Chapter 21
Nine Career Opportunities
for Composers
In This Chapter
Checking out bands and choirs
Looking at TV and musical theater possibilities
Becoming a producer/arranger
Looking into industrial and corporate music opportunities
Considering film and video game scoring
Songwriting
Y
ou don’t need a book to tell you that making a living as a composer is
hard. And it’s not because the money isn’t out there waiting for you to
come along. It’s simply because that for every legitimate composing job out
there, there are dozens — or even hundreds — of budding, starry-eyed com-
posers out there, waiting in line for their big chance.Does that mean you should give up? No, it means that what’s going to set you
apart from every other composer out there — besides your massive talent —
is your ability to persevere against what might seem like tremendous odds.
That, and the ability to seek out work on your own and not sit around and
wait for want ads in the paper or the music journals to pop up.The following careers are just a few of the opportunities open to composers
that may not have crossed your — or your competition’s — mind.School Bands and Choirs ............................................................................
Every year, high schools and colleges across the country put on musical per-
formances for both parent and community audiences. Sometimes, the music
used for these performances comes from well-known sources, such as