Making money

[Aaron Slots]

How do you earn besides music? It seems to me that young musicians should start a career in our time - they need to earn money for this. To buy the equipment and invest in the record. How do you make money for music and do you have income other than your musical career?

[Soundquest]

Aaron Slots, I'd have to say get a day job in something other than music  .     In all seriousness though,  a survey of amateur musicians would probably show this to be the norm.   I'm just one persons vantage point, but I know very few persons personally who are making a living exclusively in music (meaning by playing an instrument-) unless they are faculty at a college or in a major orchestra, TV show band, or something like that.  Naturally all the side chain occupations such as sound engineers, software developers, instrument makers and music store employees all tie into this, but I think you meant as a "playing musician".

Of course if you can work both as travel agent and manage to travel too,  you're one of the lucky ones 

[chysn]

How do you earn besides music? It seems to me that young musicians should start a career in our time - they need to earn money for this. To buy the equipment and invest in the record. How do you make money for music and do you have income other than your musical career?

When I was a teenager, I bussed tables at a swanky restaurant until I could afford a used Akai AX-73, which was about $350 at the time. Getting a synth was my second priority, with the first priority being the girlfriend. You don't need expensive stuff to get started.

Note: I've always been a hobbyist, with brief interludes as a weekend warrior paid in beer (when lucky). I've never had a "musical career."

[jok3r]

I did a students job in the industry in vacations about 12 years ago to buy my Yamaha S90ES. With this I had the right tool to play in the first cover bands. I used the money I got there to fund my computer science studies at university (in parts). When not playing with my band, I worked for another band as light operator (funded the rest of my studies) and all in all managed to save up for my Kurzweil PC361. I also had a students job at university at this time. I played the S90/PC3 combi for years then, so at the time I finished my M.Sc., I also had saved up for my Kronos. So now I earn enough money from my main job, so I don't need the money from music for my living and can buy new stuff from it.

But that only worked, because I was living at my parents until I finished my degree. I just had to pay for my car, tuiton fees, and something to eat ;-) The money I earned with music was not very much also, but from a students perspective it was a lot. In fact, since I don't work as a I light operator anymore, I earn less than during my studies with music and music related stuff. But it's still enough for about a synth per year. Which is a lot for a hobbyist. I also would not call this a musical career, but a hobby that pays for itself is a pretty nice thing ;-)

Because I had to work and save and stuff for my S90/PC3, I will never ever sell them. I'm pretty sure I will sell the Kronos, when I don't want to make cover music anymore, or replace Peak or Rev2 with something else, when the time comes... but my "old ones" will never go.

[Gerry Havinga]

What a great question! I am in the process of figuring this one for myself.

I work full time as a seasoned IT professional and been doing that close to 40 years now. I am one of the lucky ones that really loves his job. Great colleagues, ongoing forever changing challenges, lots of learning to do, loving it.

Till a few years ago I would have called myself a 100% amateur/hobbyist dabbling with synthesizers and relevant technologies. About 4 years ago, the composing Muze hit me full force head on and now I cannot stop writing music, even if I wanted to  . I have a few EPs myself online on practically all the different streaming, download platforms. I have made an EP in collaborating with Gernot (also a member of this forum) and one with my partner Evelien (she sings Lisa Gerrard style/ I play the synths). I am working with a friend producer, who is finalizing the mixes and end mastering to publish an LP (about 12 tracks) towards the end of this year, beginning 2020.

So far on the distribution rights (through Feyir) we made about 3 Euros over the last 3 years. Enough to justify a Prophet X purchase (joking). I pay wherever feasible, who helps me mixing and mastering for publication.

But of course this is only possible because I earn a living and have been doing that for a long time.

I am in the process of actively researching and working out the possible ways in which money can be made composing, publishing, selling music. Perhaps if I succeed I can continue doing this when I retire and augment my (non-existent) pension.

For me the big advantage of going this way is that I can totally explore my own creative path. I have no need to care about what other people think about the music I write and publish, it doesn't matter. I do see this creative development as a kind of prerequisite getting into the business of sound design and composing on demand and/or on specification (like film scoring or writing music for dentists, whatever).

I have found out one thing. Like with most other industries it is very important to make contacts and get to know the right people. This is something I still need to work out in the music / entertainment industry. It is not "what you know" but "who you know". Obviously you need to make a good impression when you do meet the right people. Always good to have a "portfolio" ready on Soundcloud, Spotify, iTunes etc.

[megamarkd]

I've always been a music/sound hobbyist/enthusiast, working in unrelated jobs and saving/spending my spare money on music related items in the same way a car fanatic will spend their money on automobile related items and may have a large collection of cars and parts. I know many others who are like me and have a great number of instruments and related gear, but we all have less time than we'd like to use it all.
I remember when I decided to go headlong into synths/electronic instruments I had a couple already (basically through luck), but wanted a drum machine. I saved money that I would have spent on bicycle parts (one of my many hobbies at the time) for a few months and then bought a second hand R-70 from the Trading Post (weekly classified sales paper). From there I just kept going with the same method, sometime saving for longer and buying new instruments but always keeping a 'music kitty', so to speak, for impulse buys as well as eyeballing instruments I wanted and chasing them down.
I might just mention that I've been a computer geek since an early age and worked briefly in an IT related job. I have spent tens of thousands on computers and peripherals over many decades but have given-up on all of that for one major reason; IT equipment, if you have used it for any decent amount of time, is a never worth anything near what you paid for it new on resale. I can deal with the constant learning of new protocols and the associated tech, but I still today have a pile of old equipment that is just useless and worth nothing. It's worse than cars for being a money pit. My oldest synth (in both the time I've owned it for as well as age) is worth over a grand, forty times what I paid for it. If you are discerning about your purchase of instruments, the 'money down the drain' aspect of the hobby isn't anything near that of computing.

[BobTheDog]

I join forums and make one post with a link to a gambling website.

[Gerry Havinga]

I join forums and make one post with a link to a gambling website.

Oh wow brilliant idea, why didn't I think about that myself 

[megamarkd]

I join forums and make one post with a link to a gambling website.
[/quote

So you're that person! I have to thank you as helping with removing your posts earned me a very nice gift from one company.

[Shaw]

hookers and blow folks...   

[LoboLives]

hookers and blow folks...   

Distributor or customer?

[Shaw]

hookers and blow folks...   

Distributor or customer?

... aftermath

[LoboLives]

hookers and blow folks...   

Distributor or customer?

... aftermath

That a boy!

[DaveP6guy]

How do you earn besides music? It seems to me that young musicians should start a career in our time - they need to earn money for this. To buy the equipment and invest in the record. How do you make money for music and do you have income other than your musical career?

None, not now I got me an OB-6.