Robert Chen

Morden struggles of Classical Music industry

and music education system

Introduction
In this fast-paced modern society, the music industry has rapidly expanded to countless

branches due to technologies and digitization, even classical music received new generations of

listeners. But that doesn’t represent any increase in salary for employees in the classical music

field, nor optimized funding and resources to all higher level music educations. Due to these

reasons, the industry economy struggles to climb up. When an orchestra has trouble filling all

the seats, college students receive less funding than they deserve, and new graduates struggle

to find recognition, these conditions cause a portion of music students to drop out of their majors

or fear starting their careers. As a result, this art that existed for hundreds of years will slowly

fade out of modern society.

Why is Classical music so important?

Historically

The history of music contains 6 stages, although the creation of instruments and music theories

mostly happened in the early stage, the classical and romantic eras influenced the modern

music industry the most. Classical music can be defined as the period between 1750 to 1820

which was expanded based on the Baroque period and developed performing styles such as

1 “Musical Periods: The History of Classical Music.” 2018. Musicnotes.com.

https://www.musicnotes.com/blog/musical-periods-the-history-of-classical-music/.
sonata (piano), concerto (solo instrument with the orchestra), symphony (entire orchestra), trio,

and quartet.2 This period not only innovated many new styles that were heavily included in later

periods but also completed the fundamental setup of an orchestra, which paved the way for the

Romantic era. The Romantic era raised classical music to its peak, music from this era was

structured full of emotion and expression. To achieve storytelling songs, much more intensive

playing techniques and romantic vibrato are innovated, and every composition gains its voice

and soul. Some of the greatest composers made their name during this period: Beethoven

engraved the famous 9 symphonies, Tchaikovsky forged the best violin concerto of all time,

Chopin and Lizst reframed piano playing style, Devork merged jazz elements for the first time…

Every note reflects the shining pride of classical music, constructing a bridge between classical

to other instrumental styles that exist today.

Innovatively

Although classical music isn’t appreciated by everyone, many modern musics were inspired by

the classical or even sampled a passage. Pachelbel’s Canon in D contained a unique chord that

many modern musicians took advantage of, the most famous one may be Memories by Maroon

5. Maroon composed this song with identical chord progressions and fragments of melodic lines

from Violin 1 parts in the original pieces, then decorated with a cheering guitar line.3 For another

example, famous movie soundtrack creator John Williams was accused of plagiarizing one of

Gustav Holast’s famous movements “Mars” from the symphony “Planets”. After comparing

soundtracks to each other, many discovered Star Wars theme song has a similar rhythm with

the same notes and frequency.4 But not all inspiration is hidden, some producer includes an

original sample and spice it up. Korean girl group, Black Pink, who owns over 100 million

2Ibid
3 Roberts, Maddy S. 2022. “17 iconic pop songs you didn't know were directly inspired by classical
music.”
https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/pop-songs-sample-based-on-classical-music/.
4 Ibid
followers across the world published a song named “Shut Down” that contains a sample from La

Campanella composed by Niccolò Paganini.5 The violin solo not only carries out the intense

mood but also maximizes the darkness and mysterious feeling of Black Pink. These examples

prove classical music not only stands in its category but is also heavily engaged in other

branches of music.

Psychologically

Classical music can help concentrate on particular tasks, reduce stress, and possibly enhance

problem-solving skills. Srini Pillay, Harvard psychiatrist, and brain researcher claimed music

affects the human brain because the focus centers are directly connected to the emotion

process area, so music that can connect your emotions but won’t cause volatility such as

instrumentals may increase concentration.6 Moreover, listening to slow-tempo, low-range

melodies can drop heart rate and cortisol levels which release stress or anxiety. Research

experimented with 120 subjects, comparing the heart rate before and after listening to Mozart's

Symphony No.40 and ABBA, result indicates there is a significant decline in heart rate for

Mozart listeners only.7 After the heart rate settles in a low frequency, relaxation occurs to

emancipate negative thoughts.

5 “BLACKPINK’s Upcoming Title Track ‘Shut Down’ Is Sampled from One of the Most Famous Pieces in
Classical Music.” 2022. Koreaboo. September 8, 2022. https://www.koreaboo.com/stories/blackpink-shut-
title-track-sampled-famous-classical-history-paganini-la-campanella/.
6 “The Cardiovascular Effect of Musical Genres - PMC.” n.d. NCBI. Accessed April 10, 2024.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4906829/.
7 “I'm a Harvard neuroscientist. Here's the No. 1 music I listen to when I need to focus—it's not classical.”
2023. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/06/20/harvard-brain-expert-shares-best-type-of-music-for-
focus-and-concentration.html.
Current condition of the industry

Main financial income

During 2021, the entire music market was valued at 11.86 billion dollars in total dominated by

over 65 percent of the live events, and sales of recordings, CDs, and merchandise make up the

rest. Under such a wealthy market, classical music only gained 140.8 million as yearly revenue.9

Luckily, performers involved in the orchestra were provided a stable income from the orchestra

itself. On average, musicians who graduated with a master's degree receive 20000 to 40000 as

a yearly salary. After a few years, many can perform in the bigger orchestra state orchestra, or

national performance groups which increases the salary from 60000 to 80000 for outside

players and 80000 to 100000 for principles and leaders.10 But that isn’t the case for everyone,

8 “Traditional Music Market Size & Share Report, 2028.” n.d. Www.grandviewresearch.com.
https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/traditional-music-market-report.
9 Ibid
10 “2024 Best Music Master’s Degree Schools.” n.d. Www.collegefactual.com.
https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/visual-and-performing-arts/music/rankings/best-graduate-
schools/masters-degrees/.
many solo players have to open the market and put their names out there to sell tickets to make

a living. During the early session of their career, soloists often receive 20000 to 30000 for

payments but are often used to cover travel expenses, the salaries are extremely sensitive to

past experience and ensembles the soloist worked with. However, becoming a world famous

instrument performer doesn’t equivalent to getting wealthy. Even with the most well-known

classical musician today, Yoyo Ma, his 1st class ticket in New York Carnegie Hall was priced at

around 200 dollars. Compared to pop music artist, Tyler Swift, who charges over 1000 dollars

on average for every back-row seat, classical performers are dramatically undervalued.

Cost to become a classical musician

Normally, each classical musician would expected to master their musical skills, which means a

performing certificate is required. To achieve such accomplishment, students must complete

their master's degrees. Due to that reason, many colleges own a master's program for music,

and around 233 colleges nationally include a master's music program.11 Among such education

institutions, the cost of each ranges from 11.900 to 25,900 yearly for master programs and

11 “2024 Best Music Master’s Degree Schools.” n.d. Www.collegefactual.com. Accessed April 15, 2024.
https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/visual-and-performing-arts/music/rankings/best-graduate-
schools/masters-degrees/.
10,900 to 24,500 for undergraduates depending on in-state or out-of-state students.12 But in

cases of top private music schools such as Julian or Berklee, average expenses including dorm,

meal plan, and books can rise to 86000 yearly.13 Moreover, these expenses for colleges don’t

cover any necessary investments for instruments or early education. For example, the violin is

the most popular classical instrument among the string family, and the cost of becoming a

violinist pre-college is jaw-dropping. On average, a beginner violin costs around 500 dollars

without considering an extra fee for a rosin, bow, shoulder rest, and case. If everything goes

smoothly, an update on the instrument would be critical. An intermediate violin for students to

transition to the professional level is worth 1000 to 2000 2,000, and any high-level violin can be

in the range of 5000 to 50000.14 But just a violin can’t make a child into a musician, mentors are

great initiators to set up correct concepts and plant passions. To attend private lessons from

professional tutors, 100-150 dollars weekly fee with 200 dollars of music fee are must for

children 5-18 years old. Occasionally, some students may receive the blessing for a master

class with world-famous musicians or a special music program held by authorized music

colleges, which varies from 2000 to 10000 dollars per lesson.15 Although each master class

demands a high cost, many students find their characteristics and specialties under the

guidance of these great minds in music, which others may take years to achieve.

Competitive Scholarships

Scholarships are usually awarded to students who owns an outstanding performance on special

fields, typically the measurements of such funding are based on academic achievements,

12 “2024 Music Program Tuition.” n.d. College Tuition Compare. Accessed April 15, 2024.
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/majors/50.0901/music/.
13 “Tuition, Fees, and Expenses at the Juilliard School.” 2018. Juilliard.edu. 2018.
https://www.juilliard.edu/campus-life/tuition-financial-aid/tuition-fees-and-expenses.
14 Armin. 2022. “How Much Does a Violin Cost? - Overview of Violin Prices.” Violinspiration. September
21, 2022. https://violinspiration.com/violin-cost/#:~:text=A%20good%20violin%20for%20a%20beginner
%20costs%20about.
15 Ibid
specialty accomplishments, or creative writing. On the other hand, music scholarships varius

from others due to audition, although more and more collleges are opent to virtual auditions

since covid, they still require months to prepare an application for every students. In result, each

student only able to apply to 1-2 scholarship with the risk of losing them to other contesters.

According to authtrozied music organziation, there are total of 365,000 students enrolled in

music pogram in higher education insistudes where only 11,000 scholarships are awarded

towards music majors.16 Under such competiativness, rewards such as Daviad Fellow

Scholoarship that covers more then 10,000 dollars would attract countless applicants, but in the

end, only a handful of them can leave this brutal contest with a smile, rest of the group will

receive nothing after months of practicing.17

Policy

Divided Funding

To solve the dilemma of financial issues with providing higher education in music, dividing the

resources and funding between communities is essential. In the industry of classical music,

performing halls and major festivals are in favor of graduates from high-level private schools

such as Julian, Curtius, Berkless, and a handful of others. In return, many talented musicians

from public colleges face struggles to promote them, which causes a further lack of funding and

donations to their schools. In the year 2023, Berklee College of Music awarded more then 115

million dollars to students in the format of Scholarships and grants, more than 40 percent of

students are covered with intuitional aid with an average of 40 percent of tuition.18 In contrast,

Michigan State University College of Music only can release in total of 2000 dollars at maximum

16 “Facts and Figures - Revised January 2015.pages.” n.d. College Music Society. Accessed April 15, 2024.
https://www.music.org/pdf/mihe/facts.pdf.
17 “Music Scholarships.” n.d. Scholarships.com. Accessed April 15, 2024. https://www.scholarships.com/financial-
aid/college-scholarships/scholarships-by-major/music-scholarships/.
18 “Scholarships | Berklee.” n.d. Www.berklee.edu. https://www.berklee.edu/scholarships.
for students in need.19 To avoid this unbalanced treatment, promoting donations and

investments towards students urgent for money instead of purely superior musically is a must.

Adding financial confirmation with a W-2 chart or other government information that provides

their current economic condition during the application session would highlight students' urgent

for money, then following the normal procedure of auditions and interviews creates an

environment that not only keeps competition to motivate students but also contributes a chance

to students require financial help. Although this policy may solve many problems, it owns down

sides itself. First, it is hard to set a balance when it comes to valuing between music skills and

financial condition, focusing on either side causes controversial arguments in the community.

Providing more resources to students in need doesn’t equal denying a more gifted student a

scholarship, but balancing between sides may cause the process to extend but still can’t

guarantee no bias was inivoled in decisions have made. Next, implication for such policy involve

retreating funding back from insitituions that benefited for years. Even only protion of fundings

are distributed to others, these current stakeholders still require to cut back on their expenses,

which can ultimately lead to lay back employees and inflating tuitions for future generations.

Conclusion
In conclusion, classical music represents a pillar of cultural heritage, enriching society by its

compositions and influence. Inspired generations of artists and captivated audiences

historically, psychologically, and innovatively. However the industry faces economic struggles

that cause a decline in salaries, and inequality in resource distribution in the higher education

system. By embracing a policy that prioritizes students in poor financial situations, the classical

music education system becomes a supportive environment that may distribute funding for

19 2024. Msu.edu. 2024. https://www.music.msu.edu/information-for-students/for-graduate-students/

funding.
students in need. But such a policy also creates difficulty for students who aren’t in financial

struggle, the real implication will cause arguments between students and institutions.