Are you / have you been a pro musician?

[soldano16]

This just crossed my mind and thought it would be interesting. Grew up as a drummer in highschool playing highschool dances. Tried to convert to guitar in my early 20's and gigged for a year and a bit but that was it as a "pro".

If I knew then what I know now, I might have stayed with it.

[Birddog]

I currently gig 2-5 times a month for money. Of course it's not FOR money, it's for fun, but I do get paid.

And no, the cash doesn't even keep me in equipment (strings and picks maybe), but I still love playing out.

[derekd]

I play 4+ x's per month for lousy pay. I also teach part-time.

[prsflame]

Played/toured extensivley with a regional band from 2005-early 2007. I did this P/T in addition to a F/T job, but I still earned quite a bit of $$. So, I consider myself a "former" pro.

I gigged with local bar/club bands on weekends up until June 08, when I offically burned out from it. I've retired from gigging out, in order to devote myself to my study of the violin, and performance opportunities with the orchestra and quartet I play with.

[bkd_guitarist]

Former full-time (1991-1995), now part-time.

[NyteOwl]

Toured North America full time from `79-`81; now part-time...

[cram]

part time pennies.
it goes into a pot for band expenses, equipment related.

[roadscholar]

Spent about half of this year back in the US working as a catastrophe insurance adjuster, but I'm back in Europe now and beginning in January I'll be back to being a full-time pro muso, which is what I've done here for most of the past 10+ years.

[Captain Midnite]

Toured US '85-87
Toured EU '95 and '96
Commercial and CD Sessions (Michelin, Meijer, Ford, GM, etc.) 1994-present
Published by BMG '91
Now part-time music and part-time webmaster.

[Ulysses]

Full time career player since 1972. I averaged 150-200 one-nighters a year for 34 straight years. I've honestly never had another job, never been to work a single day of my life without a guitar in hand....not once. Worked coast to coast (logged 38 states in my yearly planners, all which I've kept since '72), three major labels, network TV, syndicated TV, grueling tours, played most of the legendary concert venues, hundreds of nights in southern honky-tonks playing the dance hall circuit, you name it. I'm a rocker by trade but have worked as a sideman with major "name" jazz artists and worked on long term projects side by side with two Acadamy Award winning producers. I will say things have slowed to a near halt in the last two years but no regrets. I saved my money and I think spent about as wisely up to this point as a guitar player is capable of. Even after all this I stop short of calling myself "professional". I still have much of the same amateurish enthusiasm I did the day I started.

[shredtrash]

Toured in a funk/pop band for a while and played 6 nights a week in the late 90s. I played the casino/hotel circuit from the Mountain time zone to the East Coast. It was a lot of fun but I realized after a few months that I wouldn't be able to sustain that lifestyle as a career (traveling in a bad Econovan, eating bad food, never getting time off or going home). I came home to Albuquerque eventually, finished my degree, and started teaching. Good choice for me. Now, I play as much as I want locally and teach. I play year round but I load up in the summer because I'm off. Life is pretty good!

[GAT]

Former pro here from '74-79, semi-pro until I went back to school in '94. But I still gig 1-4 times a month.

[Hacksaw]

Traveled and lived it up in 79-84.

[DocLovett]

Originally Posted by Ulysses

Full time career player since 1972. I averaged 150-200 one-nighters a year for 34 straight years. I've honestly never had another job, never been to work a single day of my life without a guitar in hand....not once. Worked coast to coast (logged 38 states in my yearly planners, all which I've kept since '72), three major labels, network TV, syndicated TV, grueling tours, played most of the legendary concert venues, hundreds of nights in southern honky-tonks playing the dance hall circuit, you name it. I'm a rocker by trade but have worked as a sideman with major "name" jazz artists and worked on long term projects side by side with two Acadamy Award winning producers. I will say things have slowed to a near halt in the last two years but no regrets. I saved my money and I think spent about as wisely up to this point as a guitar player is capable of. Even after all this I stop short of calling myself "professional". I still have much of the same amateurish enthusiasm I did the day I started.

That may well be the coolest thing I've ever read on this forum.

[Lucidology]

Right now it's a much slower then usual year,
yet I gig on the average at least 4-5 times a week and that's quite a bit less then usual ...