Playing music is not all play....

Saxophonist Greg Vail Blog

Playing music is not all play....

A DAY IN A LIFE - that is the concept of this blog - What does a sax player / musician do in their job?? So few understand and I decided to spill the beans years ago when I started this blob. FYI - A DAY IN A LIFE is the starting lyrics for a song. A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A FOOL......
This is the time in my life that I feel the fool..... kinda.

I am in the middle of bookkeeping hell this month and will be pretty MIA until I can get 2010 books ready for the tax lady. The double extension date is OCT 15th for those that don't know when most of my world files their taxes.

The artistic folks out there do not tend to excel at bookkeeping. Sad but true.

I am not having fun but doing my best to get everything done and done correctly.

As a musician - I have to hustle to find and book my jobs.
Then I have to prepare and play those jobs well to get any repeat bookings.
Then I have to attempt to keep some of the money myself, tracking expenses and keeping the business straight.

I feel like I work 3 times for every dollar earned. And at today's rates, we are stuck with gigs paying less than they did when I was in college! Forget about the inflation and cost of living. Expenses run nearly double what they were 25 years ago and pay runs flat and or less than it was then. Overall, live venues are nearly gone and CD music is mostly traded or outright stolen.

SO - here I sit trying to work for 2010's lame bread, for the third time so I can continue to make less money after bills and expenses - AND WHY?

I actually love what I do - well the second part of the 3. It is called PLAYING MUSIC! I love the few hours a week I actually get to play a saxophone and contribute to the good on this planet. You might think I am nuts but I can imagine no other option.

Back to my cave. I have 1000 receipts to separate and input into a ledger with fingers crossed that I don't set off some alarm and get audited for not doing good enough.....

Can't wait for the minutes with a sax in my hand later tonight