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To me, being a musician is like being a doctor: You’ve got to keep up with all the changes, and the more you learn about your profession, the better off you are. - Tony Williams

I am a composer/arranger, pianist, organist, keyboardist, and choral conductor. I am a choral vocalist, solo vocalist, liturgical musician, music director, assistant music director, band teacher, theory teacher, musicianship teacher, piano teacher and vocal coach, college music teacher, high school music teacher, elementary school music teacher, kindergarten music teacher, and inner-city outreach educator. I am a concert producer, concert program and poster designer, concert contractor and score copyist (engraver). Etcetera!

I am a professional musician.

The life of a professional musician is one of manifold functions, and many hats are worn in the process. Though the list above is one customized to reflect the unique responsibilities I have individually undertaken (often simultaneously) as a musician, other musicians, too, have their own voluminous and highly varied lists. It would be easier, perhaps, if the composer was able only to write, the singer only to sing, or the conductor only to conduct. But economic realities, simple rules of supply and demand, do not generally allow musicians to have such a narrow focus. In order to create the means of basic survival, musicians must be prepared to engage themselves in the broad world of music. Some musicians might see this as a distraction; others might see it as an opportunity. But what it does, in the end, is open doors of opportunity in areas that musicians may have otherwise overlooked.

My former theory professor, Dr. Carl Christensen, once said during a lecture, “If you’d like to make a living as a musician, you should consider teaching.” Of course, many students resisted this assertion, believing they could follow the path of their dreams as guitarists, drummers, singers, and pianists. But what Dr. Christensen asserted is true: education tends to be the bread and butter of musicians, whether it be private or classroom teaching. It is, perhaps, the most stable, reliable occupational arena for a musician practicing music as a career. It is also true that a great number of musicians resist the notion of full-time teaching because it might interfere with their aspirations as creative artists.

It is rare for a musician to “make it” solely as a performer or composer, which is why professional musicians must often piece-meal their livings, multi-tasking their way to the bank! Even great artists with healthy performance careers lead double-lives as teachers. A wonderful example of this is Midori, who is a great champion of music education. She is also a powerhouse concert violinist, and has been since she was a young girl.

The inspiration for writing this article is the consequent direction my life has taken after receiving my Master’s degree in composition last Spring. My ideal situation would have been spending my days composing for orchestras, choirs, soloists, and various ensembles. Unfortunately, there isn’t a gigantic market for such a trade.

Based on prior experience as a jack of many musical trades, I knew that I’d have to do a lot more than composing to survive in this big, bad world. I took Dr. Christensen’s advice and pursued education as a full-time option. Luckily, I landed a wonderful job teaching at a private high school as an Assistant Director of Music. Many of my skills as copyist, arranger, producer, and more have been put to good use.

Yet, because my full-time job was spent at school, I stopped composing. I can’t say that it served as a distraction to my composition; rather, I simply didn’t have the time or energy to commit myself to the creative process. As time has passed and a year has come and gone, I could easily mourn what may be easily perceived to be a loss of a year of composition. Except, what I have learned and experienced as a teacher of music to optimistic, rabble-rousing teenagers can only improve who I am as a thinking, spiritual being…which, in turn, improves the depth of perspective in my writing (to which I will return soon).

Isn’t music about expression? And if we’re not interacting with the world around us, then what, pray tell, are we to express? The multifaceted nature of a musician’s life contributes more deeply to his/her art, and this is something that should not be resisted. Even though musicians are often forced into making commitments beyond their craft, they should welcome it as an opportunity to improve and mature it.

The beauty of making music lies in its nature as a reflective and expressive source of our living days upon this earth. It is in life that we find music, in music that we find life, and somewhere in the middle that musicians bring it all together.