Klarinet Archive - Posting 000210.txt from 2000/01

From: Androyd973@-----.com
Subj: [kl] job satisfactions among professional musicians
Date: Fri, 7 Jan 2000 15:25:03 -0500

this article came up on the flute list, and was sent to me by a friend. I
thought it would be of interest to some people. I am just curious as to how
the professional musicians in this list regard this article, as i am aspiring
to be a musician, and this is an interesting opinion. I would like to hear
what others think.
thanks,
andy brown
Grumbling among the Woodwinds
Lush notes from your violin resound through gilt-edged halls. Hushed
audiences listen as you enthrall them with Beethoven or Prokofiev. Hundreds
of admirers burst into applause at each concert's end. Musicians who play in
major symphony orchestras--each of whom has beaten out perhaps 200 others in
auditions--must surely love their jobs. And in contrast, those relegated to
regional orchestras--including many of those 200 "others"--must languish in
frustration, one steppingstone away from glory.

Not so, according to Josephine S. Pichanick, a doctoral candidate in the
organizational behavior program jointly administered by Harvard Business
School and the department of psychology. For a study of job satisfaction
among professional musicians, Pichanick collected questionnaires from 66
musicians in major and regional symphony orchestras and interviewed 22
players in depth. The major-orchestra musicians studied earn a mean income of
$85,000 a year, as compared to $15,000 for regional players. "I predicted
that, because major players were so much better compensated and because so
much more prestige was involved, they'd be more satisfied overall," Pichanick
says.

Surprisingly, the results showed the opposite. Job satisfaction for players
who win a seat in a major symphony orchestra was high early in their tenures,
but fell steadily, gradually regressing to the mean. Regional players'
satisfaction began lower, but grew over time. Prestige and good pay,
Pichanick found, do not necessarily equal job satisfaction.

"Many major-orchestra players feel that they are musically stifled," she
explains. "Their orchestras are strongly driven by boards of trustees who
oversee large endowments. Serious money is on the line. There's little room
for influence by the players." Management, she explains, caters to what's
popular with audiences, not what's most meaningful to the orchestra.

Orchestra life in general can be grueling. You perform the same pieces year
after year: "How many times can you record Beethoven's Fifth on a CD?" one
player asked. Working with the same conductor for years can grow boring, and
a few are famously domineering personalities. Performance pressure is
intense: some musicians resort to beta-blocker medications to get through
performances. There are repetitive strain injuries, like tendinitis in a
violinist's wrist or arm. It's a night-and-weekend job, which kills your
social life. And as one of 100 orchestral musicians, you're an anonymous cog
who must usually forgo recognition for individual talent.

Because major-orchestra musicians start with higher expectations, they may
become more deeply disillusioned over time. A player on the brink of
retirement from one major orchestra told Pichanick, "It's a factory job with
a little bit of art thrown in." Yet both major and regional players stay in
their jobs; among the interviewees, average job tenure was 18 years.
Pichanick says the number-one reason for leaving was death.

How do the musicians cope with their frustrations? Ironically, the key to
regional players' relative contentment may be their part-time status. Most
take second jobs to support themselves, as music teachers, computer
programmers, bank tellers, insurance brokers. They have less time to improve
their skills as musicians, but "they're exercising some of their other
skills," Pichanick explains. Over time, they increasingly enjoy their
orchestral work because they no longer need to find every kind of
satisfaction in one job. Regional musicians are also more likely to put
energy into pressing their union to improve pay, hours, and benefits; major
players grumble but, aware of their high pay and status, don't act. Working
to improve your job seems to add, not detract, from your sense of
satisfaction with it. "You just keep working to make small gains," one
regional player of 25 years' seniority said. "As the years go by, you get
more involved."

Frustrated major-orchestra musicians look outside the symphony for musical
satisfaction. They join small chamber groups. They perform as soloists for
regional orchestras. They form quartets, where they can choose what music to
perform, shine as individual musicians, and reconnect with their art. "We
have these images of glamour and awards,"

Pichanick says, "but there are satisfactions to be found in both big and
little."

~Barbara Beckwith

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