Cautionary Tales!

Wow, the day after I said I was going to cut down on blogging, I already find something I want to share. This is a video about the dark side of being a concert pianist by Denis Zhdanov:

Whew! If you got through all that you will be asking yourself why would anyone ever want to be a concert pianist. From my own experience, everything he says is absolutely true. Yes, apart from that tiny fraction of superstars, all concert pianists struggle with poor pay, exhausting schedules, brutal competition requirements, demanding travel schedules and all the rest. Now here is the kicker: if you are a concert guitarist it is ten times as bad! Because, guess what, the opportunities are far fewer and the pay is even lower.

Let me do a quick comparison: one of my best fees as a concert guitarist was to be the featured soloist in a gala CBC concert in honor of Brazil. I was given three months to learn the Villa-Lobos Guitar concerto (and at the last minute was asked to play a couple of Preludes as a filler). This performance took place in the Orpheum Theatre, the largest concert venue in Vancouver and was broadcast nationwide on the CBC. Big deal, right? Oh, and the orchestra was the CBC Vancouver Orchestra, a very fine ensemble. Guess what the fee was for this?

$1,250 CDN. At current exchange rates that comes to $903.90 US. Better than a slap in the face with a wet mackerel, right? Ah yes, but you have to count in the four hours a day for three months I had to spend learning the concerto. From memory. That's 360 hours of practice time. So I actually only made $2.50 an hour. Also, bear in mind that this was a well-paying gig!

In my current job I am in real estate and am paid by commission. The amount varies according to the value of the property of course, but the smallest commission I will receive this year will be for $1,560 US and it will involve no more than ten hours work.

Honestly, being a concert guitarist is not an actual job. I'm not even sure it even qualifies as a hobby. It is more like charitable volunteer work. No matter how much you love music, it is hard to imagine actually wanting to spend your life doing something that offers virtually no rewards and, these days, very little public appreciation.

I love music, but I sure hate the music business.