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Re: Thoughts on choosing to become a professional musician

Author: skygardener
Date: 2006-11-10 07:35

Tictaktux is the only one that touched on the idea I would like to point out with more detail.
There is one more big problem thing that people seem to be overlooking. For all of us, even if we don't take the want to be an artist in to account, even if we just want to make ends meet doing nothing special, there are still no jobs out there.
Let's put arts aside for a moment and really think about just getting out of the red, just paying for basic expenses, just doing all the things that are required to stay alive- even THEN, it is not possible for most.
At my College graduation ceremony in 2003 I remember the guest speaker, a CEO from a supermarket chain- the thesis of her opening paragraph went something like this... "the job market for those graduating today is more difficult than it has been in 40 years". We all gave a young, sarcastic, spit-into-the-wind-with-authority cheer and appluded with sincal gusto. We are not laughing anymore.
I know that nearly none of my Undergrad or Graduate classmates (in any major) are truely able to live and pay thier own bills. Those that live on thier own have given up on the prospect of scratching at their student loans, and pay for food with plastic.

The real question is not "How do we make it, as musicians?" the question is "How do we make it?"

And for those of you that say "learn many fields/instruments" "be a jack of all trades". It is a very unrealistic idea of true reality. Sorry. You probably started out in a different era and you can live comfortably today, but things have changed. Last year a study showed that the average American high school graduate in 1968 made (with inflation adjusted to the economy of 2002 taken into account) over $40,000/year. In 2002- less than $20,000/year.
Find me a successful "jack of all trades" that is less than 35 years old.
Learning one (or five) more instruments requires all that more TIME to practice, all that more MONEY to keep one more horn or fiddle in playing condition, and all of those things that are make hard to succeed on even ONE instrument. That cozzy ideal of being a doubler is impossible to unless you have some way to survive for a year or two while you practice your scales on different horns. One has to have money to succle off of for a few years or have parents that can afford to have a border that doesn't pay any rent. The economy really has gotten worse, it is not only a number game; we are making less than our parents.
My grandmother worked in Macy's in the 30's- she made 38 cents/hour. I did the math to find out that 38 cents in 1930's NYC is about $25 in today's NYC- workers at Macy's now, about $10/ hour.
The real question is not "How do we make it, as musicians?" the question is "How do we make it?"
Any ideas??

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