There's always a way to make money with music dash. When you feel sad inside that's a great time to write a song. Many different ways to make money with music. The average pay for violinists in California is about $100 thousand a year and there is jobs available… Think movie scores, background music for videos games, commercials… The list goes on. And the violin is a popular instrument out here. I don't understand about 30 cents an hour? That's enough to make a living though in some countries.

Musical instruments are one of the few things that go up in value these days and their is plenty of investors. I promised FM though no more rants… I will just go hit my speed bag instead of ranting on his forum Gonna go hit my speed bag then get back to practice

True Joe. Sorta… You can't expect to get too good and make a living playing an hour a day. You have to practice all day long almost everyday and yep, you can make $100,000 a day if you're serious. Or just play music as a hobby cause you love music and get a day job to make your living. I would not be able to support my family and lifestyle on $100,000 a year. Lets not start a a text fight again. PLEASE!!!! No flying to the moon anytime soon for me, I'm kind of afraid of flying.

So, being a musician is like being a doctor huh. Spend thousands upon thousands getting educated and then practice for thousands of hours to make sure that one chance to perform is met with flawless success and then usually end up waiting tables or warehouse forlift driver until the right opportunity comes along then have to repay all that you borrowed getting there… wow, I can relate to that part.

@Scott: So how does the music business part work? Does the producer of say a movie come to you or do you go audition for the musically portion or does a conductor or whatever contact potential musicians they have on some list then you all assemble at a studio to do the work after being selected to play it?

@Joe: Did you know there's a university in Utah that has a specialized course in Luthier work that takes a full 3 yrs to go thru and up front it's $10K tuition plus housing, books, tools, materials, and your living expenses while there and it's a full 8 hr day 5 days a week for the full year. You make 5 violins in 3 years, actually going into the surrounding mountains to select and cut wood that will be dried and aged for future classes to use. The last violin you make is the only one you get to keep and it's your "final grade" and they expect you to play some things on it besides twinkle twinkle I'm sure.

There's another school in Oregon as well but I dont know the details on that one.

If you can make a violin every 2-3 months as a professional out on your own, you'd have to make $5K off each one to just get out of the poverty level of income for a year! I wonder how many beginning luthiers make that kind of money off their first instruments?

joe said

There is one thing more plentiful than out of work actors…..and that's out of work musicians.   

 

Surely you jest, Joe!  There is no such thing as an "out of work musician".  We always have plenty of work, there's always a technique or song to be working on, or someone somewhere who will listen. 

It is just the "getting paid for it" part that can be a bit challenging sometimes. 

I read in an interview once, I think it was Jimmy page saying something about how if music was something you think you might want to go into as a career, it is a really lousy way of making a living.  But if music is something you HAVE to do, it can be a pretty good life.

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2…..-o10.shtml 

I think you are mixing apples and oranges on this topic.

This can apply to just about any profession, including writer's. It's just a matter of the rate of unemployment and people seeking work.

Above is an article/interview with a member of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, re: pay scale, musician's waiting for fill in position's etc….

                          It's a back and forth rat race