Last fall, I conducted an informal survey on stigmas surrounding career changes in the classical music world. We were about eight months into the pandemic by that point and nearly every musician I knew — from students still in school to seasoned pros — had asked themselves some version of the big “What if?”
What if my orchestra folds? What if the industry collapses? What if I need to get a job outside of music? What if I can’t?
Even still, an overwhelming 78% of respondents in November said they believed some such stigma about changing careers actively exists. (You can read the detailed summary of the findings here).
Some of the responses were remarkably candid and truly heartbreaking — folks hanging on to careers they no longer enjoyed or were no longer viable for them out of a fear of what other musicians might think. In many cases, respondents expressed serious regrets over never having developed hirable skills outside of music.
On the other hand, many respondents shared fascinating and inspiring stories of doing work “outside” of music to both great success and great enjoyment. Their reasons for doing so were wide-ranging — side hustles, hobbies, complete career changes, or folks looking for ways to boost their current work in music and provide variety in life — and were born out of both pandemic-related and non-pandemic-related situations.
In December, I reached out to a number of the respondents and asked if they would like to share their stories and answer the following four questions:
When you were 18, what were your career aspirations, and how much (if at all) did those change by the time you finished university/grad school?
Over the course of your entire career to this point — but prior to the pandemic — how have you pivoted or changed career paths and why?
What were you doing at the start of this year (2020), prior to the pandemic?
How has the pandemic changed your career path or goals moving forward?
The stories that soon filled my inbox were ones that I knew had to be shared. Many of these pivots took place long before the pandemic, others are actively unfolding. With permission, their answers and insights are linked below. I hope these can help to shatter stigmas, open the dialogue, and inspire others.
What I really, deeply want to emphasize with this project is that musicians — and especially young musicians — should not feel as though their success or worth as a musician hinges solely upon how much of their income comes from playing. Similarly, they should not feel discouraged from learning other skills, developing other abilities, and having interests outside of the practice room — rather, they should embrace the opportunity to do so! The reasons for expanding one’s skillset are plentiful and far-reaching — from paying the bills in a crisis to simply being a well-rounded, happy, healthy human being.
For some, the decision to explore paths fully or partially outside of music is painful. It’s sometimes a decision that is made for you, as you’ll see in some of these stories. But remember, injuries and major life events can happen to any of us at any time. The stigma surrounding something that happens so indiscriminately needs to be shattered. As you’ll also see though, life goes on. And, for many people, that life can be just as rewarding — often more rewarding — than a life on stage.
There was an excellent article published in The Atlantic last month about this very idea, suggesting that hyper-focusing on one singular career path may not the way to go. (Did you know Charles Ives was also a celebrated financial innovator?) I highly recommend checking it out.
Lastly, I admittedly asked myself when I launched that first survey, “Am I projecting?”
I know that my path has been rather unorthodox and absolutely not for everyone. I perform, teach, coach, write… and I have a creative consulting business and real estate business. So I wondered if perhaps my assumptions about stigmas and pivots were my own subconscious beliefs seeping out. But these stories speak for themselves and these questions and issues are universal — especially now. I was torn on whether to answer these questions myself. I didn’t at all want to seem self-promotional. However, if my own story can help someone come to terms with their career decisions, it’s worth it.
I hope you all can find some inspiration from these stories. And I want to again send my thanks and appreciation to those who shared both in the initial survey and the profiles linked below. Thank you!