From our agony aunt:
Dear Alma,
I work in the ticket office for a concert hall. I have a degree from a music school, and spent several years bouncing from job to job, gigging, and trying to put it all together. I eventually applied for a job in the ticket office, with the verbal agreement that I would have the opportunity to move up the ladder, maybe to the advertising or booking department.
But there I am. Two years on and just clocking in every day. I haven’t even played my instrument for a year.
Alma – should I just deal with it, or is there some hope for a better life in music?
Ticket Pusher
Dear Ticket Pusher,
What do we need from life? What gives us satisfaction, fulfillment, and joy? There is no perfect answer. A life training for a performance career can be very fulfilling, but I also do find that there are unrealistic expectations of what a life will be. Certainly there are not enough spots for soloists and orchestral amongst the graduates of music programs, and although schools are doing a better job training young musicians to be well-rounded than they used to, hitting the pavement after graduation can be a cold, hard landing. And one which seems impossible to stand up from.
My advice? Don’t be too hard on yourself. You have time to find a good balance, you are young. Go back to the people who hired you and ask them how to take the next step in your organization. Maybe an internship while you stay paying your bills with the ticket window.
And, Ticket Pusher, take your instrument out, dust it off, and take some time to remember why you fell in love with it in the first place. If that love still holds true, make another stab at having your instrument take center stage in your life once again, even if it’s a different stage than you first imagined.
Questions for Alma? Please put them in the comments section or send to DearAlmaQuery@gmail.com
The post Dear Alma, I can’t get ahead in music admin appeared first on Slippedisc.
