Image: tochis / flickr

10 August 2011Dodgy preconceptions make it harder to earn a living in the live music business, writes Kim Salmon in The Age..

When I began working as a musician in Fremantle some 35 years ago, I earned around $600 per week. I had a regular gig and it was ongoing. Nowadays I'd think myself very lucky to make that sort of wage playing music. It's usually much less. And compared to many musicians, I'm doing very well.

Last year in Melbourne, the city's entire live music industry rallied to get the Victorian government to recognise the industry's cultural and economic contribution to the state.

This town's reputation as the best live music scene in the country was trumpeted proudly throughout the media. Much was made of a loved pub, the Tote, being forced to close as a live music venue thanks to restrictive licensing laws. It became the symbol of the struggle to maintain a vibrant music scene in a heartless environment of profiteers, bureaucrats and dollar-driven decisions.

Thanks, however, to the industry figures and musos who took part in the rally, public awareness of the importance of the industry grew and became something that government would notice. Thanks to the rally, the Tote reopened as a music venue just a few months after its high-profile closure. It was considered a victory for live music in this state.

And, one year after the Tote's historic reopening, what of the musicians who create this live music so cherished by the state? Are they able to get a guaranteed fee for playing in this victorious, symbolic pub?

Err, actually … no.

Why is it that after dedicating my life to playing music, I now earn less than ever?

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Related report: The economic, social and cultural contribution of venue based live music in Victoria

Photo: tochis / flickr