The duties of a musician include writing lyrics, rehearsing, performing, and recording new music every day. They may appear on TV shows and radio programs. Also, they keep themselves updated on industry trends, build strong relationships with other artists and their fans, and maintain a strong social media presence by posting regularly, creating relevant content, and interacting with their fans. Musicians collaborate with other artists and professionals in the entertainment industry. They may be trained in a particular musical genre and musical instrument.
To excel as a musician, you need to be relentless in your pursuit of mastery and creativity. You must strive to expand your circles. Although not necessary, having a degree in music can be advantageous. Also, you must possess communication, time management, and interpersonal skills. Having industry experience is a plus. Musicians make an average annual salary of $45,576. It ranges between $27,000 and $78,000.
Musicians and singers play instruments or sing for live audiences and in recording studios. They perform in a variety of styles, such as classical, jazz, opera, hip-hop, and rock.
There are no postsecondary education requirements for musicians or singers interested in performing popular music. However, many performers of classical music and opera have at least a bachelor’s degree.
EducationThere are no postsecondary education requirements for those interested in performing popular music. Many musicians and singers of classical music and opera have a bachelor’s degree in music theory or performance. To be accepted into one of these programs, applicants are typically required to submit recordings or audition in person, and sometimes, must do both.
Undergraduate music programs teach students about music history and styles, and teach methods for improving their instrumental and vocal technique and musical expression. Undergraduate voice programs also teach courses in diction, which help students perform opera in foreign languages.
Some musicians and singers choose to continue their education by pursuing a master’s degree in fine arts or music.
TrainingMusicians and singers need extensive and prolonged training and practice to acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to interpret music at a professional level. They typically begin singing or learning to play an instrument by taking lessons and classes when they are at a young age. In addition, they must practice often to develop their talent and technique.
Musicians and singers interested in performing classical music may seek additional training through music camps and fellowships. These programs provide participants with classes, lessons, and performance opportunities.
Important QualitiesDedication. Auditioning for jobs can be a frustrating process because it may take many different auditions to get hired. Musicians and singers need determination and dedication to continue to audition after receiving many rejections.
Discipline. Talent is not enough for most musicians and singers to find employment in this field. They must constantly practice and rehearse to improve their technique, style, and performances.
Interpersonal skills. Musicians and singers need to work well with a variety of people, such as agents, music producers, conductors, and other musicians. Good people skills are helpful in building good working relationships.
Musical talent. Professional musicians or singers must have superior musical abilities.
Physical stamina. Musicians and singers who play in concerts or in nightclubs and those who tour must be able to endure frequent travel and irregular performance schedules.
Promotional skills. Musicians and singers need to promote their performances through local communities, word of mouth, and social media. Good self-promotional skills are helpful in building a fan base.
AdvancementAs with other occupations in which people perform, advancement for musicians and singers means becoming better known, finding work more easily, and earning more money for each performance. Successful musicians and singers often rely on agents or managers to find them jobs, negotiate contracts, and develop their careers.
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As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, a Musician can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as Music Instructor, progress to a title such as Instructor and then eventually end up with the title Marketing Manager.
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Build a professional musician resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 12+ resume templates to create your musician resume.
Learn How To Write a Musician Resume
At Zippia, we went through countless Musician resumes and compiled some information about how to optimize them. Here are some suggestions based on what we found, divided by the individual sections of the resume itself.
View Musician Resume Examples And TemplatesAnd if you’re looking for a job, here are the five top employers hiring now:
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Musician templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Musician resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
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The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 19.5% of Musicians listed Live Performances on their resume, but soft skills such as Discipline and Interpersonal skills are important as well.
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a Musician. The best states for people in this position are New Jersey, New York, Illinois, and California. Musicians make the most in New Jersey with an average salary of $120,569. Whereas in New York and Illinois, they would average $107,920 and $98,761, respectively. While Musicians would only make an average of $97,898 in California, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. New York
$107,920
Avg. Salary
2. New Jersey
$120,569
Avg. Salary
3. Connecticut
$95,817
Avg. Salary