A Career In Music Analysis

As a child, I decided to try my hand at the cello. From then, I traversed the vast world of music, and satiated my relentless

I now realise that the Arts, including music, creates opportunities to engage, inspire and enrich our lives. Music making and responding can challenge, provoke responses and enrich our knowledge and understanding of ourselves, our communities and the world.

Like almost every other 3rd grader in my elementary school, when the enrichment program came to talk about joining the orchestra and band, I was fascinated. I admired the kids, not much older than me, who could play their instruments flawlessly and effortlessly. Immediately I knew that orchestra was for me, and I rushed home with a paper in hand begging my mom to let me take lessons at my school. Originally, I wanted to play the cello and pleaded with my mom to let me play one; I loved the deep, rich sounds of the strings. Instead, my mom convinced me to play the violin, a less expensive instrument and much easier to carry around than a cello.

When I was in fifth grade, I was caught between two worlds, playing a woodwind or string instrument. If I played a woodwind instrument I would have to blow in it to make music, but string instruments are played with a bow to make music. After much thought, I decided that the violin was the best instrument for me, because it has a beautiful, unique sound, plus the possibilities are never-ending. I could receive a compliment from a teacher, or even get accepted to the symphony.

I have come a very long way; the four years since I started have only progressed with intensity and involvement with music. I know the next years of my life will only be more intense and more involved with music, and I hope that it can become a career one day. Music has allowed me to express myself during my happy moments, my teenage angst, my depression, my heartbreaks, and it has always gotten stronger, and it carries me with it. I cannot wait to see what music I’m creating in five, ten, or fifteen years. One day, I’ll look back to the songs I have finished in my younger days, and I will be reminded of my high school years, and what I was going through during those times, because, to me, music is

My life would be incomplete without performing music. I’ve spent time, in concert bands, in bell choirs, in school and church choirs, and singing, playing in music festivals, and in pit bands trying not to laugh my head off at the actors’ improvisations. But the art that truly speaks to my soul does not lie in creating music, it lies in dancing to it.

Imagine a third grader, small and blonde, standing on a stage that practically swallows her. She gazes in awe at the bright lights that seem to tower miles above her head; likewise, she follows with a stare, fixating on the hundreds of darkened faces that remain directly in front of her. Unlike her classmates who fidget with nerves beside her, she feels a rush of adrenaline. What may have seemed to some an ordinary choir concert in a dull auditorium, was, to me, a life changing moment. Ever since this day, for 9 years now, I have had an unwavering passion for music and performing. As I aged, I found myself excitedly learning how to play 7 new instruments, but even considering the vast number of bands, orchestras, choirs, and instrumental lessons that I joined, I noticed myself

Throughout my life, I have been taken by music. However, it was not until my 8th grade year in middle school that I realized that I could be a musician for the rest of my life. Before that, music just seemed like something to keep me out of trouble. I wasn’t the best player at that time, and I still knew very little about it all. How could something like that ever support someone? Still, it was the only talent that I could find any success in, and it was still very enjoyable, so I wanted to still give it a shot.

“In fact, by the age of twenty, the elite performers had each totaled ten thousand hours of practice. By contrast, the merely good students had totaled eight thousand hours, and the future music teachers had totaled just over four thousand hours.” The control we have over our lives is determined by our work ethic, willingness to achieve our goals, and to strive towards them. Gladwell provides a stronger case of evidence by using proven statistics. These statistics provide the evidence that practicing regularly, and for long amounts of time does pay off in the long

Practice can be the key to improving. In every area of education, in every sport, with every musical activity, anything that requires a good performance, those who practice tend to understand the material more. Malcolm Gladwell in his book Outliers states just how important this can be. Going off of the idea that “practice makes perfect”, his entire second chapter is dedicated to persuading his audience to believe 10,000 hours is what it takes to succeed. Examples Gladwell provides include how Mozart didn’t create his greatest works until later in his life after he had gained experience, how the Beatles performed in multiple practice concerts in Hamburg, Germany before becoming musical sensations, and how Bobby Fischer and chess grandmasters

From the day we’re in our mother's stomachs, to the day we die, we have always been listening to music. For me, listening to music all my life helped me develop a passion for it. When I was around the age of 6 my dad introduced me into the world of Rock. The very first band I remember listening to was System of a Down and ever since then, I fell in love with rock music and all its possible variations; for a long time this was all I listened to. It wasn’t until high school that I started listening to all sorts of genres and realized that I wanted to have a career in the music industry. That's when I learned about producing music.

My decision to pursue a career as a professional musician is a result of experiences from childhood to present and inspirations along the way. As I gather more experiences and inspirations, it is almost certain that my decision will not

Freshman Ella. It’s a scary thought, but for this story we have to go back to March of my freshman year at an event called Chamber Festival, which is basically when you play in small groups instead of large orchestras. In our school orchestra I was second chair viola which, me only being a freshman, was a very big deal. At least it was for me. Many of my other friends in orchestra already had their own instruments, and I felt like it was time to get one of my own. So for months I begged my parents. I insisted that I wouldn’t give up playing in a year or two, that I really would stick with it long enough for the investment to make sense. Finally, in the beginning of 2015, they agreed to get me a viola. Now was the hard part, agreeing

Many people have dreams of being a part of the music industry and becoming successful musicians, but do not seem to do the research necessary to make the dream come true. The music industry is a branch of the entertainment industry and is where music, whether it is recordings or performances, is distributed and sold to the public. One of the problems is that people do not realize the risks that come with being a part of the music industry and being a musician. There are many factors that come into play when deciding to pursue a career in the music industry. Factors would include having noteworthy knowledge of music, originality, publicity, and business entitlement.

The stigma associated with pursuing an education in the musical arts affects the decision of many musicians nationwide. The appeal of guaranteed financial and career stability of STEM and other paths of high demand jobs is very difficult to pass up, even by the most dedicated musicians. Then, the input and advice of outsiders come into play. These onlookers not only encourage study of the hard sciences and a foolproof path to success via university, but they also totally and blatantly discourage and belittle the intelligence, rationality and integrity of not just the paths of musicians, but all liberal artists. Don’t you want to make money? What do you mean you won’t have internships, don’t you want a job? How are you going to survive? This blitzkrieg of questioning and doubt, though theoretically peripheral to the bigger picture, is reasonably common, however, severely unjustified. Pursuing a formal college education in music is easily one of the best things you could do for yourself, regardless of whether or not this is the career path of your choosing. As a student of formal music education, you are actually being trained in more real world skills than most other majors, which will prepare you for many careers, making you stand-out amongst the masses. Being a music major, you learn more than just music, you learn problem-solving skills, how to communicate and collaborate, and how to overcome failure, which are all essential skills to have as a professional in today’s day