Yes…the BSO is a very competitive and well compensated Orchestra…and it’s very very hard to gain a seat in that orchestra…period.
We know several who have auditioned…and come close…but didn’t get the nod.
Most of the musicians I know have to cobble together a bunch of jobs and fit their music in as well. It is definitely a tough profession.
One of the commercial truck drivers I know who works for a medical equipment company plays music as his true love but likes the wages and benefits (including medical coverage) from driving the truck.
Our Honolulu Symphony average musician makes under $40,000/year according to a web search.
After it’s strike a few years back the Philadelphia Orchestra base salary was raised to $137,800. I think the Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the most prestigious in the US
Interesting article listing the top 13 paying US symphony orchestras - https://www.pennlive.com/life/2016/10/highest_paid_orchestras.html
Wishing now that I hadn’t given up my flute.
Phony advertising: The Boston Symphony Orchestra’s web page shows the musicians in categories according to their instruments. They have short lists in each section, with links to the full roster. Interestingly, the photos of the violist and the bassoon/contrabassoon are both women, but they are not the principals on their instruments. I don’t know whether they are featuring pictures of men who are not the principals or not. When I have time, I will check it out.
The comments by the principal oboist in the article linked above are interesting–essentially he said that she was his equal as a musician, when she auditioned; and he made some remark to the effect that she was clearly at the top of a very competitive field.
Perhaps the percentage of flautists in major symphony orchestras who are women is higher, on average, than the percentage of oboists who are women. In that case, there could be gender discrimination in pay that would not be revealed by comparing salaries of flautists and oboists.