Iris Gillon - The Child
At the age of 4 years old Iris Gillon sat down at the piano and started playing. Iris could hear a tune and at first sound could immitate it right away on the piano. Her parents being very excited at the idea of having born a child prodigy, immediately enlisted their daughter for piano lessons and a few years later bought her a guitar. Iris progressed at lightening speed, anything and everything musical coming to her easily. At the age of 7 she put together her first singing group with a few talented friends and they would get together regularly and play guitars and sing songs. As Iris grew, she became more and more interested in dancing and became very attached to her ballet teacher Barbara Alias who led her into splits, twirls, jetes and hours upon hours of dancing, acrobatics and as a tean camp counselor, Iris Gillon found herself teaching music, drama and dance to the entire camp even composing an original musical for the children to perform in, creating a unique and very personal part for every kid in the camp that wanted one!
Iris Gillon - The Tean Ager
At the age of 12 Iris became very rebelius as everything came easy to her. She was the smartest in all her classes, never having to study or do homework, whatever was put before her, she memorized on the spot without even trying. It was that way with her piano lessons as well. She never practiced, which infuriated several teachers who simply couldn't believe she could pay as well as she did without ever working for it. All through her teans, Iris became a compulsive song writer. Every single day she would gaze out her bedroom window deep into the woods where she and her family lived isolated from the world. Iris would write another song, and then another, and then, another...
Hundreds of songs for voice and guitar were written by Iris during her high school years, as she was led by the hand of fate to bring forth melodies and tunes. These, as the years flew by, developed into symphonies, concertos, movie sound tracks and more...
Once at the age of 16, Iris was caught doodling on the pages of some books with magic marker by her Dad. Her Dad, being a literary scholar and deeply in awe of the printed word flew into a rage at the newly colorful pages of these prescious publications. However, seeing her unbridaled talent as an artist and creative being, her Daddy purchased her a box of multi-colored markers and a drawing pad that was 18x36 and Iris proceeded to continue her doodling, but on these pads with the designated markers. The first large marker drawing to ensue from this pad was an amazing picture that was so incredible that Iris' parents decided to frame it. Once on the wall, that glass covered mirror of life multiplied into another and another and another and caught by the bug of color, Iris asked her Dad to buy her some paint and canvas "just for fun" and within a year, dozens of paintings emerged from that home, covering wall after wall after wall. To this day, wherever Iris lives, even in a home with thousands of square feet, the place is covered with splashes of colors from her drawings and paintings, everything in life, a palate for her creative surges.
Being the talented pianist that she was, already as a teen ager, Iris' parents wanted Iris to learn the value of a good-day's work so they insited that she find some other source of income besides them, ie get a job. So Iris, being the innovator that she was, at the age of 16 started her first music production company. It was called SUCCESSFUL PRODUCTIONS and the president was Victor Reussi Von Piggenstein (the offical and legal registered name of her dog). At the same time Iris started to enlist students slightly younger than herself and her first students paid her very high fees to teach them how to play the piano and as in the other creative endeavors, Iris found she had a deep love and great ability with sharing her knowledge and talents with others. Iris, still as a tean-ager, started to draw a following of piano students. At the age of 18, one of these students was a computer programmer and worked for IBM. When he saw her writing music and leaning over the piano, doing everything by hand, he said "why don't we write some software together and automate some of this process?" Now at this time, in 1978, Iris was simply not exposed to computers and had never even been up close to one so this was completely new territory. So Iris and her 22 year old student formed a company together and started designing software to compose, write and print music. After compiling a beautiful design of drawings, business plan and a format for creating musical soundtracks and printed scores, Iris and her partner took their ideas to the one big computer company of the time...and well... being the young things that they were, had their ideas, their designs, everything, was swallowed up into the great abyss of corporate America and Iris and her partner were left out of the project. (oh well...) The project continued on between them causing Iris' partner to spend hundreds of hours at her home while her parents were off traveling the world, and her 22 year old partner fell in love with Iris. Iris not of the same mind and feelings, after all, she was 18 years old and more interested in 18 year old musicians that rode motorcycles than a brilliant and somewhat more intellectually inclined computer geek.
Iris, as a tean-ager was a big party-thrower.Her own sweet sixteen she planned on a dime and had a hundred kids on her family lake-side property, with a barbecue, dancing, swimming and sailing. The party was a hit and the talent Iris had to create a fabulous event started here, in the woods, by the lake where everyone who came had an amazing time and it was the party of the decade for that high-school that Iris attended.
Iris Gillon - At College
Iris auditioned for several colleges to study music, specifically piano performance as in her tean years her parents took her to an historical musical figure, the Great Alexander Lipsky, who studied with a long line of historical musical figures (too long a list to print here). This man lit the fire of passion for piano in Iris and upon introduction to Mr. Lipsky and his teachings at the age of 16, once in college at 17 (did we mention that Iris passed out of all her classes in high school and graduated early?), she went into a tail-spin of obsessive piano playing and advanced musical composition for more than just piano or voice and guitar, but now for other instruments, continually adding on more instruments and more and more till finally her compositions grew into symphonies and movie soundtracks of all kinds.
In college, Iris, finding herself busy with practicing the piano, writing music... found herself in a trying situation wherein the students around her were struggling with their classes. Having a profound interest in the metaphysical, philosophy and comparative religious, Iris found herself helping her fellow students with their papers and eventually started her own COLLEGE PAPER WRITING BUSINESS at Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford where Iris attended the music college for composition.
Finding the drug consumption to be overwhelming, after one year at Hartt School of Music, Iris transferred into the braniac's college Sarah Lawrence thinking that in rooming with her best friend (another brilliant creative artist) that she would find a home with more health-bound and inspired young adults. Unfortunately, in the dorm life, Iris couldn't escape the massive drug abuse of the time and found her dorm-mates very involved with something she couldn't dance with. She found herself isolated and alone with her piano and original musical compositions which at that point took over her life.
In trying to escape the drug epidemic of the 70's, Iris moved back home with her family and graduated from an independent home-study college which gave her credit for traveling the world and studying piano and music with some of the great teachers of the world from Europe to Israel including Enrique Barenboim's Dad. At this time Iris also got credit for performing concerts and for her creative studies and this was a good match for getting her undergraduate degree.
Iris' parents very strongly believed in higher education so they insisted that Iris go to graduate school even though Iris was painting, composing and performing and had a large following of piano students and was dynamically exploring an unfettered world of creativity.
Against her better judgement and at the prodding of her parents, Iris applied to five music colleges and got into all of them. At her audition exams at The Juilliard School of Music, the professors actually argued over who would "get her" as her talent stood out way above the other students. Iris passed out of all the Musical Theory exams when in one of the exams the students were asked to write the three opening voices of a fugue (as composed by Bach) and Iris sat at her desk and in minutes composed an entire fugue. (Her exalted teacher Alexander Lipsky had forced her to do musical analysis of all the Bach Fugues that she learned how to play so she knew the structure inside and out and writing the entire piece was a lark for her)... so she passed out of Music Theory.
Iris was offered the exalted position as student of music composition and private lessons with Vincent Persichetti who was at the time the leading composer in the country, and Iris asekd him "what will you teach me"? And he said "aparently nothing that you dont already know, so we could get to gether and improvise..." and they sat down and imrpovised on the piano together and had some great fun, but after an hour, they both agreed, Iris should continue her studies of piano performance and compose as she was already doing.
Iris graduated from The Julliard School of Music with a Masters In Piano Performance and put the degree on her wall where it stands till today, surrounded with her massive museum of accomplishments on her walls.
Iris Gillon - After College, Entering the League of Small Business Owners
Continuing on with her newly found love of computers, after college, Iris did a favor for a friend and composed music for her next-door-neighbor's film project (her next door neighbor was a student at NYU film school) and that blossomed into a busy carreer as a film composer, Iris developing her skills with computer technology, live musicians and more. That film project developed into another student film project and into another and another and another till word of mouth spread and upon completion of one movie soundtrack, another young film maker was knocking on Iris' door to write and produce yet another and another.
In 1980 and 1981 the Fairlight Computer was released in the US and Iris became one of the first musical composer programmers and experts on that machine in the country. Iris was one of the first to combine writing orchestral movie soundtrack scores combining both live musicians, symphony orchestra and computer generated musical tracks that were programmed and performed in conjunction with the visual.
In alignment with this progress, Iris started her own symphony orchestra called The Iris Film Orchestra, then moving to become The New York Film Orchestra which recording many soundtracks for young film makers in New York City at the time. Iris found that she had power to lead musicians, as when she first coordinated her orchestral ensemble, she convinced 85 musicians to learn her music and perform for her for three entire days (24 hours of performance work) for no pay, only for the love of creating a new musical group. Iris both conducted that orchestra, she also sat in the engineer's chair helping to mix and record with the use of the first SSL (computeri controlled mixing board) studio in the country.
These were amazing times and Iris let nothing stop her. Her parents had encouraged her to be creative and to explore, and that she did. In her promise to get paid work for the musicians once they helped her make these initial orchestral recordings, Iris eventually fell into her first music performers booking company to help musicians get quality work.
Iris had a few happy years composing and producing musical soundtracks and living in New York City, composing new instrumental ensemble compositions and performing them and concertising. As a member of ASCAP, Iris' compositions were spreading and royalties started coming in from her movie sound-tracks being performed all over Europe, South America, Canada and Austraila.
In dating a musician that was a member of the Metropolitan Opera, Iris was pressured into helping that young and talented fellow to get performing work since her boyfriend thought she was so good at business (and she was!). So, Iris did some market research and before you know it, she had her boyfriends jazz group playing at the White House amongst other great big parties and fundraisers, and before you know it, she was selling and promoting musical groups at the same time as her creative endeavors.
More and more as Iris got that one group work, musicians heard about her skills in landing jobs and how much party throwers loved her and her ability to communicate and deliver great musicians so she was pulled from all sides. Musicians begging for work and customers piling in calling for good quality performers and the vaccum of the universe did it's magic and drew Iris into her lifelong journey of managing and promoting some of the top tri-state bands and entertainers.
Iris Gillon Music'n Celebrations LLC was created, in short - IGMC. Iris' first phrase in advertising IGMC was "IGMC is to parties what IBM is to computers" and that was the beginning of an historical launching of a company that would support and feed over 200 musicians till this day.
Iris Gillon Music'n Celebrations IGMC soon became one of the major players in the New York Events and Party Industry. Now one of the leaders, IGMC holds it's place in history as a great organization and company that supports musicians and creates a parade of fabulous events, one after another.
After years in business finding work for quality musicians, Iris found herself walking into events that had zero creativity and were very weak in design and that is when Iris started making suggestions and offering help and ideas to her music customers on how to run and implement their events. Soon, Iris' free help became very popular and she became known amongst the venues as a dynamic party customer generator and venues started to pay Iris and IGMC to promote their facilities and more and more Iris got drawn into the party planning end of the business, the business calling upon her for her unique and creative skills unmatched by any other in the business.
As Iris Gillon and IGMC developed, Iris developed events budgeting software with a work associate called BANKER BRIDE, Iris has composed and recorded original first dances for her brides and grooms, and now at IGMC she promotes IGMC VISUAL the most progressive and exciting lighting design operation minted together with the music so that the band performance and the lighting design are comprehensive, attached and at ONE with eachother.
In alignment with Iris Gillon's college passion for the mystical and the spiritual, the theme of IGMC is giving. Her mission is to give more than she gets and her bands perform better, she gives of her time to her customers and her musicians now leading the top events planning and entertainment coordination and lighting design company in New York City and Northern New Jersey.
To date - Iris Gillon and IGMC has been involved in one way or another with over a hundred million dollars of events and continues to be the leader of innovation for parties, art, design, performances, creative projects, inventions and more.
Soon to be released will be a serious of books as Iris Gillon the Author comes out writing exciting treatises on her greatest passion, the Journey of the Human Soul, what it means, why we are here and where we are going. As IGMC develops, the mission of the company is to live within spiritual rules, making sure that we give more than we get.
In 2009 Iris Gillon started her Wedding School LLC to help young wedding and event planners get their start in their carreers and to help couples spending a ton of money learn more about the industry before they spend all their money and how to do it wisely. At first launch the school was an immediate success, Iris getting emails and requests for class attendance from around the world as far as China and South America!
Iris Gillon Music Publishing LLC was started many years ago to publish and promote original compositions, books, recordings, videos, films and movies produced by Iris Gillon over the years. Iris Gillon Music Publishing is a reigstered ASCAP publisher since 1990.
Iris Gillon TV Appearances
Iris Gillon has appeared on Donald Trump's Apprentice as a Top Wedding Planner helping the winning team to win their wedding gown sales competition by bringing a ton of brides to the store and they all bought gowns, hence that team won! Iris Gillon has appeared as star wedding planner on WE TV Platinum Weddings with Maxie and Kevin's wedding. You can see the entire show posted at www.igmc.net on IGMC on TV.
Iris Gillon HOBBIES
Dogs, Ballroom Dancing, Walking, Spiritual Studies, Skiing, Meditation, Learning and all the creative arts.
Iris Gillon IGMC Small Business Owner, Entrepreneur
Iris Gillon Wedding and Event Planner
Iris Gillon Composer, Performer, Music Producer
Iris Gillon, Artist
Iris Gillon, Film Maker, Director, Film Edititor
TV SHOW PILOT (in process...)
Iris Gillon, Teacher, Educator, Wedding School LLC Founder.
Iris Gillon Author:
The Jewelbox (An inspiration book for children) The Love Encyclopedia (A series of severl hundred true stories about couples in love) How to Select the Music for your Wedding (A comedy written in parables about the humorous things that can happen when planning the music for your wedding) BANKER BRIDE (wedding and event budgeting softare), Diary of a Wedding Planner, a Story of War, Sex and Crime (A spiritual journey) soon to be a feature film.
Iris Gillon Inventor
Iris Gillon Enterprises
Iris Gillon Music'n Celebrations, LLC
Iris Gillon Music Publishing LLC
Wedding School LLC
TV Show Pilot (underway now!)
Thanks for reading!
Iris Gillon Music Production