Exploring Careers in Music

Music offers a transcendental experience with the power to lift the spirit and bring people together. If you’re passionate about music and you’re thinking about your future, you might consider whether any careers in music might be the right choice for you. From playing music professionally to teaching others about music and beyond, there are so many music-related careers that could allow you to fuse your passion with purpose.

In This Article:

• Choose a Career in Music That Is Right for You
• Types of Music Performance Careers
• Types of Careers in Music Production
• Earn Your Music Degree at GCU

Choose a Career in Music That Is Right for You

A love of music is most definitely a prerequisite for pursuing any type of music performance career. But is passion for this artistic medium enough?

There is a very long music careers list, and each type of music career is likely to require its own particular skill set. In general, however, a career in this industry may benefit from skills such as:¹

• Emotional and mental resilience
• General technology literacy
• Organizational skills
• Teamwork and interpersonal skills

Types of Music Performance Careers

When you think about the various types of music performance careers, the role of a professional musician is likely top of mind. If you love performing on the stage, then this may be the right career for you to pursue. However, there are many other options to consider.

Professional Musician

Professional musicians and singers may perform solo or in groups such as bands or orchestras. Those in bands may play gigs at clubs, bars, weddings and other private parties. These musicians work to cultivate their fan base so they can land a contract with a record label, although these days, musicians can also sell their music online through streaming services. 

Other professional musicians play in orchestras, where they may have the opportunity to rise to the rank of section leader.

There are also music career opportunities for:

• Worship arts musicians 
• Professional opera singers 
• Background singers (who support the lead singer) 
• Backup performers for live performances and recording sessions

Music Educator

If you’re passionate about music but aren’t sure you’d like to perform on a stage, then you might consider becoming a music teacher instead. This career would allow you to pass on your love of music to the next generation. 

There are two primary options for aspiring music educators: private music instruction and music teaching in schools. If you’d like to teach music in a public school, you’ll need to become a licensed teacher. Private music teachers who give lessons out of their own private music studios (or homes) do not need to be licensed.²

If you decide that you’d like to teach within a school, you should look for a music degree that leads to teacher licensure. Be sure to check the licensing requirements for teachers in the state where you plan to work. In addition to your bachelor’s degree and license, you’ll need work experience in the classroom, which you can gain through a student teaching rotation.²

As a school music teacher, you’ll prepare and give lessons that teach your students how to read scores, understand music theory and perform on instruments and vocals. You’ll also need to grade assignments and performances, manage classroom discipline, organize student recitals and meet with parents. As a member of the faculty, you can expect to attend regular staff meetings.

Private music teachers who give lessons out of their own studios or homes aren’t required to be licensed, but they do need to demonstrate credentials and proficiency to attract students.

Private music teachers may provide one-on-one or group instruction. In addition to giving lessons, private music teachers must market their services to attract new clients and work toward success in this music-related career.

Music Producer

Music producers work closely with musicians in the recording studio. The professional relationship between a music producer and a musician is similar to that between an editor and a writer. The producer’s job is to ensure that the final result is the best it can be and that it reflects the vision for the piece.

This career requires both technical knowledge and artistic vision.³ A music producer might do anything from using audio editing software to running the soundboard. They can work with artists to help them achieve the right sound and create a cohesive vision for an individual song or an entire album.

Music Agent

Although music agents don’t perform or record music professionally, they do play a vital role in getting talent on stage and in the studio. Also known as talent agents, music agents represent bands and individual musicians. Their main areas of responsibility include booking shows and negotiating performance contracts. They may book just one show at a time, or they may be responsible for contracting an entire tour or residency at a nightclub, concert hall or casino.

By necessity, music agents must be adept at cultivating strong professional relationships with others in the industry, such as concert promoters, venue managers and record label decision-makers. A robust network of contacts enables music agents to help their clients book larger, more prestigious shows and enjoy career success.

Disc Jockey (DJ)

The term disc jockey, or DJ, can encompass a couple of different types of music professionals. Many disc jockeys work for radio stations, where they are responsible for playing music and offering commentary on their radio station. DJs can also be performing artists who host events and mix tracks.⁴ Many DJs also write and produce their own musical tracks.

Other DJs have perfected the art of turntabling. This is the practice of mixing various sounds and tracks to create new music and beats. Some prefer to use modern DJ software.

It’s possible for popular DJs who host events to achieve celebrity status. DJs who write and produce their own music might enjoy popular acclaim. There is also the potential to license original music and earn royalties.

Types of Careers in Music Production

Wondering how to work in the music industry on the production side of the business? There are plenty of careers in music production to consider. 

These careers include:

Broadcast Engineer

Some music-related careers take place behind the scenes. One example is the job of broadcast engineers, also known as broadcast technicians. These professionals primarily work in radio and TV.

Broadcast engineers are responsible for setting up, operating and maintaining the specialized equipment for radio and TV programs. This equipment is used to manage the quality of the audio or — for TV programs — the clarity of the images. Broadcast engineers work with equipment such as audio mixing consoles, media control systems, satellite receivers, oscilloscopes and frequency analyzers.

As you can see, the job of a broadcast engineer involves all types of audio, as well as video. This means that broadcast engineers work on ensuring the seamless transmission of songs on the radio or TV, as well as other types of audio feeds. In other words, it’s not exclusively a music-related career.

Production Sound Mixer

Another music career to consider is that of the production sound mixer. A sound mixer is similar to a boom operator but specializes in live sound recording and mixing in settings such as newsrooms, TV shows and movie sets.

The main goal of a sound mixer is to capture audio in its “cleanest” form possible, without any undesirable background noises. They need excellent technique to continue to capture clean audio despite the movements and improvisations of the actors.

Concert Technician

If you love live music performances and enjoy frequent travel, then perhaps a career as a concert technician could be right for you. Concert technicians are responsible for maintaining, packing and setting up all musical instruments and related gear for a band on tour.

A concert technician can specialize in a particular instrument. For instance, a guitar tech is responsible for stringing and tuning the guitars and setting up the amps and pedals on stage.

During a show, concert techs wear an in-ear monitor, which allows them to keep an ear out for any problems. If something happens, such as a guitar string breaking, concert technicians need to be able to repair the problem quickly and under pressure. Concert technicians may also assist the band during the show, perform sound checks and provide creative support to the band as they work to come up with new sounds and songs.

Music Supervisor

Movies, documentaries and TV shows rely on soundtracks to build suspense, accentuate scenes and release cathartic emotion. It’s the job of the music supervisor to develop the overall soundtrack as well as secure the rights and permissions to use the music. Music supervisors must manage the technical, creative and logistical aspects of coordinating a project’s soundtrack.

Music supervisors work closely with composers who write original scores for movie and TV productions. Because of the importance of this collaboration, all music supervisors must be accomplished musicians themselves.⁵

Audio Director

Audio directors may have a few different job titles, including lead audio designer or senior sound designer. Audio directors specialize in soundtracks and other types of audio for video games. They plan, develop and supervise all the audio files for each scene of each game.

Audio directors are department leaders who must coordinate, delegate and oversee the activities of a diverse team. They must also coordinate activities with other departments.

Audio directors are responsible for the soundtrack of a video game, as well as its sound effects. For instance, the audio director must ensure that if a character in the game is running, the sounds of the footfalls and heavy breathing are authentic and consistent, yet not overly repetitive.

Mastering Engineer

If you aspire to work with recording artists in the studio, then perhaps you might like to become a mastering engineer. A recording artist will first write the music and record it. After mixing the music, the artist then brings it to the mastering engineer to perfect the recording.

In other words, the mastering engineer is the last stop before an album is released to the public. It’s their responsibility to ensure the recording is as perfect as possible. Mastering engineers work with an eye toward ensuring the music is cohesive and that it manifests the artist’s intent. They also ensure that the music will sound right on a variety of playback systems.

Earn Your Music Degree at GCU

If you’re passionate about music, you can enjoy plenty of opportunities to practice your craft in individual and group instruction at GCU. The College of Arts and Media is pleased to offer a variety of degrees for student musicians, such as the Bachelor of Arts in Music with an Emphasis in Instrumental Performance degree program, which is aligned with the standards of the National Association of Schools of Music. Fill out the form on this page to speak with a university counselor about joining the GCU community.