For a skilled musician, there is an additional career path that is invisible to the non-musician. This is an additional benefit beyond the pleasure of playing music, the attention it brings, and the better academic performance than students who do not learn to play a musical instrument. It is a broad range of extra career opportunities that non-musicians never even consider.
But if you're a musician, you can apply. Let's take a look at these careers that are available only to musicians
Education: Are you a musician who has also studied education? If so, there are numerous music education opportunities that may interest you:
§ Music educator at a college, conservatory, university; thousands of positions to apply for in both public and private colleges.
§ Music teacher at secondary or elementary school; thousands more all over the US and the world.
§ Private music instructor; there are hundreds of thousands of private piano teachers, guitar teachers, drum teachers, etc. working for themselves in private studios and/or teaching in a music store.
§ Music supervisor; many opportunities to oversee musical programs in both public and private venues.
§ Choir director; thousands of schools from elementary to college; thousands of churches who use choir directors.
Therapy: Are you a musician who has also studied psychiatry? You can practice the trade of music therapy in a wide array of settings. Some of the sources of employment for music therapists are the following:
§ Schools
§ Universities
§ Nursing Homes
§ Mental health clinics; the author worked as an assistant music therapist one summer when he was in college; it was a great experience.
§ Correctional Facilities
§ Private practice
Business: Ever wonder what it takes to work in business management? Besides business smarts, an ability to talk the language of music will take you places the non-musican cannot go:
§ Artist Manager or Agent
§ Talent Agent
§ Concert Promoter
§ Independent Radio Promoter
§ Music Business Entrepreneur
§ Music Business Consultant
§ Record Company Executive
§ Music Publisher
§ Tour Coordinator
Performance: Actors are more highly valued if they have a musical education. Today, with so few actors multi-skilled as they were in the era of the large studios, this can be a real advantage. Below are some of the jobs for which an actor who is also a musician may "incidentally" be qualified.
§ Performing artist
§ Soloist, instrumental or vocal
§ Studio musician
§ Background vocalist
§ Theatre musician
§ Accompanist
§ Church musician
§ Product demonstrator for instrument manufacturer
Movies / Video Games: If you study movies or video game production, a background as a musician will help you prepare for music-related jobs such as the following:
§ Conductor
§ Music Composer
§ Music Editor
§ Music Supervisor (to scout for music)
§ Arranger (to determine the mix of song elements per the conductor or producer's specifications)
§ Sound designer (of effects to accompany music score)
§ Jingle writer / composer
From education to video games, there are careers available for those who happen to have a background in music which the rest of us never see. Each of these fields requires time and study for proficiency, but they represent a career path that is nonexistent for non-musicians.
Sure, you already knew that playing music could improve your quality of life. Now you know it can improve the quality of your career.
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