Author: Claire Annette
Date: 2008-11-04 22:07
My own story has been reiterated in this thread many times.
I chose the music ed. route instead of performance...then did nothing with that degree, really. I have my master's in another area and laid my clarinet down for more than two decades, teaching the occasional lesson here and there.
While I realize that trying to go pro isn't an option for me at this point in my life, Istarted playing again, in earnest, a year ago. I'm teaching clarinet again and I play in a community group. It's hard to walk into an organization, though, that doesn't know your background and where the highest players have been grandfathered in just because they've been there the longest. While I love to practice and to play, this is a huge frustration for me right now.
As for playing in groups as quality as those ensembles we remember from high school, college, and graduate days, the closest I've been able to come lately was volunteering to play in an ensemble that was put together for a university conducting seminar. It was liberating and an immense pleasure to once again play amongst musicians (all adults and music grads) who played musically and who played well.
Perhaps the original poster can find such opportunities through a local university, especially if that university's clarinet section needs additional players?
Don't forget church opportunities as well. Especially around Christmas, jobs abound for orchestral players willing to attend a couple of rehearsals and play for cantatas. Same with Easter. Larger churches that can pay well usually bring in good musicians who need very little rehearsal.
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