Dave Martin wrote on Sun, 05 February 2006 10:26 |
Here's another question for y'all; a bunch of you have said (on the artist threads) that you don't perform live (and don't want to perform live), but a lot of you also mentioned that you're still creating new songs and such; here's my question: Why? Who (especially those of you who don't do live gigs) are still searching for success as a singer, singer/songwriter or as a songwriter? And why are you doing so? How are you going about it? Do you have a plan? Or has the music simply become a really fun hobbyto you? Your neighbor has a bass boat or an RV and you have a studio? (Not that there's anything wrong with that). |
Trumpetman2 wrote on Sun, 05 February 2006 19:33 | ||
Well, since you seem to be really interested in this I'll give you my side of the story - I put myself through law school (1975) by being a professional musician. In those days I had to put up w/a lot of crap and disrespect BECAUSE I was "only a musician," Well, I have been a lawyer since 1978 and I make A LOT of money now and have "standing" in my community...so, do you think I'm going to go back to being a performing musician? I don't think so... Now, I own my own studio, I play the music I want and how and when I want, and let me tell you, I can still blow a better horn than probably 80% of the "professional" cats that are out there - I know, I have been lead trumpet player for some pretty good bands in DC, the Thad Wilson Big Band for one. Additionally, I will also tell you that the "vanity CDs" I make are quite liked and sought after by some fans....I have one guy who has collected all of my "productions," hell, even I dont have all...(I've erased a few I'd like to forget), so, is it a hobby? Maybe. Do people get to hear what I paly? You bet! dowe |
DivideByZero wrote on Mon, 06 February 2006 07:17 |
He's a music attorney.. GET HIM! M |
Trumpetman2 wrote on Mon, 06 February 2006 21:48 |
Do you think it is impossible to be a successful attorney and still play music? <snip> ....hey, don't hate me cause I'm successful..after all, isn't that what we all want? |
ivan40 wrote on Mon, 06 February 2006 10:52 |
I do have silly hobbies. When I was 17-18 and in Florida I started doing a little flying and wanted badly to get my Private to fly. This is the only other thing I can imagine doing for a living and It's WAY to late in my early 40's. |
Roadster wrote on Mon, 06 February 2006 20:04 |
You know what? I have asked myself these same questions for several years now. And although I might be inclined to do a dissertation on the subject one day, I think I'll just spare you that here. I do what I do at home, simply because I can now. It's never a question anymore of why. It's more like, how much can I accomplish before my hands wear out or the hearing goes? (Or both!) It's my musical memoirs. And they've been pretty fluid. With no agenda, no commitments or expectations from anyone, it simply revolves around experimentation, zoning out, and uncovering my creative side with no regard to an audience, the industry, or any marketing strategy. It works for me in spades. I've become way more motivated in my later years than I ever had been in the role of human jukebox. |
sonic dogg wrote on Thu, 09 February 2006 18:18 |
I believe in certain parts being as good as you can afford while other parts of the chain only have to be as good as you are clever. |
Roadster wrote on Mon, 06 February 2006 18:04 |
You know what? I have asked myself these same questions for several years now. And although I might be inclined to do a dissertation on the subject |
midnightsun wrote on Sat, 04 March 2006 18:32 |
Music is one of the activities in my life that is not a chore. I don't like the term "hobby." I also consider it to be more of an obsession or necessity. Any given day I might tell two or three people they have a bad cancer, then take a child to the operating room who was hit by a car, and then pronounce someone else dead. It is not that I feel inspired musically when I come home. I just need music to put my soul at ease. |
midnightsun wrote on Sat, 04 March 2006 17:32 |
Music consumes my life and I have no desire to make a living participating in it. ............. Music is one of the activities in my life that is not a chore. I don't like the term "hobby." I also consider it to be more off an obsession or necessity. |
Dave Martin wrote on Sun, 05 February 2006 09:26 |
Here's another question for y'all; a bunch of you have said (on the artist threads) that you don't perform live (and don't want to perform live), but a lot of you also mentioned that you're still creating new songs and such; here's my question: Why? |
Quote: |
Who (especially those of you who don't do live gigs) are still searching for success as a singer, singer/songwriter or as a songwriter? And why are you doing so? How are you going about it? Do you have a plan? |
maxim wrote on Sun, 05 March 2006 04:22 |
dave wrote: "... I wish the word 'amateur' had not been co-opted to mean 'un-professional'. " the two are not mutually exclusive ... i mean, 'amateur' and 'professional' |
maxim wrote on Sun, 05 March 2006 20:42 |
dave wrote: does working in nashville make you bring this up this even more? |
Dave Martin wrote on Sun, 05 March 2006 18:29 |
...in the modern world, folks think that they are the same thing. |
Consul wrote on Mon, 06 March 2006 15:16 |
I think the problem is not so much that "amateur" means "unprofessional," as that is technically correct. |
Dave Martin wrote on Mon, 06 March 2006 21:53 |
I would respectfully disagree with that statement and would suggest that a more accurate synonym for "amateur" would be "non-professional" rather than "unprofessional". |
Quote: |
but maybe there's a way someone in their home studio can seek some guidance from outside his goldfish bowl. |
Consul wrote on Tue, 07 March 2006 17:06 |
Wow, someone who gets what it is I'm trying to say! |
Consul wrote on Tue, 07 March 2006 16:06 |
...I'm really not planning a living in this, but a large part of being an amateur is self-improvement, and feedback from others is an important aspect of self-improvement. This goes for both audio quality as well as the songs themselves. |
Consul wrote on Tue, 07 March 2006 13:56 |
But what happens when you are the musician, the engineer, and the one with the vision? People like Larry Fast and Jean-Michel Jarre were able to pull off some nice stuff that way, so it's not impossible, but Larry has at times talked about the input he got from other people and how it helped him along. |
Tom Crowning wrote on Thu, 09 March 2006 06:53 |
If you want to be better than average, you have to be better than average in composing, performing, recording, mixing and mastering. |
Quote: |
There are VERY few talents around that can do this. And no, JMJ is not one of them (he'd lots of feedback from Michel Geiss). |
maxim wrote on Fri, 10 March 2006 10:02 |
tom wrote: "If you want to be better than average, you have to be better than average in composing, performing, recording, mixing and mastering." i don't think that's necessarily true if you are better than average at all of those, you would be truly exceptional you can be better than average that any one of those and just average at the rest, and still be better than average but who wants to be average, anyway |