How likely is it that I'll be able to have a decent career with music?

At the moment, music is my life. I'm sure it's the same for most of you. My friends all laugh at me because I search listen to flute sonatas in my spare time, see orchestras and practically dribble over shiny flutes in music shops.

I'd love to be able to have music as a career, so that I could be doing something I loved. I don't know if I'm good enough though.

I'm not talking about orchestras necessarily (because that's really, really, really, really unlikely). But teaching maybe.

I've gone from grade 0 to 5 in a year, and teachers seem sure that I'll make grade 8 by the time I'm 18 at longest.

The thing is though, I'm good at other subjects at school. Good enough to be a doctor, even. So, should I commit my life to music? Or do it in my spare time and be rich?

Sorry. I'm just confuddled at the moment.

If music is your passion, go for it. As I've said before, there's no tax to pay on a contented mind. Although there'll be lots of tax to pay on a high income....

From what I've seen, doctors don't get much spare time until they are in their 30's.
Money is important in that you need to live, and pay your bills, but you should be happy in what you do.
Can you see yourself teaching all day, or being a GP or a surgeon all day? What would interest you most?
Some musicians have said that they no longer enjoy music because it is a job like any other. They would rather have it as a hobby/past time.
Then again, I know of doctors and similar, who have left because they feel it is a rat race.
Don't become a doctor just because you are clever, you need to be interested in medicine, and helping people.
It's all down to what you feel you would be happy doing.

If you're determined enough, you'll be able to make a career in music.

The main thing is that it is not enough to know how to play your instrument if you really want to make a decent living. I know many professional musicians who sit bitterly by the phone waiting for it to ring, whilst lesser players get more work than they do.

You need marketing and business skills in addition to your music skills - remember, every professional (or almost) can play their instrument well, so you're going to need a way to stand out. Good marketing and business skills will help you make a good living from what you love.

I started off in academia and only recently got the nerve to leave it and take up music - I really wish I had done it sooner.

Pick what you love and be prepared to work hard at that choice and fill in your skill gaps and you'll do just fine.

I have a very similar situation. I am good at school and would like to become a dentist. However, I have been thinking about a career in music too. I think now that I will not pursue a career in music because I am not talented enough and I think if I did not make the career I wanted because I wasn't good enough I might not enjoy music the same way I always had. I feel even if you don't have a career in music you can do it in your spare time whereas you can't do that with other careers.

Hi Bobziekins,

seeing your new posts today has reminded me that I replied to a post of yours at the beginning of the month on the theory forum. Just wondering if you had seen it ...

I'm guessing, bobziekins, from what you write, that you are still quite young and that you've only been doing music for about a year. If this is the case, it's very early to be deciding on a career in music.

Many professional musicians take a degree before deciding to make a living from music, sometimes in a subject other than music. The main thing at this stage is to keep all the doors open so that your options are as broad as possible. It's quite possible to do enough A-levels to train as a doctor or a musician, as long as you keep improving your playing as much as possible. That would give you longer to decide what is right for you.

A music degree can be used as a jumping off point for many jobs, not just in music itself, so might be a good choice for you if you are still undecided when you come to the end of year 12.

Many people would say that because music is a difficult thing to make a living from, you shouldn't choose it unless you can't imagine doing anything else with your life. There are a lot of opportunities to play as an amateur, and you could always teach flute as an extra alongside your day job provided you reach a high enough level.

It's lovely to hear that you are so keen on your flute, but do bear in mind that it's a relatively new enthusiasm and that you may not always feel the same way. A friend of my son's spent years thinking he would like to be a violin teacher, but at the age of 17 he changed his mind and is now at Cambridge reading Natural Sciences. He still plays his violin and sings in the college choir though; it's a great hobby.

My daughter has been saying for sometime that she would like a career in music. I think you are similar age, year 9, she's been playing over 4 years now.

Careers have been into school twice recently and on both occassions she has found them very negative. If you think you want music as a career, think about how you are going to achieve it and start working towards it.

* Keep up with your school work, being uneducated is no particular advantage to a musician!

* Talk to your music teacher about a realistic timing for decisions - maybe your second-to-last year at school?

* It's easy to envisage a career in things you are doing right NOW, such as playing flute, while it's probably harder to imagine exactly what being a doctor entails. Keep mulling, and consider which option you would most regret NOT taking.

I can only agree. Being a good musician is one thing, but being able to "sell" yourself is a completely different ballgame. There are tons of musicians out there who are really good on their instruments, but useless is self-marketing (I always was myself and really had to learn a lot during my career). The phone won't ring if you don't do the leg-work, and that's quite hard and very often exhausting. Even if you get your foot in the door, it doesn't mean it will stay like that for the rest of your life. You constantly have to work for it.

Having said that: If you really want to be a musician, there are tons of paths you can choose, it's not only black and white.
It needs commitment however, hard work, being able to not take criticism or not getting the job personally (something many people have problems with), constant self-improvement, being able to deal with draughts in your financial situation every now and again and being very organised (again, something that many artists aren't too good at, but just being a gifted musician and hoping for the work to fly in is sadly not on).

If that all doesn't put you off - go for it

I had to make a similar decision when I was at school - I was very musical and music was a huge part of my life, but then I was an all rounder at other subjects. I either wanted to be a flute teacher or a vet, so when it came to choosing A levels I went with the vet option.
I never did get into vet school but pursued a career in science which is where I am now. However I often wonder what would have happened had I pursued music. I am now getting back into it again and am very much enjoying it, but I doubt I would have had the patience/confidence to have gone an awful lot further with my flute. At the time I didn't see any other options in music apart from performing or teaching, but there are many more avenues to explore. Personally I now think I would like to have gone down the composing/more theoretical route.

No matter what you decide, you will always have music as a back up or as an additional option should you want to change. You will need to make a definite decision - further education any subject requires much discipline and focus in that area, and this will probably start with A level choices. Perhaps try to look into the various career options available in music as a starting point?

I wish you luck in a musical career - go for it! I would warn, however, against going into teaching just because it might a way of doing music. If you go into teaching, then do so because you really want to be a teacher: my experience was that the teaching comes first, the music second.

I studied music at uni and then drifted into teaching because nothing else came up (I wasn't pro-active). I thought it would be an OK career because music's my subject. However, I found that I no longer had the time to perform and compose, and while there were some aspects of teaching that I loved, it ate my life in a way that gave me no time for my own musical development. There's nothing wrong with teaching if it's what you want, but you really have to be in love with the concept of teaching and be prepared for other people to be the focus of your music.