[The Hair]

Well, I wasn't sure where to put this, but considering I'm a student, and there was a similar thread in this forum, I decided here. I didn't want to resurrect a dead thread. I'm going in to my senior year in high school, and I probably should've started looking at colleges by now, but it's just so overwhelming. I'm not even sure what I want to do yet. I've always been thinking about a musical career, but I know you don't always get a steady pay check since you have to find your own work, so I'm not sure. Lately, I was thinking about instrument repair. You can make decent money, I assume? Especially if there aren't many instrument repairmen in that particular area. I figured if I went with that, I could probably also do the club thing too. But then, the computer industry is also appealing to me, which is what I've been thinking about a lot.
But then, I'm sure theres some career that involves both music and computers.

So basically, what I want is some info on things to help me out here, I'm going crazy. :?

 

[kaplac]

Audio technician?

I'm in the same boat as you, just I'm a sophmore next year.

But being an audio tech isn't very fun I've heard, since you only really make good pay if you have a lot of clients or are well known.
You may also want to check out being a graphic designer for a music company. Or finding a career under research and development in a major sax company or something doing graphic design.

There are lots of possibilities, but I noticed a lot of the choices don't seem to hold a lot of money or there is simply way too much competition and a very high risk value in a making a steady income to live off of.

But what can I say, I'm still living with my parents

I'll just give you the typical american dream mentality. Do what YOU want to do, prepare yourself for any challenges that come ahead and take the wisest choice. Passion and smarts always seem to succeed.


And a backup plan is always nice though

 

[rs1sensen]

It is important to note that there are a lot of careers involving music outside of Performance and Education, which is where the majority of people tend to go. A big new one being "Music Therapy."

This site offers a list with descriptions about some careers in music:
http://www.menc.org/information/infoserv/Dictionary.html

Also here you'll find information in a nice chart that also talks about necessary schooling:
http://www.menc.org/industry/job/careers/careers.html

More Links:
http://www.berklee.edu/careers/
http://www.kenfoster.com/Articles/Careers.htm
http://library.thinkquest.org/15413/professions/professions.htm
http://www.napbirt.org/napbirt-repair-schools.asp
The world of performance is a tough one to break into and requires extreme dedication. I personally am going into Music Education, but at the same time, I'm aware that the average lifetime of a band director is 5 years. I like to believe that my passion and dedication place me as an exception, but time will tell. Why not stop by a local music store and see if you can't talk with one of the techs for a few minutes? It might be an invaluable experience if you could do a little job shadowing or something along those lines.

 

[rabbit]

The Hair,

Love the name!
I hope you manage to stay in school
and get a degree, any field.

I've observed that high-grade
computer skills allow one a great deal
of life-style flexibility if one so desires it.

My best buddy makes way too much $ and
only leaves home for work a few times a
month because IBM can't live without him.
He's fair on the guitar, too.

Good luck.


rabbit

 

[grevsax24]

2 of my friends were in your position last year and they both ended up choosing Music Technology.

 

[The Hair]

Wow, thanks guys. Especially for those links rs1sensen, theres tons of stuff I've never even thought of. Good luck with music education, I wouldn't dare to attempt teaching, at least not with kids in NYC lol.

I know even if I don't choose music as a career I'll definitely have it as a hobby. But just having it as a job would make having a job so much better.

Also what would an average salary be for a instrument repairman who gets decent work?

 

[rs1sensen]

Wow, thanks guys. Especially for those links rs1sensen, theres tons of stuff I've never even thought of. Good luck with music education, I wouldn't dare to attempt teaching, at least not with kids in NYC lol.

Also what would an average salary be for a instrument repairman who gets decent work?

The link with the chart above claims $9 to $55 an hour. That's a pretty big range.

If you worked 40 hours a week at $55, you'd be making $114,000. If you were making $9 an hour, working 40 hours a week, you'd be making $18,720 a year. Let's go in the middle and say you make $30 an hour (roughly what many repairmen around me charge) and only work 25 hours a week you're looking at $39,000 a year. Make it a 40 hour a week job, and you're up to $62,400.

Those are the theoretical values. There are actual repairmen on the forum who I'm sure could give more info.

 

[BYOB]

Get accepted in the Julliard Music Academy and you're set for life .

 

[Swampcabbage]

I have to repeat what others have said. Get a degree. I don't care what it's in. And if "worst" comes to "worst" you can even get a job in corporate America if need be. A music degree may not open as big a door as the MBA, but, had I finished my degree (as I am working on it now) we'd be talking about a 6 figure income. As it stands though, I have finally gotten to the point where I am working from home. Lunch hours are spent in the shed and I get those extra winks after a gig plus an extra 90 minutes for practicing. As it stands, I am also able to do some daytime studio work as I am on a flex schedule as long as I get the job done, they don't care what time of day I do it.

 

[Swingtone]

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