gigglemusic's score: Germany 636 - 67 England

When it comes to jobs for professional musicians, Germany wins emphatically (note that by ‘England’ (above) I mean the ‘United Kingdom’). At gigglemusic we consolidate and publish job opportunities for classical musicians, taking data from a number of different websites. Analyzing the 1,600 jobs we’ve posted over the last eight months, the league table, by country, looks like this:
Graph of jobs by country, listed on gigglemusic

Congratulations to Germany, though every professional and aspiring professional musician already knows that the greatest number of, and some of the best-paying, playing opportunities are to be found in Germany. 

The numbers probably wouldn’t survive forensic scrutiny, but I’d like to think they’re statistically suggestive if not statistically significant. They’re probably Eurocentric, for a start, reflecting the way jobs are advertised and sought for in Europe. They include internships and academy positions (more on that soon). And the pandemic has interrupted our musical lives in different ways and at different times in each country. 

Even so, you have to admit that Germany shows impressive form. 

But then again…..you might want to look at the same data from a different perspective. Adjusted for population, for example:

jobs for classical musicians listed on gigglemusic, by country adjusted for population

Now Switzerland triumphs. And Lithuania and the Czech Republic do well.

Looking at the numbers adjusted for GDP (at Purchasing Power Parity) – and this must be the fairest measure:

jobs for classical musicians by country and its gdp on gigglemusic

The differences remain large, but they’ve evened out a little. The winners are the same lot, even so, and the UK, the USA and Spain, musically highly cultivated nations, don’t do well. [In the ideal world, If all were equally devoted to classical music, the graph might show no geographical decline.] 

So what should we conclude? 

That, for a start, assuming you’re not Swiss or German, you should cajole your government into spending more on music. But if you can’t wait that long (you really can’t), get a ticket for, or ride your bike to, Central Europe.

Opportunities on gigglemusic

You can find nearly 450 professional opportunities on gigglemusic today. Do let us know (info@gigglemusic.net) if there are jobs websites you think we might be missing – Asian, African and South American particularly welcome. And don’t forget that you can post your own opportunities on gigglemusic, whether professional or amateur, personal or group-based (chamber group, choir, orchestra, etc.). I’m still looking for an amateur bassoonist and a tolerant string quartet in Prague.

Events on gigglemusic

We’re adding more and more events to gigglemusic as the pandemic recedes (at least in some parts of the world) and as venues open up. Use the app to search for events near you, filtering by event type, title, composer, and other options.

Add your own events, whether personal or group-based, update your gigglemusic diary and use gigglemusic to invite your friends to your own events and others’.

 

You’ll find up-to-date schedules for:

Royal Albert Hall, London

Zurich Opera House

Victoria Hall, Geneva

Grand Theatre, Geneva

City Recital Hall, Sydney

The Sage, Newcastle

Lincoln Center, New York

Auckland Town Hall

Palau de la Música, Barcelona

Auditorio Nacional, Madrid

Teatro Real, Madrid

Hong Kong City Hall

Sydney Opera House

Kings Place, London

The London Coliseum

The Royal Opera House, London

Symphony Hall, Birmingham

Wigmore Hall, London

Bayreuth, Germany

Glyndebourne, Sussex

St Martin-in-the-Fields, London

St James’s, Piccadilly

New National Theatre, Tokyo

Leipzig Opera

1901 Arts Club, London

Bampton Opera

Cadogan Hall, London

Bridgewater Hall, Manchester

St John’s, Smith Square, London

Purcell Room, Southbank, London

Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank, London

Royal Festival Hall, Southbank, London

St Ann’s, Manchester

State Opera, Vienna

West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge

Opera Holland Park, London

Sadler’s Wells, London

Teatro de la Maestranza, Seville

Palacio Euskeldana

Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia, Valencia

L’Auditori, Barcelona

Volksoper, Vienna

Opera Graz

Perth Concert Hall, Western Australia

Adelaide Festival

Atlanta Opera

Victoria Theatre, Singapore

Arena di Verona

Garsington Opera

Grange Park Opera

Buxton Festival

Auditorio Manuel de Falla, Granada

Teatro Zarzuela, Madrid

Teatro Monumental, Madrid

Snape Maltings

Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona

Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon

Longborough Opera

Nevill Holt Opera

Waterperry Opera

Opera North

Lichfield Festival

Hertfordshire Festival

Bergen Festival

Bath Festival

The English Music Festival

Adam Bager - Founder, gigglemusic

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