If I were to take the university route to become a session musician, I would go to BIMM university as I have heard that it has a good reputation. I also have good enough grades to get in. The entry requirements are at least two A-levels at grade E, or over which is 32 UCAS points or a level 3 BTEC equivalent. A student hoping to study at BIMM university would also need 3 GCSEs at grade 4 including English language. I meet the entry requirements which means that I should be able to get into the university.
I would choose the BMus (HONS) popular music performance course as the modules look interesting to me. This is important as I learn better when I enjoy the subject content.
In the first year of university I will be doing 8 modules. These modules are a taste of the different careers within music. This gives me time to change my mind about what musical career I want to go into although I doubt, I will change my mind. One of the modules from the first year’s modules that I think will help me develop as a musician is the applied performance module. In this module I will learn key skills to arrange and perform songs. This course will also give me the ability to workshop ideas and enhance the music with engaging and visually pleasing performances. This will help me develop musically as it will help me to receive feedback from my peers and to give my peers feedback. This will help my development as I will be able to see what my peers did well and adapt it into my work. At the same time, I will be looking at the mistakes that me and my peers have made and ensure that I don’t make those mistakes. My working patterns will be very daytime oriented as I will be working on my university work. I would also consider getting a job to fund myself at university. This will impact my college work and the time that I am not in lessons. I could get an early morning job which will require me to wake up earlier in the mornings. This could be good as it may leave my brain feeling awake by my lesson, however, it can also be bad as it may make me feel really tired as sometimes, I won’t be able to sleep until the early hours of the morning where I would have to get out of bed without sleeping. Alternatively, I could get a night job. This would be good as I am often up late anyway so I might as well be paid for it. A disadvantage about getting a night job is that my brain works best later at night so it would be more beneficial for me to be doing work at this time. One module I will be studying in my first year is applied instrument skills. In this module I will be looking at developing my voice in my instruments. This means showing emotions and telling a story without saying anything. This is implied by tempo, dynamics and how soft or hard the sound is. For example, an angry song would be fast and loud and have a hard sound. I will be able to incorporate this into my music after this module.
In the third year of university I will be doing seven modules. Three of these are core modules which are compulsory. The remaining four modules are chosen from a list of optional modules in order to personalize it to the career that the individuals want to go into after university. One of the compulsory modules is called performance showcase. This module will help me develop musically as as part of the module we have to tailor a performance to different target audiences. This module will also help me to be more critical about my work by comparing my work to other higher level performances such as festival headliners. I will also be able to use movement and my surroundings as a way to enhance the performance. This will help me as people can get bored if the musician is static. I will also be required to document my progress during this modular. This will open my knowledge of more technology which can be important in the music industry. Another module I would study in my third year is gender and sexuality. This module is optional. In this module we look at gender and sexuality within the music society. This will help me develop musically as I will be looking deeper into the history of music and identifying the barriers of diversity within the music community. I will be looking at a range of eras and styles of music throughout this module which will give me inspiration of how to change my style to be true to myself in my music. It will also give me the chance to create a hybrid of styles making me to become more unique in my playing. I will also be able to change the creative industry by breaking down gender and sexuality barriers, creating a more open and diverse environment for the artists to be truthful to the rest of the world and to themselves.
Five years after I have left college, I intend to go to Middlesex university to study a postgraduate degree in music. I would choose the creative entrepreneurship music MA course as it would help me to learn what skills are necessary to start my own business or to be a freelancer. One of the modules I will be studying is creative start-ups. This is a compulsory module which will teach me how to fund my own business and how to network properly. This will help me develop musically by teaching me how to get work. I will also be studying the music entrepreneurship module; this is an optional course at the beginning of the course when I decide whether I want to work in a media or music environment. This module will teach me about critical awareness of problems and copyright and intellectual property. This will help me develop musically by helping me to know when I should be payed if I perform with people who have written their own music. I probably would work a part time job during this year as postgraduate studies are known to be rather time consuming and stressful. Due to this I would have a part time job that doesn’t require much physical exertion. I would still be working because I would need money to be able afford to live while doing my masters as I wouldn’t be able to pay for food otherwise.
If I were to take the non-university route to become a session musician, I would spend the first two years after college paying for instrumental lessons so I could be entered for the graded exams in my chosen instruments. I would develop by learning how to book an exam for myself as I haven’t done this before as it was all done for me in college and high school.
Above is a cropped screenshot of a PDF file describing how to book an exam in a public space. This means in a church or at a university as opposed to at your house.
How to book a public venue by ABRSM date accessed 4/1/2020
I would also develop musically by improving according to my instrumental teacher’s feedback. While I am focusing on my graded exams in my instrument, I will be working as a cashier or something that involves being near the customers such as a receptionist or stacking shelves. This will help me develop musically as it would provide me money to continue learning and to pay for my exams. My working patterns would be shift based for my job and the lessons would be moved according to both the teacher and my plans for the month or week depending on how often the shifts change.
Three years after I have left college, I will be looking for a normal job in order to get a decent amount of experience so that it will be easier to get a job a few years later. I will probably work at Tesco’s, Asda or another supermarket in order to get the right amount of work history for a more permanent job. I will be practicing my instrument when I don’t have to work, and I will be looking for smaller jobs on the side. The job I would have at the supermarket would be there as an income-based job only, not for enjoyment. Once I have enough money, I could go to trade fairs in order to get cheaper equipment. This plan is based purely on whether I earn enough at the supermarket job. I will develop musically in this job as it will help me to learn patience and team working skills. These are necessary for if I am working as a band or as part of the orchestra. An example of when this will come in handy is if the person sat next to me in the orchestra keeps making mistakes, if I didn’t learn patience and team working skills, I would probably say something rude and be fired. Having worked at a supermarket and gaining patience and team working skills, I will instead ask them what problem they are having and attempt to resolve their problem. If it is a problem with reading the music or they have forgotten how to play the note, I would attempt to offer my assistance. If they play a different instrument to me, I would ask the person on the other side of them to help. This wouldn’t happen if I didn’t learn patience and team working skills as I am quite an impulsive person with a bad temper. Working alongside other people to get a job done should help me with my patience and temper, causing me to be a better team member and more tolerant of other people’s mistakes. My working patterns could be quite varied depending on the store, the opening hours of the store, the location of the store and the shift that I am allocated.
Five years after I have left college, I will be looking for more music-based jobs like gigging at pubs, festivals or parties.
I have found a listing on indeed of a job in London where I could work once I have finished my exams. I would develop musically by performing a lot in front of a large group of people. I would need to change my performing style in case the bar has people who come in frequently as they may get bored. I would have to add improvisation and change my set list often to keep the viewers interested.
Music jobs in London by indeed date accessed 4/1/2020
References
How to book exams at a Public Venue by ABRSM date accessed 4/1/2020
Click to access how-to-book-exams-at-a-public-venue.pdf
Music jobs in London by indeed date accessed 4/1/2020
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