Music and Athletics

compmom
Tue, 22 Jan 2008 09:23:25 +0000

I think that composing takes a lot of time, and creative energy. It isn’t something you can do well on the side, so to speak.

Our daughter loves theater, but gave it up as a senior in high school: it was clear she had to make a choice. As a student matures, there are also a lot of rehearsals of works composed, time taken up putting scores on Finale, printing parts, and so on.

I think that high school composers should be quite attractive to colleges, but will let you know in a few months! I do know that our daughter’s focus has payed off with conservatories so far, in preliminaries anyway.

Two days ago, we were at a rehearsal at a local college, where a professional ensemble is playing one of her pieces (and paid her $400, won’t pay for much, but it’s money). There was a discussion of the financial side to being a composer. The other composer present told me that he is able to make a living and support his small family with teaching and commissions. One of the musicians, who also composes, had a different take. The chances of making a living as an athlete seem a lot more remote, however, unless your son is a PE major and teaches.

There are many teaching opportunities at the post-secondary level for composers. But, to attain that kind of success, it would take focus and commitment, I guess, and doing sports while “composing on his own time” might prevent that.

The real question might be, which passion does he really want to follow. I mean, it might sound corny, but if he “followed his heart”, rather than a strategy for getting in (meaning signing up for sports recruitment), would it be music? It sounds like he loves it.

We all know that making a living often has little relationship to college majors. Music majors can end up doing all sorts of things…but doing what they love for 4 years is something that will last a lifetime. Unless he loves baseball more…It’s hard, but at this stage of the game, the way our culture works, the kids really do have to start choosing…