Australian study to reveal how musicians juggle different careers

The Queensland Conservatorium Research Centre (QCRC) is about to embark on a three-year study on how Australian musicians are increasingly juggling different jobs to sustain their musical careers.

Making Music Work: Sustainable Portfolio Careers for Australian Musicians will survey 1000 pop, jazz, classical and fusion musicians on the various ways they try to make enough money to keep performing and recording, and the challenges they face.

QCRC Director Associate Professor Brydie-Leigh Bartleet said that while these styles have different approaches to creating and performance, the strategies used for longevity of careers are usually similar.

Prof. Bartleet explained in a statement, “Making Music Work will explore the conditions and strategies needed for musicians to sustain successful portfolio careers. It will combine aspects of performance, recording, creation, music direction, teaching, community activities, health, retail and a presence in online environments.”

There will also be twelve in-depth case studies of individual musicians or ensembles to identify key success factors and obstacles.

The study, for which it received funding of $222,515, will provide ways on how working musicians can be trained, developed and supported in skills in business, marketing and collaborations

Among those involved are Griffith researchers Prof. Huib Schippers, Prof. Scott Harrison and Prof. Paul Draper alongside Prof. Dawn Bennett from Curtin University and Ruth Bridgstock from Queensland University of Technology. Partners include The Australia Council for the Arts, Arts NSW, Arts Victoria, Department of Culture and the Arts (WA) and Music Trust.

Making Music Work is one of two studies that the QCRC is embarking on. It received funding of $400,000 for the two.

The other is Creative Barkly: Sustaining The Arts & Cultural Sector In Remote Australia. It will analyse how the arts sector functions in these regions where the demographics are different from regional areas.