Possible to become a professional musician later in life?

[nitekat]

what a great thread. Im not sure if anyone is still reading this, but I guess I thought Id share my experience. i started playing piano/keyboards at 24, although I had been a reasonable guitarist starting at 16. I was obsessed with the piano though, practising 3-4 hours a night. Sometimes more. At one point I took a year off going to music school where piano playing really came along. I also went to Musicians Institute in LA as well which was a really good experience. And thats where my playing really came together. But I hussled like HELL!!!. Answering any ad, meeting anyone I could. Emailing musicians/MDs that I admired telling them about me. Looking up CD sleeves, finding out who people were, and emailing them!! At 32 I found myself playing piano/keyboards in a London West End show which ran for a year, 9 shows a week, making a reasonably good living. Though I believe that was more due to my networking ability than a skill as a pianist. When that finished, I returned to the USA and made, or should I say eeked out an existence as a musician, mainly cover bands. I found myself making a bit of a name as someone who could play keys/guitar/bvs. Got some auditions for some major tours i.e. Rihanna/Katy Perry, never quite got that break. Im almost 40 now. I could probably still be making that living, but having a background as an Electrical Engineer, with the ability to make a reasonable living lured me back.

So yes it is definitely possible to become a pro later in life. I still sometimes contemplate going back to it, especially on days like today, when i am meetings listening to people going on and on about some rediculous database ID that nobody cares about!...hehehe

...but about becoming a "great musician"...now thats a different story...something I dont feel that I am good enough to comment on!

[Source]

Here's my little anecdote: I started kind of late, really getting into theory and true musicianship around 19. I would play for so many hours a day, and I had a friend who played piano and knew a lot about theory who helped me to learn the mechanics behind what I was playing. At the time all I had was a cheap lefty acoustic that I'm not even sure was made of wood. I learned to play it upside down, chords and everything.
I then moved far away from the city and friends I grew up with, to a rural town where I knew nobody and I didn't even have a license. I fixed up a beat up Squier I had found in the trash and completely immersed myself in music and playing my Squier, sometimes playing for 10 hours a day and staying up all night. On the rare occasion I would see my friends they were amazed how good I had gotten in such a short time.
Now I'm 21 and have started taking jazz lessons with a local teacher who is likewise amazed that I've only been on my instrument for about 2-3 years. Although I'm no jazz master by any stretch of the imagination, I'm on par with musicians I know who have been playing 10 or more years. I'll be applying to Berklee, among other colleges, this winter (though I likely won't be able to afford Berklee's tuition) and hope to make a career out of music.
The point of the story is not to toot my own horn, but to show that with dedication, time, effect, a little bit of talent and intelligence, as well as studying/practising the right way, you can become proficient on your instrument at any age.

[Source]

Wow, sorry for the co-necrobump. I didn't see this was from two years ago..

:facepalm:

[sjl]

Just try it! Be the exception!

[docbop]

I hope this true story will benefit those of you who are concerned about success in music after a late start. It is not a perfect story but it does have a happy ending.

<snip>
wiz

It truly does have a happy ending and will be inspiration me.

Thanks for sharing.

[monk]

The main thing you have to do to be a professional guitarist is to get someone to pay you to play on a regular basis. It's preferable for them to pay you enough live on. You don't necessarily have to be a virtuoso but you do need to be able to capture the attention of the audience wherever you might play.

I my mind, a professional anything makes their full-time living doing whatever it is that they do. If one has a day job and supplements their income by playing occasionally, I think of them as being semi-professional. The same would hold true of someone who is retired and augments their pension by playing.

[teleman3726]

I played for cash while in high school, then in college, and then left the guitar (apart from noodling) for almost 20 years.

In the meantime, I rec'd some degrees, worked a lot, travelled. About 10 years ago I got serious about playing again and bought some new equipment, joined some bands, bought some better equipment, began getting serious about jazz.

My firms did well and expanded, and now I am semi retired and can play semi pro again as I crest into my 50s. It works.

My tastes have refined; there are some good clubs in town in which to play. The jazz crowd is small enough that everyone knows and helps, and my corporate donations give me some (shameless) access and credibility.

So the answer is: yes. But it has to be mapped out well.

[oldane]

Gil Evans was a late starter. He was over 40 when he took up piano playing on a professional level.

[whiskey02]

Hmm, I've never really heard of any people who all of a sudden picked up music in their 30s and went on to become 'pros.' I mean it is relative though. If you consider banging out 3 chord rockers and impressing drunk chicks with distorted journeyesque solos and making a 100 bucks at your local pub, pro, yes I'd say so. Blues, Rock, probably can be done...Jazz Flamenco and Classical are highly technical and demanding forms of music, I would think it would be extremely unlikely to become proficient enough in these styles late in life to be considered professional.

You have a lot to learn about music.

[whiskey02]

No matter what age you start, you've got to have remarkable natural talent to be truly great, no?

I know a woman who's daughter is in Julliard right now, she plays with Itzak Perlman when he has friends over to his home for fun. She is considered as perhaps the best violist in the world under the age of 21. I asked her mom if when she began playing "did she just have a remarkable aptitude" for music and her instrument. Her mom said "not at all, she just worked really hard".

"Whether you think you can or think you can't, either way, you're right".
Thomas A Edison

[destinytot]

I'm in my late 50s, 'semi-pro' by Monk's definition in post no. 32 and 'amateur' - as in 'one who loves' (but neither 'hobbyist' nor 'dilettante') by my own. I have an observation to contribute.

I think it takes practical wisdom to take charge of all areas of your professional musical activity. I'm not saying this is exclusive to people in later life, but it seems to me that - among older people in general - 'jazz' musicians are the ones who also have the health to enjoy it.

Speaking for myself, I find intelligent management of my emotions to be the biggest challenge. I'm convinced that this is is what creates value, and it's what I bring to the 'market place'. I'm not working on 'guitar', or 'voice' or even 'music'. I'm working on my 'self'.

Personally, I'll 'dig that ditch' - so that I can do what I want to do. I make mistakes, and I get despondent - but I've learned to bounce back quickly.

(I got to talk about it in an interview last year.)

[destinytot]

Another thought... Shortly after my 18th birthday, I saw Barney Kessel on several consecutive nights. The first night, I greeted him with a timorous "Hello, Mr Kessel". The next night, I said "Hello, sir".

But on the last night, I asked him about how do you become a professional jazz guitarist. He told me to "read Dale Carnegie and always polish your shoes".

I think I get it now.

[larry graves]

You should be able to do most things in later life, I don't know about the after life!...L..