[HANASHIR:14706] making a living

[SELINGER <SELINGER...>]

Beth Hamon raised the issue of how a non-vested Jewish musician can earn a
living in a full-time job. There are two obvious choices. One is to teach
music in a day school as a full-time employee, perhaps supplemented by
summer employment in a camp or by part-time work as a cantorial soloist.
The other option is to work as a full-time cantorial soloist with a
synagogue. 

If you're looking, you can find some useful listings at:

   http://www.jewishjobs.com.

Alternatively you can piece together a full-time career by working 
part-time for several different schools and synagogues. In that case you 
will probably need to purchase your own health insurance. You might
consider joining the musicians' union called the American Federation of 
Musicians, see http://www.afm.org , which offers health plans to their 
members as well as other benefits.

A guitarist as strong as Beth could teach guitar privately for at least
$50/hour. And of course there are many secular performance possibilities
for a professional guitarist, including solo gigs. One could also play in
a band at clubs, weddings, b-mitzvah parties,etc...or play in the
orchestra of a broadway-style show, do work as a studio musician, etc. 

The part-time option is easiest if you have either a substantial savings or a
prosperous partner to smooth out any discontinuities in your income. For
someone who is the sole support of their family, the financial risk of 
piecing together part-time work here and there may be unacceptable.

-Robin



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