Performing and Career FAQ View Source Talk History Diff ?

Performing and Career FAQ

The Classical Music Geek Answers Your Questions

Jump in. Try to stump me or just get the answer to something you've always wondered about.

Some questions may, over time, be moved to a different page, like the "Rarely Asked Questions" or "Really Obscure Questions", or some name I may come up with in the future like, "Why in the World Would You Want to Know That?" page.

Have fun!

Q. How can I become a professional singer, guitar player, musician, etc.?

A. There are no guarantees in life, but following these suggestions should improve your chances greatly.

If Pavarotti [Horowitz, Segovia] thought he could benefit from voice [piano, guitar] lessons, unless you're already better than Pavarotti [Horowitz, Segovia], chances are you will benefit from voice [piano, guitar] lessons, too.
Cultivate a cheerful and cooperative attitude. Learn to get along with the people who don't like you, and the people you don't like. Be nice to everyone: the stage manager, the prop manager, the janitor. You want people on staff to be delighted to see you the next time, not rolling their eyes about you behind your back. This is your "professional personality," and you will use it every day of your career.
Learn to sight-read, to block, to take as little of everyone's time as possible. In any production, time is money, and the less someone pays attention to you, the more profitable you are to them. It's not the talented people who get hired the most, it's the most profitable people who are hired again and again.
Be prompt, don't disrupt the rehearsals, and use as little of the production's resources as possible. Have your own water, pencils, paper, tape recorder, whatever you need. Have your own score where possible.
Give credit where credit is due. Thank the people who help you--nobody does it alone.
Practice. That may mean giving up your favourite activities. Too bad. There are millions of wannabes and only a few people actually succeed. You increase the probability you will succeed exponentially with more effort put into practicing.
Study. You'll need all that science, math and reading help. Foreign languages are a bonus and if offered should be studied diligently. That part about not costing the production money includes not having to have a translator for you.
Find a niche and study it. Become the expert at something nobody else does. This means a lot of study and research into different types of music.
A professional is not a singer or musician who gets paid to sing or play. A professional is a person who understands that music is a business, and acts accordingly.

Q. How can I get noticed (famous)?

A. The world is changing and there are many different ways to approach this. I advocate an independent approach, whereby you take charge of your own musical career, create your own opportunities, and be innovative rather than waiting to be discovered or having an agent do this work for you. I'm currently working on an article devoted to just this problem that should be ready soon.

Q. I'm nervous when I audition!

A. This is a lack of preparedness. There's an old saying: "Amateurs practice until they get it right. Professionals practice until they cannot get it wrong." If you have practiced to the point where you cannot get it wrong, your nervousness will disappear.

Q. I just got my first job as a musician!

Congratulations! Here's some advice people have found useful; if you're a minor, your parents will have to do some of it.

Meet with a lawyer to get a standard contract form. Too many places are slow to pay.
Meet with a tax advisor. If this is going to be recurring thing, you'll need tax help. A tax advisor is not H&R Block, but a business tax advisor and CPA who will help you. The reason is that if you're a 1099 contractor, you are essentially (in the eyes of the IRS) starting your own business. It's a good idea to file, even if you make below the standard deduction, since you can start setting aside money for the future and paying into Social Security.
Be cheerful, cooperative, and polite to everyone--guests, staff, management. Don't talk or complain about anyone--EVER. Learn to get along with people, even if they are mean to you. When people criticise you, figure out what you can learn from it to improve. When people come up to you to tell you how good you are, just smile warmly and say "Thank you." You can't afford to be shy, as some of these people who hear you will want to hire you for other occasions.
Keep good records. Note in a notebook or on your computer every time you play, what date, how long, etc., and how much you are paid. Do this on the day you play. Get them to take a picture of you at the country club piano with a digital camera that has the date each time you play.
Set aside time to practice every day. Work continually on expanding your repertoire. Don't forget the holiday season and time to prepare holiday music.
Don't forget, when you get paid, to set up your own checking account. You'll have to keep this money separate from everything else (your tax advisor will tell you the same thing). You can use it for your business, such as to pay for lessons, buy music, performing clothes, etc. but you should be very careful that all your expenses are business-related.