not endless availability.
We can serve our students powerfully without sacrificing our own creative practice. In fact, maintaining those boundaries models healthy creative sustainability for the next generation.
We believe in process, not just product.
The journey of making music matters as much as the finished piece. The journey of developing as a teacher matters as much as the lesson plan. We find meaning in the middle spaces, not just the beginning and end points.
We believe in authentic sharing, not polished perfection.
Our students and our audiences don’t need us to be flawless—they need us to be real. Our willingness to share work-in-progress and discuss both triumphs and challenges creates connection and inspiration.
We believe in sustainable passion, not burnout.
We reject the false choice between self-sacrifice and self-indulgence. Instead, we cultivate practices that nourish both our teaching and our creativity for the long haul.
We believe that our dual identity is not a compromise—it’s a gift.
We’re not “just” teachers who happen to make music or musicians who happen to teach. We are artist-teachers by design, uniquely positioned to bridge worlds and create meaning in multiple spaces.
We believe that the world needs people who refuse to choose.
In a culture that prizes specialization, we embody integration. In educational systems that separate theory from practice, we unite them. In artistic communities that sometimes dismiss teaching, we elevate it.
We Commit To…
We commit to honoring both callings, without apology.
We will not diminish either our teaching or our creative practice in professional conversation. We claim both identities with confidence.
We commit to creating space for our own music.
Whether it’s early mornings, lunch breaks, or dedicated days, we will protect time for our creative practice as a non-negotiable part of our professional identity.
We commit to bringing our artistic selves into our teaching.
We will share our creative process, our current projects, and our artistic struggles with our students when appropriate, modeling the reality of living a creative life.
We commit to learning from our students.
We will remain open to the inspiration, insight, and fresh perspective our students offer, allowing our teaching experiences to inform and enhance our artistic work.
We commit to building sustainable rhythms.
We will create patterns of work and rest that honor both our responsibilities to our students and our commitment to our creative practice, adjusting as seasons change.
We commit to finding our people.
We will seek out and connect with others who share this dual calling, creating community that understands and supports our unique path.
We commit to defining success on our own terms.
We will resist external pressure to choose one identity over the other, crafting a vision of success that embraces both teaching and creating.
We commit to embracing the messy middle.
We will find value and meaning in the process, the questions, and the unresolved tensions of living at the intersection of teaching and creating.
We commit to modeling integration for the next generation.
We will show our students that they don’t have to choose between loving music and teaching it—that there is beauty and purpose in embracing both.
We commit to the journey, however it unfolds.
We will remain open to evolution, knowing that the relationship between our teaching and our creating will shift and deepen throughout our careers.
Two callings. One rhythm.
We are not divided. We are whole.
We are artist-teachers.
Integration in Scripture and Life
This integration of seemingly separate callings isn’t a new concept. Throughout Scripture, we see powerful examples of people who carried multiple vocations with grace and purpose:
David was both a shepherd and a king, a warrior and a psalmist. Lydia was a successful businesswoman and a spiritual leader in her community. Paul made tents with his hands while building churches with his words.
These weren’t fragmented lives—they were beautifully integrated ones.
In Ephesians, we’re reminded that we are God’s workmanship—His masterpiece—created for good works prepared in advance for us to do. Notice it says “works,” plural. We weren’t designed for a single note, but for a full chord of purpose.
Your unique combination of gifts isn’t an accident or a compromise. It’s intentional. It’s by design.
Living the Manifesto: Real Stories
The principles in this manifesto aren’t just nice ideas—they’re being lived out by artist-teachers in classrooms and creative spaces around the world:
From a high school band director and jazz trombonist: “For years I felt like I was living two separate lives—my ‘real job’ teaching and my ‘real passion’ performing. The breakthrough came when I stopped compartmentalizing and started bringing my performer self into my teaching and my teacher self into my performances. Now my students get to see me practice what I preach, and my audiences benefit from my ability to communicate musical concepts clearly. I’m not divided anymore—I’m whole.”
Or an elementary music teacher and composer: “I used to think I needed to keep my composing completely separate from my teaching—like it was this secret other life. Now I bring students into appropriate parts of my creative process. They see my drafts, hear my works-in-progress, witness my revisions. It’s transformed how they approach their own creative work, and honestly, their questions and perspectives have made me a better composer.”
And a college percussion professor and orchestral percussionist: “The turning point for me was establishing clear boundaries. I schedule my practice and creative work with the same seriousness as my teaching commitments. I no longer apologize for protecting this time—I recognize that maintaining my artistic edge makes me a more effective, authentic teacher. This isn’t selfishness; it’s stewardship of both gifts.”
Your Turn: Making the Manifesto Personal
The Artist-Teacher Manifesto isn’t just something to read—it’s something to live. Here are three simple ways to begin incorporating these principles into your life:
- Print and display the manifesto in your teaching space, practice area, or planning station. Let it serve as a visible reminder of your commitment to honoring both callings.
- Choose one principle that resonates most deeply with you right now. Write it somewhere you’ll see it daily, and look for small opportunities to embody it this week.
- Share your journey with at least one colleague who might understand. The path of integration is much easier when walked in community.
Download a printable copy of the manifesto here
Join the Conversation
Living at the intersection of teaching and creating comes with unique challenges and opportunities. You don’t have to navigate them alone.
I’d love to hear from you:
- Which principle in the manifesto resonates most deeply with you right now?
- What’s one step you’re taking to honor both your teaching and creative callings?
- What questions do you have about living this integrated artist-teacher life?
Share your thoughts in the comments below, or join our growing community of artist-teachers who refuse to choose between their callings.
Two callings. One rhythm. Our journey together.
About the Author
Brandi is a multi-passionate musician-teacher who creates in many spaces—as music artist BrandiLove, through K-8 resources in Miss Brandi’s Magic Music Room, and via her children’s platform Miss Brandi Loves You. Her book Chords and Classrooms: A Life Between the Lines guides fellow artist-teachers in embracing their dual calling without sacrifice. Follow her journey and join the community at chordsandclassrooms.com.