How to Tell If You’re an Amateur Musician

Checked this out on iZotope's facebook page and I thought this article was very insightful. He's able to make the division between being an amateur and professional musician (or any artful craft really) pretty clear with a good definition on what each label means.

http://www.trustmeimascientist.com/2013/11/04/op-ed-how-to-tell-if-youre-an-amateur-musician/

I definitely decided I want to become a professional musician of some kind (not necessarily idm) but I understand now I'm a very amateur musician who has to still learn a lot and a lot.

lel, this guy is very much into his little categories isn't he. sounds like he has a real chip on his shoulder.

load of fucking bullshit that means fuck all

i dunno, he didn't seem to be promoting the idea of "professionalism" that hard imo (on the contrary actually).

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According to the French and Latin roots of the word, to be an amateur is to be “a lover.” One who loves, and one who does out of love. How amazing is that? Why would we ever, in our right minds, stigmatize such a word?

There’s really only one answer to that: Insecurity. It is only an insecure professional, straddling both worlds, woefully uncertain of his or her standing, who would ever stoop to denigrating amateur musicians as a class.

And that is their key point of separation: Professionals must seek a sustainably profitable return on their investment. If they consistently lose money, then they are failing at their jobs.

Amateurs on the other hand, if and when they “lose” money, are not failures at all. Are you “losing” money when you go rock climbing, take in a movie, paint someone a picture, run a marathon, or join a community theater? Allow me to be the first to say hell no.

Whether they do it consciously or not, amateurs effectively take their cash and use it to say: “This is valuable. This is important. I want there to be more of it in the world. I want to support this. Just being around it is its own reward. And I’m willing to pay more for what I think is the most worthwhile.”

i think he overestimates "the value of professional musicians," but he ends on a sensible note. and the frusciante quotes were good.

it's meaningless. who cares? if you're a musician, you're a musician.

may as well say "how to tell if you're an amateur terrorist".

If you have to wonder whether you're an amateur or whatever the fuck else you wana call it then you're an amateur.

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it's meaningless. who cares? if you're a musician, you're a musician.

may as well say "how to tell if you're an amateur terrorist".

agreed, but that would be a pretty good article imo

if you're a professional terrorist, do you put it on your CV?

you join the office of homeland security, actually

*jots it down*

Ha, I'm surprised by the hostility! I didn't read this thinking that he had a chip on his shoulder at all. I found his description of what being an amateur or a professional musician is to be cohesive and based in realism, not a wishful ideal. If some of you feel it's pointless to even discuss the idea, so be it.

  On 11/19/2013 at 7:22 PM, luke viia said:

i dunno, he didn't seem to be promoting the idea of "professionalism" that hard imo (on the contrary actually).

Yes, I felt the same way. The title is misleading. He actually makes the case FOR amateur musicians, for the TERM amateur and that really the only difference between someone who would be labeled a professional and one labeled an amateur is one gets paid just enough to live off it. So, semantically, a person who solely busks on the street to make just enough to live independently is a professional whether he has sold his music or not.

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it's meaningless. who cares? if you're a musician, you're a musician.

I think that's what the core of the article is saying with the caveat that there are some personal and outside expectations if you consider yourself professional.

yeah maybe I should read it

hah .. i wasn't professional, or is that amateur, enough to read the article properly. So i've deleted my post. I will say though that i'll admit to not being passionate enough about anything, well motivated really, to be either professional or was that amateur about everything (well except work, but they do pay me to be there, so well there you go).

Ah, well... ;)

If I read it correctly, the article's summary is 'amateur' is not bad word and never should have been. Like luke viia mentioned, Frusciante's decision to become 'amateur' gave him a lot more freedom to do whatever the fuck he wanted and to enjoy himself a lot more than being in the spotlight.

So a "professional" is one who makes music for a living and earns a self-sustaining income from it basically, according to Justin Colletti. Didn't seem like he took experience or talent into account tho.

he did actually, and commented that those are not pre-requisites for making money, lol

I guess when it comes to an occupation it's more about who you know than what you know, as they saying goes innit.

Still, I'm not gonna pay for some artist's music if they are shit at making it, or are being blatant copycats of other stars in the industry.

this article is written for stupid people by a stupid person

would someone go to their nans for sunday roast and ask if she's a professional chef cause the foods good or someshit? no

Emily Dickenson = amateur

the guy who adds the laugh track to Big Bang Theory = professional

so...

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I prefer amateur

Aphex twin is just an amateur skrillex fan who makes tunes with fruity loops and look he also earns money and success from what he does

(sent from my not-Apple device using Talk That Talk Deluxe Edition)

i know i'm amateur. i don't need to be told i am...

Really, Dude, you surprise me. They're not gonna kill shit, they're not gonna do shit. What can they do? They're a bunch of fuckin' amateurs, and meanwhile, look at the bottom line: Who's sittin' on a million fuckin' dollars? Am I wrong? Nothing is fucked here Dude. Nothing is fucked. They're a bunch of fucking amateurs!

I thought being a professional musician was about "putting a donk on it." Guess I'm wrong.