A career in music...

Figures from the BPI (the British Recorded Music Industry, formerly the British Phonographic Industry) suggest that there are around 125,000 people working in the recorded music industry in the UK.

More recent research by Creative and Cultural Skills, the sector skills council for the creative industries, shows that there are more than 17,000 music businesses in Britain. Of these, over a quarter (27 per cent) are London-based. Fourteen per cent are located in the south-east of England and a similar proportion in the south-west.

Only four per cent of businesses in the music industry employ more than 20 people, meaning that enterprises in the sector are mostly small or medium-sized. This can make it easier to progress professionally as workers take on a vast share of responsibility fairly early in their career.

Types of jobs

Careers in music are not limited to playing an instrument or composing music. There are many opportunities for song writers, recorders, studio managers, producers, sound engineers and other technical experts, marketers, distributors and promoters in the industry.

As a result, the sector is open to people of all backgrounds with different kinds of professional experience – making it an accessible industry that offers good prospects for workers with transferable skills.

The Musicians' Union represents the interests of almost 32,000 people working in all sectors of the industry and provides them with information and advice on different aspects of the business.

John Smith, general secretary of the organisation, says: 'The Musicians' Union has specialist full-time officials available to immediately tackle the issues raised by musicians working in the live arena, the recording studio, or when writing and composing.

'Such issues can range from copyright protection to valuable contractual advice or from the recovery of unpaid fees to crucial work in health and safety.'

Copyright issues

In recent years, issues of music copyright have come to the fore. As the internet continues to widen the possibility of music-sharing, the industry is becoming increasingly concerned that workers in the sector will begin to gradually lose out on their earnings.

However, steps are being taken to ease these worries. One is the recent publication of the Digital Britain report which aims to establish a clear strategy on how music and other creative content like film and TV can prosper in the digital age and how the copyright of creators can be protected.

Another positive step is culture secretary Andy Burnham's announcement last year that the government was considering extending copyright of performers. Under current intellectual property law, artists who make a record or perform a piece of work that has been composed by someone else will have their work copyrighted for 50 years.

Musicians have been calling for a 45-year extension to the term, which has been backed by the European Union. Although the British government is opposed to 95 years of copyright, it will consider extending the term to 70 years.

Mr Burnham said in a speech in November 2008: 'Copyright underpins the music business - and all our creative industries - and the right response when it's put under pressure is not to abandon a system as outdated, but to make it work better.

'There is a moral case for performers benefiting from their work throughout their entire lifetime. That is why I have been working with … the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills to consider the arguments for an extension of copyright term for performers from the current 50 years.'

Entry to the sector

Beginning a career in music involves a lot of perseverance and patience as there are more people looking for jobs than there are vacancies. Aspiring musicians, even those with qualifications, may need to spend long periods doing unpaid or low paid work to break into the industry.

'But there are career opportunities all the same, more than ever before; the youth market drives today's music industry. So record companies are always looking for bright young newcomers,' the BPI notes.

Experience and practical skills are essential in the sector and most employers favour these qualities when recruiting people for music jobs. Qualifications are also highly valued, especially if they involve some kind of work-based training and not just theoretical knowledge.

Many individuals take up learning an instrument while they are growing up. Most schools in the UK have music lessons as part of the curriculum and a number of pupils also attend independent after-school classes. 

Several colleges, universities and training providers offer people interested in careers in music a number of courses to aid the skills they have picked up at younger ages. However, careers in the industry are not only open to young people starting out but also for older music-lovers planning a career change.