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Table of Contents

Outline..........................................................................................................................................3-4

Career Research Paper..................................................................................................................5-7

Works Cited.....................................................................................................................................8

Appendix..........................................................................................................................................9

Parent Career List..............................................................................................................10

Career Want Ad.................................................................................................................11

Career Brainstorming.........................................................................................................12

Salary Comparisons...........................................................................................................13
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Chloe Garden

Mrs. Bowen

Honors English 8

9 March 2010

Thesis: A life with the career as an orchestral musician brings joy of playing, a good salary, and

requires much prior knowledge.

I. Daily Working Conditions (Pros and Cons)

A. Pros

1. Playing in the midst of people who are playing as if their life depended on

it

2. Provides the enjoyment of playing your instrument

3. Lots of evenings are spent traveling

B. Cons

1. Individual talent may not be recognized

2. Being away from family on tour

3. Have to work with all the music even when one may not like it

II. Education and Requirements

A. Must have the ability to interpret all types of music

B. Must be physically and mentally strong for rehearsals, performances, travel

engagements, and auditions.

1. Rehearsals

2. Performances

C. Must put in hours of practice each day

D. Must be able to work as a team with your composer and other members
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III. Salary and Benefits

A. Salary

B. Benefits
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Chloe Garden

Mrs. Bowen

Honors English 8

9 March 2010

Orchestral Musician

According to Douglas Yeo, an orchestral musician in the BSO (Boston Symphony

Orchestra), “An Orchestral job provides stability, a good income, and the satisfaction of a life in

music” (Yeo). The life as an orchestral musician is very enjoyable and contains many highs and

lows. This job allows a person to spend plenty of time playing their instrument. A person must

have physical and mental strength and put in hours of practice each day to enjoy this career. A

life with the career as an orchestral musician brings joy of playing, a good salary, and requires

much prior knowledge.

There are both pros and cons in a typical day for an orchestral musician. Graham

Snowdon interviews Karen O’Connor, an orchestral musician, that says that one of the pros is,

“When you're in the middle of 120 people playing as if their lives depended on it, in front of an

audience. I don't think you can beat it” (Pitch Perfect). This career also provides the opportunity

to play the instrument that one may desire. It offers a great opportunity to do something that one

loves to do (School Music Today.com). Also, many evenings are spent traveling (Pitch Perfect).

The musician that Graham Snowdon interviews also says, “We probably do a 40-hour week, but

some of that will be spent traveling. Lots of evenings. Some orchestras go on tour all the time –

we tour enough that it’s interesting, but not too much” (Pitch Perfect). This orchestral musician

gets plenty of opportunities to go on tour with orchestra and enjoys it very much.

Not only are there pros, but there are also cons to a typical day of an orchestral musician.

Douglas Yeo states that when playing in an orchestra, each member’s talent may not be
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individually recognized (Yeo). Karen O’Connor talks about some of the lows of an orchestral

musician. She says that one of the cons is, “Being away from family on tour” (Pitch Perfect).

Because orchestras go on tour so much, there are many nights where they are away from family.

This is only one of the few cons. Another con is that even if one may not like the music chosen

by the composer, he or she has to work with it (Yeo). For example, a composer may choose a

certain style of music that one of the members doesn’t really like. He or she would have to play

the music with the orchestra.

Before a person can become an orchestral musician, he or she must meet all of the

requirements. One requirement is that one must be able to interpret all types of music (Musician

Job Description...). Most professional musicians start playing at an early age and study privately

or with a teacher (Musician Job Description...). Marlow E. Marshall, a professional musician

says, “I have been playing the bass for about six years” (Marshall). This is how most musicians

get this ability. Not only do orchestral musicians need to have musical ability, but they also need

to have physical endurance. Being in an orchestra can be very stressful. Each member must be

physically and mentally strong for things like rehearsals, performances, travel engagements, and

auditions (Musician Job Description...). There are four rehearsals every week that are each two

and-a-half hours long (Yeo). Every rehearsal has a twenty five minute break in the middle of it

(A Day in the Life of an Orchestra Musician). The performances can be stressful, too. There are

usually four performances a week (Yeo) and one hundred performances a year (A Day in the

Life of an Orchestra Musician). The performances will generally start at eight o’clock and end at

ten o’clock. They consist of only one short break in the middle for the audience and the

orchestra to refresh and stretch their legs (A Day in the Life of an Orchestra Musician). Also,

each member must stay on top of his or her music on his or her own. In order to do that, he or

she must put in hours of practice each day, even on vacation (Yeo). Marlow E. Marshall says, “I
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practice five to six days a week and one to two hours a day” (Marshall). One other requirement

is to be able to work with other members of the orchestra. They are the people that will play

together and must know how to work together as a team (Yeo).

When it comes to being in a symphony, there are both salaries and benefits. The pay for

an orchestral musician is about $35,000 per year (Pitch Perfect). The top orchestras offer up to

$70,000 per year and $2000 per week (Yeo). Marlow E. Marshall says, “The average salary for

a professional musician can range anywhere from hundreds per week to thousands per month”

(Marshall). The pay for a recording contract is $300 (Yeo). Aside from salary, there are benefits

for orchestral musicians. Symphonies go on tour to places like Japan, China, Hong Kong, South

America, Europe, and the Canary Islands (Yeo). As members of the American Federation of

Musicians, all orchestra members that pass an initial probability period will receive job

protection and security (Yeo). Some orchestras offer each member full medical and dental

coverage (Yeo). The top orchestras offer each member ten weeks of paid vacation (Yeo). Most

orchestras will give all of their members this salary and these benefits.

The career for an orchestral musician has both pros and cons, provides joy of playing an

instrument, and provides a good salary with many benefits. This career can bring joy to all of a

person’s life because it allows the person to make his or her love of music a profession. It can

also provide travel opportunities with the orchestra. This career requires very hard work and a

lot of effort to do something that someone may enjoy doing. It also offers a great salary in return

of the hard work put into it.

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Work Cited

“A Day in the Life of an Orchestra Musician.” A Day in the Life of an Orchestra Musician. 2

March 2010. <http://www.artsalive.ca/pdf/mus/nacorehearsals_e.pdf>

Marshall, Marlow E.. Personal Interview. 1 March 2010.

“Musician Job Description, Career as a Musician, Salary, Employment – Definition and Nature

of the Work, Education and Training, Requirements, Getting the Job”.

StateUniversity.com. 28 February 2010.

<http://careers.stateuniversity.com/pages/129/Musician.html>

Snowdon, Graham. “Pitch perfect”. 9 August 2008. guardian.co.uk. 2 March 2010.

<http://www.gaurdian.co.uk/money/2008/aug/09/worklandcareers3>

Yeo, Doug. “ Pros and cons to a career in Orchestral Music” School Music Today.com. 2 March

2010. <http://www.schoolmusictoday.com/resources/articles/prosandcons.html>