My point is that a career in music is typically not like a career outside of music. The reason for this has to due mainly with the following reasons: * The number of openings versus the number of applicants * The subjectivity of auditions (job interviews) * The politics of auditions (job interviews) * The difficulty in axing someone who has a current job but who isn't good enough All four of these are typically very different in most non music jobs: * There are thousands of careers which actually don't have enough qualified applicants and it's easier to land a job * Job interviews are usually much more objective because they are based not on musical preference but whether someone can get the job done * Job interviews are much fairer because there is more of a threat of lawsuits due to the subjectivity of job interviews * If someone doesn't fill their part of the job, they can be fired almost immediately - without having to wait for the next season or the next few auditions to find a new applicant. It's very difficult explaining this to people who have had nothing but music jobs. But to those of us who make their living in the private sector with a mainstream career it's very obvious to us. Let's say you spent 10,000 hours on your horn and you were a master of it. My no means could you at all expect to show up to the first audition and expect to win it. Auditions are so subjective that it boils down to musical preference and tone preference versus true mastery of the instrument. There are plenty of examples where professional musicians in top orchestras didn't make it past the first round in other auditions. But let's say you spent 10,000 hours on another career path - one that has plenty of job openings in just about any major city in the world. You pretty much have your choice at any city and any job you want because there are so many places that hire and most of the time they are looking to fill multiple openings. When I graduated from college, I was able to get a couple of auditions, but that didn't guarantee me a job, a job that I even wanted, or even a salary that was livable. I had no guarantee that even if I nailed every requested piece and didn't miss anything that I'd make it past the first round anywhere. However, I had thousands of hours experience in being a software developer - and I was able to send my resume out all over the country. I got dozens of phone interviews, about a dozen personal interviews, and a half dozen actual offers. I could have easily gotten more offers as well if I just kept sending out my resume. I didn't even fully tap all of the places I wanted to live. They were looking for me. My phone wouldn't stop ringing. I had my choice between 6 jobs - and all of them were great. Who has the choice between 6 major orchestras at once? I will tell you one thing, I certainly haven't passed the 10,000 hour mark in being a programmer - yet I already have a stable career and existing job opportunities if my current job fails. And even if I didn't, I could probably find another job fairly quickly in the same career - and probably in the same city. I'm not bragging either - this could happen with anyone with a good marketable vocation and a little persistence. There's a wide world out there beyond a career in music, and you can still be a very competent player if your job lies somewhere else. I just wish more music students realized early in their practicing that they don't put all their eggs in one basket. They should work on a separate vocation or two in the background in case they don't land principal in Chicago. Then maybe those of us who do have a career in music would realize that although 'life is life' - the music world doesn't have to be more unfair, more unjust, and more arrogant than most every other job out there. No matter what you're playing, you're still the hired help. You'll never be looked on as an equal by the upper echelons of society who are paying your salary. In most other careers people are aware of this and it makes them humble. But a lot of career musicians (and some professors included) I've met are oblivious to it. I think all of us are usually surprised when we meet a humble musician. Flame on. -William In a message dated 3/18/2010 4:46:29 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [email protected] writes:
It all depends how you see mastery: is it real mastery ? or is it mastery in the view of the player or his/her friends & family ? is it mastery in the view of audition juries ? it depends also if you are ready for a certain position & the position is right then vacant ? are there better candidates ? is there discrimination against you from conductors side due to a personal incident during study time perhaps ? did you have difficulties with one of the section members in the past ? does your tonal colour match the section ? do you fit into their social preview ? (age pyramide, a very important factor) too many factors counting. playing wise, well, it is lie the olympics. Favorites sometimes win, sometimes dont get a medal at all. Life is life. ################################################################# Am 18.03.2010 um 09:34 schrieb [email protected]: > Plus mastery of an instrument doesn't yield a fruitful career. > > Although the rate of mastery of a task versus success in a career is much > higher outside of the field of music. > > -William > > > In a message dated 3/18/2010 4:30:02 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, > [email protected] writes: > > It is not important, how many hours one studies one thing. > But it is very important how effectively practice time is used. > One first has to learn & understand how music is about, including the > theory. > Next one has to learn & understand > how practice time is to be divided for the certain purposes: > > developing the hearing sense > developing technical skill including secureness, > developing tone quality, > developing endurance, > developing musical taste through musical literature, means > developing musical knowledge > developing the ability to read, understand & play music at the spot, > even never seen the part before & never heard the piece before. > > If the time is divided properly and if practice is done with most possible > concentration upon the matter, > one should be able to study the horn or trumpet or any other brass > instrument to arrive at > a high professional level, just with three hours studying daily for five > to six years. > 300 days a year (vacations & days without the horn, ill leave etc. > counted) by > three hours daily makes 900 to 1000 hours (gigs count also positively), > that by 5 years makes 4.500 hours, > by seven years 6.300 hours. Count the extra hours of preparation by just > reading the musical literature, > preparing parts, writing out parts by hand or PC, hours spent in the > library, fixing the horn, well, > there you have the 10.000 hours. > > Be happy you have not to study as much as string players or wood wind > players, who have to spend > uncountable hours preparing their reeds, not to speak about pianists. > > If one does not consider the points I mentioned above, one has the never > ending problem, needing > to "hammer in" every single part, just mechanical trying & trying & trying > again. What a waste of life time. > If you study, using your brain, your advancement will be much faster and > you will have remaining tie to > rest, for sports, for socializing, etc. > > Do not forget studying art history in general, try to study Italian & > rudimentary German to understand > the masterworks better. If you have a very good teacher, NEVER question > his advice. But if you > might find a better solution or a better trick, making a passage easier, > demonstrate it to your > teacher, who will like your effort. But, again, never question your > teacher !! > > ############################################################################ > ########### > Am 18.03.2010 um 06:03 schrieb Kit Wolf: > >> I've heard this too, though I feel slightly uncertain about the idea of > it >> being a hard and fast rule. >> >> I guess there are two points here: one is how much practice an 'average' >> person has done. Almost by definition, a master is somebody who is >> exceptional and to my mind the 10,000 hour rule simply reflects the fact >> that most amateur musicians never put in this many hours - or at least, >> not within a short period of time. >> >> The other is how long it takes to reach a steady state of accomplishment, >> where a level of diminishing returns is reached. Surely this must vary > for >> different endeavours? It takes less time to play noughts and crosses to > an >> excellent standard than chess, for example. I also once read that airtime >> stopped being a good marker of pilot ability after the 250 - 1000 hour >> mark. >> >> I don't find it hard to believe it takes 10,000 hours to play the horn >> well, though. Perhaps more..? >> >> Kit >> >>> That's interesting. Too bad I'm pretty sure I practiced the horn for >>> 10,000 hours (took it 40 years ago) but I'm not close to achieving >>> "true mastery" :-( >>> >>> Daniel >>> >>> >>> On 17Mar 2010, at 14:54 , Steven Mumford wrote: >>> >>>> One of the most significant factors is what scientists call the >>>> "10,000-hour rule." >>>> When we look at any kind of cognitively complex field -- for example, >>>> playing chess, writing fiction or being a neurosurgeon -- we find that >>>> you are unlikely to master it unless you have practiced for 10,000 >>>> hours. That’s 20 hours a week for 10 years. The brain takes that >>>> long to >>>> assimilate all it needs to know to achieve true mastery. >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> post: [email protected] >>> unsubscribe or set options at >>> > https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/c.j.l.wolf%40newcastle.ac.uk >>> >> >> >> -- >> Sometimes my Email program gives the wrong return address. If you have > any >> trouble replying to me, use '[email protected]' and not > 'n802...' >> >> Sorry for any confusion >> >> _______________________________________________ >> post: [email protected] >> unsubscribe or set options at > https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/hpizka%40me.com > > _______________________________________________ > post: [email protected] > unsubscribe or set options at > https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/valkhorn%40aol.com > _______________________________________________ > post: [email protected] > unsubscribe or set options at https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/hpizka%40me.com _______________________________________________ post: [email protected] unsubscribe or set options at https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/valkhorn%40aol.com _______________________________________________ post: [email protected] unsubscribe or set options at https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
