I’ll never make a living on music. There. I said it. My parents were right.
I tried, I really did. But I discovered that a few things were holding me back. First and foremost, I don’t have enough talent to rise to the upper 1/10 of 1%. I just don’t. I have some talent, but it’s not remarkable – millions of people have a similar talent level to mine, and hundreds of thousands of musicians are miles ahead of me.
What if I worked SUPER hard? Well, I have worked hard on being a better musician. Very hard. But super hard? Probably not. I play some music pretty much every day but not a daily, focused routine that will take me to the next level. So there’s that.
I also never had a commitment level that would mean I would drop my day job and leave my family to relocate someplace to further my music career. By the time anyone around me was talking about taking road trips, I was more committed to ensuring my family had a roof, and my kids had a father and my wife had a husband. And by the time my financial situation would allow taking a leave of absence to be gone for 2 or 3 weeks to play music, I knew that driving 400 miles between gigs was not for me.
Do I sound wistful? I’m not. Honestly.
I’ve had a terrific life playing music. I have played literally thousands of gigs, and had the chance to play with some of the very best musicians – even some in that 1/10 of 1% range. It is challenging and thrilling.
I had many more opportunities to play with musicians in the vast realm of “gifted amateurs” and a better bunch of people would be hard to find. It is they who have really made decades of playing music a worthwhile endeavor – even if I never made a living at it! And challenges and thrills are not in short supply there, either.
I have stories and memories that are very dear to me and they are treasured parts of a life that has been unfairly blessed by great family and friends.
I just read a lengthy blog article about how few musicians ever made a living at it – ever. It posits that the demand for music is always less than the supply. I realized this a long time ago. I’m not sure the author factored in the demand the musicians themselves have for music, however!
