Musician
Musicians write, arrange and perform music for audiences, recordings or other people's projects, usually piecing together a living from several of these at once.
- Median salary
- $91,800
4.3%vs last year, before tax
- People employed
- 4,900
2.1%vs last year
- Projected growth
- +11%
to 2035
- AI exposure*
- Low
- automation risk
- Average hours
- 44/wk
+4h vs all jobs
- Shortage status
- Not in shortage
national
Musicians work as soloists, in bands or ensembles, or as session players brought in for someone else's recording or show. The mix of composing, rehearsing, performing and recording varies by genre and setting, and most musicians combine performing with teaching, session work or production to keep income steady through quiet periods. Venues range from pubs and function rooms to concert halls, studios and schools.
How much do musicians earn?
The median full-time salary for a musician is $91,800 per annum, before tax, up $19,300 since 2018.
Pay varies more with how the work is booked than with seniority: a salaried orchestral position under an enterprise agreement is steady, while freelance earnings come gig by gig, with session fees, function bookings, teaching and royalties each contributing something. Awards and enterprise agreements set minimums for some orchestral and teaching work, but fees for casual gigs and functions are usually negotiated per booking. Steady teaching is often what makes a performing career financially workable.
What does a musician do day to day?
The list below is what fills most weeks; the exact mix shifts with seniority and whatever stage the current work is at.
- Practising alone most days on scales, repertoire and technique, which is the part of the job audiences never see
- Rehearsing with a band or ensemble until the timing and dynamics lock in
- Playing sets in rooms with different acoustics, gear and crowd energy, from a pub corner to a concert hall
- Recording parts in a studio or at home and sending them to a producer, a bandmate or a client
- Setting up and packing down equipment, then teaching lessons or picking up session work to even out income between gigs
What skills do musicians need?
Employers look for creative software production, content creation and writing, backed by Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) fluency and strong written communication.
Specialist skills
- Creative software production
- Content creation and writing
Software and tools
- Digital Audio Workstation (DAW)
- Sheet music notation software
- Mixing and mastering software
- Instrument amplification equipment
- Video recording and editing software
General skills
- Written communication
- Presenting and data storytelling
- Problem solving
- Attention to detail
- Customer service
Is the job growing?
About 4,900 people work as musicians in Australia, and employment is projected to grow 11% over the decade to 2035. That's healthy, above-average growth, and the role should stay in solid demand.
How do you become a musician?
Here's the path most musicians take, step by step.
- 1Start lessons on an instrument or voice
Weekly lessons build technique, reading and ear training, and they are the usual starting point whether or not you go on to formal study. Most musicians begin in their teens and keep lessons going for years.
- 2Decide whether formal study is worth it
A Bachelor of Music at a university or conservatorium, or a diploma through TAFE, covers theory, history and ensemble work and builds a network of players and teachers. Conservatorium entry is usually by audition, and orchestral and classical work expects the credential more often than rock or electronic music does.
- 3Play in public as much as you can
Open mics, community bands, function gigs and support slots are how a musician builds a reputation and a list of people who will call them for paid work. Recording a few well-produced tracks gives venues, agents and collaborators something to hear.
- 4Get the business side in order
An ABN, invoices, written terms for function and session work, super and tax set aside from freelance income, and a clear idea of what a gig is worth. Agents and booking platforms take a cut, so knowing the going rate matters.
- 5Add a second income stream
Teaching, session work, arranging, production and corporate or events work even out the quiet months, and many musicians teach privately while they perform. Holding several of these at once is normal rather than a fallback.
Ready to apply as a musician?
Whether you're working toward becoming a musician or already are one and want a hand with the next step (sharpening your resume for ATS screening, tightening your cover letter, or knowing what you'll actually be asked at interview), here are examples grounded in this specific role, not generic templates.
What jobs can a musician move to?
Moving into Music Teacher typically comes with the biggest pay rise, worth $39,100 a year more on average.
| Move to | Typical pay change | Overlap | Retraining |
|---|---|---|---|
| Music Teacher Musicians bring performance skill and repertoire knowledge, though school music teaching requires a teaching qualification.Known move | +$39,100 | 17% | requalify |
| Tutor Musicians bring instrumental and theory knowledge to tutoring, though formal tutoring may need an education support qualification.Known move | +$39,100 | 5% | reskill |
| Music Director Musicians bring ensemble awareness and arranging skill, stepping into musical direction with leadership and conducting experience. | −$19,000 | 24% | reskill |
| Composer Musicians bring notation and arrangement skills to composing, developing original work for performance and media. | −$21,600 | 50% | short course |
| Singer Musicians bring stagecraft and musicality to vocal performance, extending into singing with existing instrumental background. | −$29,400 | 83% | minimal |
Moves are chosen from Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility, which follows income tax records between 2011-12 and 2020-21, together with entry requirements and skill overlap. A known move is one people were seen making in that data. Pay change compares median full-time pay for the two roles.
Who works as a musician?
The typical musician is 39 years old; 71% are men, 30% work full-time, and full-timers average 44 hours a week.
- 39
- Median age
- 29%
- Female share
- 30%
- Full-time
- +4h
- vs all-jobs avg
What's it like being a musician?
The work is more solitary and more administrative than it looks from the audience: long stretches of practice, arranging, booking and invoicing sit behind a two-hour set. Income arrives unevenly, so a musician's week is usually a mix of playing, teaching and finding the next booking, and the people who stay with it tend to be comfortable with that rhythm and with improving slowly over years.
What people like
- Playing live with other musicians. When an ensemble locks in, the timing and the response from the room are the thing most musicians keep chasing. It is also the part no amount of practice at home can reproduce.
- There is no ceiling on the craft. Repertoire, technique and ears keep developing for as long as you keep working at them, so the job does not get stale in the way some do. Plenty of musicians are still improving in their sixties.
- No two weeks look the same. A pub gig, a recording session, a school workshop and a wedding can all fall in the same month, and each calls on a different set of skills. That variety suits people who dislike routine.
- Making something that did not exist before. Writing a tune or hearing your own arrangement played by other people is a particular satisfaction, and it is often what keeps musicians going through the unpaid parts of the job.
What people find hard
- Income arrives unevenly. Festival season, the pre-Christmas function rush and school terms all crowd work into certain months, and January can be close to empty. Budgeting around that takes discipline when the money is coming in.
- A lot of the work is unpaid. Booking gigs, chasing invoices, promoting shows and keeping social media alive can take as many hours as the playing does. None of it pays by itself.
- Repeat sets and rough rooms. Cover and function work means playing the same songs to a room with poor sound and a late load-out, sometimes several nights in a row. It pays, but it is rarely the reason anyone took up an instrument.
- The body and ears take a toll. Hearing, wrists, voice and back all carry the cost of hours of playing, late nights and long drives between venues. Hearing protection and warm-ups are practical necessities rather than optional extras.
Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.
Which industries employ musicians?
Arts and Recreation Services employs the largest share of musicians, followed by Education and Training.
Top employing industries
- 1Arts and Recreation Services
- 2Education and Training
- 3Public Administration and Safety
Ranked by employment share; the source doesn't publish an exact percentage per industry.
| Bachelor degree | 35% | |
|---|---|---|
| Year 12 or below | 28.7% | |
| Postgraduate | 16% | |
| Diploma / Advanced Diploma | 10.6% | |
| Certificate III/IV | 6.7% |
Will AI replace musicians?
This is a low-exposure role: AI can generate a melody, clean up a take or master a track, but it cannot stand in for a musician in a room with an audience or a band. Software is already part of the job, from notation and DAW work to pitch correction and stem separation, and what it changes is how music is recorded, edited and delivered rather than who plays it live.
Share of typical working time by exposure level
- Live performancePlaying to a room, reading the crowd and locking in with other players is physical, unrepeatable work that no software does for you.35%low
- Rehearsal and practiceLearning parts, building technique and shaping arrangements by ear with other musicians happens away from a screen and depends on the players in the room.25%low
- Recording and editing takesPitch correction, noise removal and stem separation now handle much of the tidying that used to be done by hand, though the playing and the judgement about what sounds right are still the musician's.25%moderate
- Arranging, notation and adminNotation software and generative tools can produce a chord chart or a rough demo in minutes, which saves time on a first sketch but not on the decisions that follow.15%moderate
Common questions about becoming a musician
Straight answers to the questions people ask most.
How much do musicians earn?
Musicians earn a median of $91,800 per annum, before tax, for full-time work. Salaried orchestral players under enterprise agreements sit at the steadier end, while freelance earnings depend on how much session, function and teaching work can be booked in a year, which is what moves the figure most.
How do you become a musician?
There is no single entry route: most musicians start with private lessons, then build a performance record through gigs, ensembles and recordings. Formal study at a university, conservatorium or TAFE develops technique, theory and contacts, and around 35% of working musicians hold a Bachelor degree, but plenty work without one. Auditions, demos and referrals decide most of the paid work.
Are musicians in demand in Australia?
About 4,900 people work as musicians in Australia and they are currently not in shortage, with employment projected to grow 11% over the decade to 2035. Work is found through venues, teaching, agents and word of mouth rather than advertised vacancies, so contacts and repeat bookings matter more than applications.
Will AI replace musicians?
AI can generate music, separate stems and tidy up a recording, but the exposure for this role is low because so much of the work is live, collaborative and tied to a particular player in a room. The tools are already useful for sketching arrangements, editing takes and building demos faster, which changes how music is made rather than whether it is played.
What else can musicians move into?
Music teaching is the steadiest move: music teachers earn $39,100 more than musicians, and the work builds on the same repertoire and theory, though school positions need a teaching qualification. A move into singing or composing needs less retraining because much of the skill carries across, with 83% overlap for singing and 50% for composing. Many musicians also run their own teaching studio or band as a business, which is often where earnings grow.
How do musicians make a steady income?
Most patch together several streams: gig fees, session work, teaching, royalties and events or corporate bookings. Teaching tends to be steadier because it is booked in advance and paid by the hour, which is why it features so heavily in the working lives of performers.
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