How Much Do Music Industry Positions Pay? [STUDY]

Boston’s famed Berklee College of Music has released an updated
version of their comprehensive directory of United States salary ranges for
music careers in the areas of performance, business, audio technology,
education, and music therapy. The 2012 version of Music Careers in Dollars and Cents has been revised from 2010 to
reflect two years of change, examining a wide scope of potential avenues for
someone looking to get into, or even pivot in the music business.

The study shows salaries trending upwards for certain positions
like Orchestral Musician, Assistant Professor, or Public Relations Specialist. Others,
however, are seeing a decline like Commercial Jingle Composer, A&R
Representative, or Music Education Administrator. Berklee says that some
changes are due to more comprehensive data collection, but market factors are
also at work.

“There is downward pressure on many music performance
salaries right now due to the slowing global economic recovery, changing
perceptions of music’s value, and hyper competition,” said Peter Spellman,
Director of Berklee’s Career Development Center. “Thus, all the more reason for
musicians to expand their repertoire of both musical and professional skills in
this transforming industry.”

While the primary revisions are in updated salaries and job descriptions,
new job titles like Video Game Composer, Film Score Conductor, and Concert Hall
Manager have been added to this
year’s version as well. Also included are areas that see high growth potential in
the modern music industry including jobs in social media, digital marketing,
branding and sponsorships, mobile music and streaming.

There’s also a flowchart
on how to properly negotiate a job offer, a resources section that includes
professional music organizations and associations, and artist revenue trends
with information from the Future of Music Coalition’s recent survey.

Check out the newly updated Music Careers in Dollars in Cents here.

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