Ever wondering what to do after obtaining a music degree? The fact is, there are far more options for what you can do with a music degree than you probably realize. Performing and teaching are the two most common careers in music, but those alone don’t begin to cover what music majors can pursue once they graduate.
The article on MajoringInMusic.com gives you a complete list of careers in music, to give you a better idea of what you can be anticipating with your years of practicing/learning.
Pay attention to ever-changing opportunities created by technology. New avenues for consuming music, innovative products, new teaching methods, and expanding uses of music as a therapeutic tool all translate to new career options in a rapidly changing world of music.
What Can You Do with a Music Degree?
- Accompanist (public and private schools, music schools and performing arts camps; religious centers and schools; dance rehearsals and performances; other venues)
- Acoustics
- Adjudicator
- Arranger
- Artist management
- Artistic director
- Arts administrator/arts management (includes box office, concert series, programming house manager)
- Audio production, editing
- Band director (K-12, college, military, sports)
- Clinician
- Choral director
- Collaborative pianist
- College admissions director, assistant
- Community music school director
- Composer
- Composing for musical theatre
- Concert Manager, promoter
- Conductor (orchestras: K-12, college, community, youth, domestic/international)
- Copyist, transcriber
- Copyright consultant
- Cruise ship entertainer
- Digital aggregator
- Digital score recordist
- DJ
- Educator (K-12, college, university, conservatory, religious organizations, private studio)
- Electronic production and design (including audio engineering, mastering, mixing, music directing, producing, program directing, programming, recording engineer, studio manager, MIDI technician)
- Entrepreneur
- Entertainment lawyer; music business lawyer
- Event production, management, planning, technology
- Film scoring (Composing, editing, supervising, arranging/adapting, mixing, conducting, orchestrating, synthesis specialist, theme specialist)
- Freelance
- Fundraiser, grant writer
- Historian
- Instrument builder, designer
- Instrument company or music store (owner, manager, sales)
- Lecturer (schools, media, cruise ships, community)
- Librarian
- Lyricist
- Marching Band Director
- Marketing
- Master classes
- Media development
- Merchandise management
- Merchant
- Military bands
- Music agent
- Music business
- Music consultant
- Music critic or reviewer
- Music curator
- Music editing engineer
- Music engraver
- Music for game development
- Music licensing and clearance
- Music online and print magazine writing, editing, publishing
- Music preparation
- Music production
- Music publishing
- Music school administrator
- Music supervisor
- Music therapist
- Music web producer
- Music instrument repair and tuning
- Musical theatre
- Musicologist
- Orchestrator
- Performer (Vocal and instrumental soloist, session musician, orchestra/band/group member, background vocalist or instrumentalist, performing artist, show band. Venues may include business meetings, conferences, cruise ships, weddings, hotels, restaurants, clubs, religious events, orchestral contractor.)
- Personnel Manager (orchestras, arts organizations, shows, events)
- Piano tuner, mover
- Pit orchestra musician
- Playback singer
- Promoter
- Public relations agent or coordinator
- Radio – programming, research, management
- Recording (producer, engineer)
- Recruiter for talent agencies, universities, etc.
- Religious music – sacred music
- Royalty analyst, royalty accountant
- Sales
- Score coordinator
- Session musician
- Song contractor
- Song producer
- Song recordist
- Songwriter (including composer, lyricist, producer; jingle writing for television, radio and internet; freelance work; librettist)
- Sound mastering
- Sound technician (sound engineer)
- Sound design
- Summer camp music director/staff
- Talent representation (booking, management)
- Talent scout
- Technical music assistant
- Tours/road work (road manager, sound technician, tour coordinator, tour publicist)
- Vocal coaching
- Vocal contractor
- Wellness (injury prevention and intervention)
reference: https://majoringinmusic.com/what-can-you-do-with-a-music-degree/
