Author: EEBaum
Date: 2011-09-21 17:17
Thanks, Jack, that's exactly what I was getting at in your 1-4.
And, to get it out of the way, I've heard mostly good things about UNT. I know people who have gone there, and I would recommend people go there if they find it a good fit.
I may seem to be pissy about career topics around here, and my main beef is this: I see lots of really great performers with some highly-refined artistry and technical skill who graduate and seem lost. They're all good enough to land jobs, but there simply aren't nearly enough jobs to go around. But I also see a lot of demand and a lot of untapped potential of people who want live music. The problem is connecting the two, and the problem isn't solved by today's orchestras, and the problem isn't solved by musicians who wait for calls to play.
I find the most absolutely critical aspects of making it as a musician today to be these, and I would look first and foremost for a school that provides opportunities for them:
- A rich network of flexible, energetic, entrepreneurial musicians
- A push toward performing in and starting ensembles not organized by a higher power
- Exposure to topics of interest outside your primary focus, and the opportunity to pursue them in some depth. This can be as far away as computer science, philosophy, or kinesiology, or as nearby as tabla, black metal, or sound art.
I consider one of the biggest downsides to the typical classically-trained performer's career prospects to be the performer's interchangeability. As a clarinetist in an orchestra, you are entirely replaceable... in fact, your replacement is INEVITABLE because the orchestra plans to continue to exist after you die, so the only question is when. You're not needed after your departure, so by extension, your entry into the group is also of less consequence. But you may be the only clarinetist who can improvise tihais, or the only clarinetist who plays folk and metal, or the only clarinetist who has declared yourself a permanent member of the ensemble you run.
Also, as much as I downplay the importance of school ensembles as an item of focus, they are incredibly valuable for breadth and caliber of experience. Jack's question #3 is a biggie.
-Alex
www.mostlydifferent.com
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