Why You Don't Want to Be a Concert Pianist

Nasty and Tough Aspects of a Serious Classical Business Industry with No Sugarcoating.
It’s not all negative—there are many great people in the concert business who genuinely support artists. However, in this video, I choose to focus more on the problematic aspects.

00:13 Why it's so addictive despite all the challenges
01:47 It's popular to speak about Trauma nowadays (because it's very real)
03:23 Overpopulation of brilliant pianists
05:53 "One-Performance Curse"
07:31 Concert Fees Revealed
11:01 "Gatekeepers"
15:22 What can I do to increase my chances to succeed on this path?

[tfpp]

I'm 44yo and have had a career behind me in classical piano playing. Played Gaspard (complete) for my senior recital, so I know I'm at least a decent player. But the solo life did not appeal to me, I had too many other interests. I've been writing music since I was a child and have a degree in composition as well. I'm an excellent sight-reader and made a career by accompanying (instrumental and vocal), and pursued chamber music and getting jobs as staff accompanist at universities. I've always been overworked and underpaid, everywhere I've worked. Tried transitioning to faculty teaching, but everybody pigeonholed me as an "accompanist" and no one gave me a chance. Too much politics. But I am a good teacher, I know it from other successes (just not financial ones). All that to say I commiserate with you Denis. Currently, I'm a well-kept secret in my area (Los Angeles): a great player with musicality and skill, chamber musician, and teacher/composer who nobody's heard of because I've never been able to afford and agent or win any major competitions (that's by my choice though, I've always hated competing). Currently, I do a lot of "community" playing and teaching, more as a hobby, while looking for a different career now.

[pasqualeb]

There's not much more to say. Music is a passion, and as such, it doesn't mix well with financial gain. Countless hours of studying to then earn little or nothing, unlike other professions.
I believe that economically it's a failed investment. But you can't reason only in economic terms. For some people, they can't live without playing music. I think good musicians should be better protected by governments and laws, by subsidizing culture more. A long-term investment to improve society as well. Unfortunately, music is considered a consumer good and not an art, and it is treated as such, with private individuals benefiting.
You're doing a great job on YouTube and the results will show. We are millions of piano fans and quality content will be appreciated. I consider you an excellent teacher and I'm learning so much from you, even though I only play for pure passion and have another job. But I'm glad I met you. Greetings from Italy. (translated by Gemini)

[Musicforever]

From my experience in this industry while growing up in my teens (having participated in and won in up to international-level competitions), it is fundamentally built on nepotism and networking. Now, you might say that I must have taken advantage of that. No, not directly, but my piano teachers did because they were well-established in the industry. They saw my exceptional talent and worked very hard to promote me, for mutual benefit. This is one of the reasons I didn't pursue music in university or professionally, because my values don't align. Also, at the core, a significant portion of people who are non-musicians naïvely believe that all interpretation is good, but no, the real truth is all effective interpretations are good, hence why one needs to go to a school like Julliard or get a good teacher in the first place. However, very few can actually judge this with accuracy and even less with authority. This is a fundamental exploit that jury and well-established musicians use to get what they want with the people they want.

So, is there a way to get around this? Yes, for me, because I participate in a different industry and don't need to please those in power in the music industry to play what I want without stress and expectations of producing popular overdone repertoire. I can also post it all on YouTube so I don't need agents to get attention. That is what every musician ultimately wants.

So, is there a way for professional musicians to get around this entire situation? Sort of yes, but it's two-fold. First is inspiration, which means inspiring an audience to treasure what you produce either implicitly or explicitly, through education or emotional evocation. But, please for the love of God, don't make brainrot and sensationalist content as you are just ultimately contributing to the degradation of society and the trivialization of your discipline. Second is actually producing it, unique in interpretation, but obviously if everyone does this than you no longer stand out. That's partly why I play relatively obscure repertoire that is simply underappreciated and underpromoted, but not lacking in value (actually, sometimes exceeding in value than conventional repertoire). To do so means you are helping undermine the nepotism that exists in this industry because they thrive on consumer trends and want the same people doing the same repertoire over and over, quite mindlessly.

The other way is to do what I'm doing, which is have a main career other than music and do music as a hobby. You can be no less competent at music performance than anyone else by taking this approach, but it takes talent and intelligence to pull it off on your own. In both ways, you can establish an audience and be your own agent, and if you're able to convince people of your competence, then you can setup your own concerts with packed audiences without chipping away your revenue with a pathetically exploitative agent.

Hope this helps any musician who reads this.

[mitchnew]

Wonderful video ❤ I love piano so much 🎹🎹 I’m hopelessly in love with it 💖

[ocellaris]

This is a fantastic video, thanks for making it. Some of this stuff is crazy, and should make us thank those of you who do go the distance all the more 🙏 I'll not be getting through that in my lifetime 😅

[DaleHubbard]

Amazing and eye-opening video. Thank you!

[GrumpyOldEd]

Well Denis, I think you have an enormous talent and plenty of courage and generosity to put it out there for us all to enjoy. I'd like to say a big thank you to you and all the other talents in the business driven by a love of music and a need (and the courage) to communicate this talent despite the many obstacles. Lots of appreciation and admiration 👍

[TobiasTimKlingbiel]

In 2019 I attended the „International German Piano Award„ in Frankfurt am Main as a listener in the audience. I was utterly shocked. Never before had I heard such piano playing. Those pianists played extremely difficult pieces. And what shocked me, wasn’t their playing per se but the reaction it caused in me. I was more disgusted than delighted because they played beyond any musicality. It was pure technique. Every note was spot on but in such a way that it sounded very unnatural. Those pianists weren’t musicians anymore, they were athletes. I’m glad, that I’m not on their level.

[zieglerbenoit]

I can totally relate to your video. Thank you for bringing up this topic !! There are also other aspects you didn't mention: the cost of buying and maintening an decent instrument, finding a flat that can accomodate such an instrument. I'm not even talking about the problems one can face if your neighbours don't tolerate you practicing music... the list is endless. You need big money in the first place, talent, perseverance, social skills, chance, a strong charachter, dedication and so on.... Please talk about the mafia behaviours at work in competitions. It's about time this should be revealed and destroyed. Sorry for my English.

[luisfernandotapia]

Chapeau for including Claudio Martínez Mehner into thr top unknown pianists. He's one of the best pianists I've heard in my life.

[thadlabrie]

I feel we live in a world where the difficulty musicians face is vastly underestimated. You have better odds of becoming a professional athlete than a professional musician. And the latter is arguably a more strenuous pursuit by far.

[artunplugged]

If you ever get an offer to perform in Tenerife, you are cordially invited to stay in our place! We are at a walking distance from the concert hall. I mean it! 😊

[eiagmusic]

Thank you, Denis, everything you say is true. The one thing you didn't mention was the jealousy, sabotage and hate we have to deal with from other competitive musicians, especial at the lower, semi professional levels. It turns a beautiful, inspired, music-making environment very toxic! I'm not ashamed to say that I never had the nerve or thick skin to be able to deal with this, and happily ran in the other direction 🤣 Keep up the brilliant work - I love your channel ❤🎼🎹🎵

[emilyhutjes]

I am shocked, truly shocked. Our beloved Pianists who give us their talent to comfort our souls in this noisy world ! 🌷🌷🌷 (Netherlands)

[sirwan]

Just to be completely frank and corporate-like in my response, I too would be pissed for only getting 100 EUROS to play 80 minutes of very challenging music.

Been around the circuit of competitions in my area, never saw the appeal to ever go international because I've always been too practically-minded to take that MASSIVE risk/gamble in said competitions -- you meet some people with very florid/detached (can be good sometimes, we operate in organised chaos) personalities/motivations and some (thankfully not all) people who believe that their taste is superior to yours or that they simply are better. I'm not justifying that as a universal experience, but you get the point.

I feel very akin to a fellow commentor here, who lives in the US. I live in the UK, and I'm currently in the process of gathering/creating work in an area that is in desperate need of the sort of music we pianists hanker to get out there. Time is valuable, and so is the passion that resides within the fabric of your soul, I'll never allow myself to taint my own even further with competitions or politics, just music and the ever-so-easy ability to share it. I've done my fair share of 'Mt. Everests' (maybe not extraordinarily well, but I'd say pretty decent for someone who started at 15) and I feel far more fulfilment with playing with fellow music-makers, choirs, you name it, than to be in the constant state of flux. It's not easy, but I feel it's less in terms of sacrifice, and I'm happy with that!

Nota Bene: What Denis says about generating your own work, relying on yourself and watching your own back, is so very important. However, another thing I want to stress is communal support. Support in the sense that you start small, supporting fellow musicians and raising awareness and initiative for those who are just as eager to get started, build healthy and honest relationships. If you are going to be in the world that juggles both art and business, honesty goes a long way and costs nothing but a false sense of pride. Get out there and show people what you can do, whether it's one or two people in a church or a hall filled with eager listeners, it will make someone else's day a bit brighter.

[frankD.baere-orchestralmockups]

I really enjoy playing music, but I hate being on stage. 😒

[tomarmstrong]

I never thought it would be any different. I am sure it is very similar to high-flying sportsmen and women, actors, artists, writers, and so on.

[yvonnedyor]

Oh my god, as a former dancer, now choreographer and currently studying to become an opera director I can relate to this so much in the stage departmenrt When you mentioned the nightmares of being unprepared for a the competition, the mental side, the money....

[DarjanBar]

the more spiritual the undertaking, the less the pay in money, yet the more in currency of the spirit (profound meaning).
I admire your strategy of carving your own way. The gatekeeping is really dehumanizing, and keeps the unique artists out, lets the similar sounding more "safe" ones in.
Classical music looses appeal, when we keep hearing "correct" interpretations of long ago dead composers.
I really think so many artists with a special own touch are not known because of gatekeepers.

[antoniomaccagnan]

I'm a screenwriter, and most of what you said applies to my profession too. And now I'm learning to play the piano... mmm I'm starting to see a pattern here.