Is the Recession Good for Musicians?

By David J. Hahn
New York, NY

A recent Huffinton post article by Georgianne Nienaber suggests that a troubling economy might turn live music fans to lower priced alternatives. In a stale economy you might not be able to afford $200 to see Mic Jagger, but maybe you could pay the $10 cover to see the touring indie band that is in town for the night.

I also want to point to a post by Doug Ross on his great blog about making the most of hard times as a musician.

I think we’re all starting to get concerned. In my side of the industry, Broadway producers are reportedly getting cold feet about funding new shows (or even revivals), and shows are closing not just on Broadway, but on London’s West End as well. But there are conflicting reports on whether Broadway sales are down (bottom line: Lion King will never close).

As others have pointed out, most musicians have sources of income that are diversified enough to get by the cancelling, or collapse, of one gig. People will still want music. People will always want music. It’s probably a poor example – but look at Britney Spears’ new release that went from #96 to #1 in one week. Remember that the Billboard charts are based on album sales, so believe it when I say that people are still buying music out there.

Still, for those of us that work as sidemen or other creative types for non-profits and for-profits – the news is increasingly grim. Non-profit symphonies and theatres rely not just on public and private donors to come through on their promised donations, but also on the credit from banks that allow them to pay their musicians week-to-week. If they don’t get the moneys – you don’t get the moneys.

I imagine the only people not worried about their jobs right now are the economic commentators that fill the prime-time slots on news networks. That small sector of the economy hasn’t seen so much work since 1987 and they are probably thrilled that somebody has f-i-n-a-l-l-y asked them what they think about credit default swaps. For the rest of us, it’s natural to worry about our job security. I, for one, will not stop being concerned until the economic commentators tell me to. Are you listening Ali Velshi?

The idea that indie musicians are going to make a killing off this recession is a pretty daft idea if you ask me. The concept that people can’t afford tickets to the music that they really want to see, so they’ll settle for the lowly independent musician at the local bar is absurd. It’s more likely they will stay home and watch TV. That’s free. No, I think we’ll all still have to rely on our fanbase (duh) to populate the seats at our shows and just hope that Mother Hubbarb still has enough in the cupboard to buy our album at the end of it.

My advice? Continue as you were. Keep hustling and looking for more gigs as you always are. There have always been musicians, there will always be gigs. Go find them!

Join Britney Spears’ band, I hear they are doing alright.

About the author

David J. Hahn is a music director and pianist in New York City. He co-founded MusicianWages.com with Cameron Mizell in 2008. His writing have been published in the International Musician, union trade papers and featured on the Huffington Post and About.com. Find out more at his website and follow him on Twitter.

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In NYC I’ve found that people still want to go out, and they’ll seek out some form of cheap entertainment. And in large markets, especially New York, there are plenty of European tourists that pop into gigs. In fact, the most excited people in the audience at almost EVERY gig my band has played has had somebody from overseas taking pictures the whole time.

Cameron Mizell
10/23/2008

I just read Hairspray is closing too.

http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7012760192

That makes Spamalot, Hairspray, Legally Blonde all closing.

Truth be told, that could be good for musicians. Mixes things up a bit. New shows will undoubtably fill those theaters and they’ll be looking for new pits of musicians.

David J. Hahn
10/23/2008