Speaking

In addition to being one of the world’s foremost expert and performer of the harp guitar and multiple string instruments, John Doan has been a popular speaker and keynote for businesses and conferences.

Recent lectures and demonstrations include:

  • “Fernando Sor and the Evolution of the Guitar” – Museu de la Música, Barcelona Spain
  • “A Career in Music Starts with Recognizing your Uniqueness” – Corban University, Willamette University
  • “Fernando Sor Revisited” – Marylhurst University, Portland, Oregon
  • “Beyond Six Strings – From Sor to Hendrix”- Willamette University
  • “From Harp Guitars to the New Hawaiian Family” with Tom Noe and Dan Kerlee Seattle Folklife Festival
  • “Harp Guitar Through the Ages” – Harp Guitar Gathering, Marylhurst University
  • “The First Modern Harp Guitar: Creating the Sullivan/Elliott 20- String Harp Guitar” with Jeffrey Elliott – Harp Guitar Gathering, Marylhurst University
  • “Something New From Something Old – Serious Creativity Connects The Future With The Past,” Keynote address – The American Association for Creativity at Duke University, Durham, NC
  • “A New Style For An Old Instrument- Composing And Performing On The Harp Guitar,” Portland Guitar Festival, Portland, Oregon
  • “What We Did Before Radio And TV- American Parlor Music,” (sponsored by the Oregon Council for the Humanities “Chautauqua” Program)
  • “Recording and Performing on the Harp Guitar – Entrepreneurism in the Arts” – West Salem Business Association, Salem, Oregon
  • Guest speaker – Leadership Oregon Conference presented by the Dept. of Administrative Services for the State of Oregon – Salem, Oregon
  • Conducted tours and lectured at Sacred Sites of Ireland that included Dublin Museums, Newgrange, Slane, Hill of Tara, Glendalough, Kildare, Cashel, Skellig Michael, Aran Islands, Clonfert, and Clonmacnois
  • “Nehemiah Doane: Early Missionary to the Oregon Territory”- an account of the life of one of Willamette University’s earliest Presidents, in Cone Chapel, Waller Hall, Willamette University – Salem, Oregon
  • “Music as a Business, Non-Traditional Entrepreneurship, Oregon How Does A Person Pay Their Bills When They Don’t Have A Regular Job?” Corban University, Salem, Oregon, Salem Schools Young Entrepreneurs Workshop
  • “Oregon’s Cultural Exchange with The Fugian Provence, People’s Republic of China,” Western Oregon University and Willamette University – Monmouth and Salem, Oregon

Frequently requested speaker presentations include:

  • An Adventure in Music Composing
  • Breaking Tradition: Finding Your True Voice in the Music
  • Breaking the Trends and Fads: Writing Your Own Path in History
  • Competing in a Flooded Music Market
  • Fernando Sor: An Examination of the Father of the Modern Guitar
  • History Repeats: Using the Wisdom of the Past to Challenge the Future
  • How to Create Work that Survives You
  • How to Survive in an Evolutionary Market and Industry
  • Inspiration from History for Composition
  • Managing Your Creative Time and Energies
  • Mastering the Conceptual Sale: Selling Beyond Products and Services
  • Mastering the Life of an Aging Musician
  • Meaning Through Musing: Art Forms Unleashed
  • Music as Amusement versus Music as Art
  • Music Makes Team Leaders, Scientists, Engineers, World Leaders: Bring the Music Back to School
  • Non-Traditional Entrepreneurship: How to Make Money Without a Real Job
  • Problem-solving Through Music
  • Redefining the Guitar
  • Rediscovering the Roots of the Classical Guitar
  • The Historic Pilgrimage of Music
  • To Infinity and Beyond: The Art of Timeless Composing
  • Uncovering a Broad History of the Six String Guitar