 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: music9631
Date: 2010-01-08 09:20
I have what seems to be the hardest decision to make. I have gained a place at the Guildhall school of music to study on the MMus orchestral course. I have been out of college for 18 months and have since played professionally with several orchestras in the uk. I thought this would be a great step to getting more work by studying in London but after seeking advice from my teachers one of whom plays in the London Phil he said that I shouldn't do it. They see it as a backwards step because of the work that I have already been doing. I currently work in a boarding school as an accompanist and they are very good at letting me out to do concerts when I get booked. They have offered me the job again for september so I could stay as I am. Any thoughts?
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2010-01-08 14:47
If you're getting work now, you're probably doing better than the typical Guildhall MMus graduate. I'd say follow your teacher's advice.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Maruja
Date: 2010-01-08 16:07
I agree - if you are still keen, you could always ask them to defer entry till September 2011 and then you could reassess depending on how your career is going ....
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Author: Joseph Brenner, Jr.
Date: 2010-01-08 16:56
There's no pat answer here.
First, to state the obvious, if you have independent income that equals or exceeds what any job you have pays, then your question's academic because you can follow your fancy with no negative consequence.
Second, if you don't have such independent income, then the potential benefit from the education and personal contacts must far exceed the consistent benefit of steady, paid work in a nice environment where your employer accommodates you. I say "far exceeds" because the world economy is sour and you have no assurance that your M. Mus will get you the job you now have, much less the job that a M. Mus might have gotten you five years ago.
Third, Llike Ken Shaw, I'm a lawyer. My law degree and license allow me to practice law in any court where I'm admitted to practice. I could teach law, be a full professor of law, be dean of a law school, or president of a university. But, there are two higher degrees in law: the master of laws (LL.M) and doctor of juridical science (S.J.D). Some academics and some tax, patent, and admiralty lawyers have one or both of these degrees...but most lawyers don't because the basic law degree allows one to do just about anything.
So, what's driving you towards the M. Mus now? I sense that you're doing now just about what you've hoped the M.Mus would allow you to achieve. While the M.Mus might be the gateway to some things, is it the exclusive gateway to everything?
I had a close friend who was studying for a Ph.D in English while I was studying law. At that time, the great Dickens scholar, Edgar Johnson, was visiting the university. I asked my friend where Johnson had received his doctorate; he said Johnson doesn't have a doctorate and doesn't have a masters degree either. I know, I know, Edgar Johnson's the exception, but it's amazing what hard work and accomplishment, punctuality, and good will can do for one's career.
Best wishes with your dilemma; let us know what you decide! Happy New Year.
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