Musicians and Singers

Play one or more musical instruments or sing. May perform on stage, for broadcasting, or for sound or video recording.

Also Known As:

Choir Member Chorister Gospel Singer Musician Opera Singer Orchestra Musician Percussionist Singer Violinist Vocalist

Wages

Hourly wages for Musicians and Singers in United States

Job Outlook Below Average

New job opportunities are less likely in the future

United States 2034 Projected Employment

171,600

1% Change From 2024

Explore Musicians and Singers video

Tasks you might complete in a day.

Transpose music to alternate keys, or to fit individual styles or purposes.
Collaborate with a manager or agent who handles administrative details, finds work, and negotiates contracts.
Research particular roles to find out more about a character, or the time and place in which a piece is set.
Sing as a soloist or as a member of a vocal group.
Perform before live audiences in concerts, recitals, educational presentations, and other social gatherings.
Teach music for specific instruments.
Compose songs or create vocal arrangements.
Interpret or modify music, applying knowledge of harmony, melody, rhythm, and voice production to individualize presentations and maintain audience interest.
Seek out and learn new music suitable for live performance or recording.
Improvise music during performances.
Promote their own or their group's music by participating in media interviews and other activities.
Provide the musical background for live shows, such as ballets, operas, musical theatre, and cabarets.
Audition for orchestras, bands, or other musical groups.
Play musical instruments as soloists, or as members or guest artists of musical groups such as orchestras, ensembles, or bands.
Make or participate in recordings in music studios.
Practice singing exercises and study with vocal coaches to develop voice and skills and to rehearse for upcoming roles.
Observe choral leaders or prompters for cues or directions in vocal presentation.
Memorize musical selections and routines, or sing following printed text, musical notation, or customer instructions.
Sight-read musical parts during rehearsals.
Direct bands or orchestras.
Arrange and edit music to fit style and purpose.
Sing a cappella or with musical accompaniment.
Listen to recordings to master pieces or to maintain and improve skills.
Play from memory or by following scores.
Make or participate in recordings.
Specialize in playing a specific family of instruments or a particular type of music.
Learn acting, dancing, and other skills required for dramatic singing roles.

Subject areas you may need to master.

Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

Strengths you may need in this role.

Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Speaking - Talking to others.
Programming - Writing computer programs.
Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.