<p>WOW. Congratualtions! Hope you celebrate in style!</p>
<p>Congratulations to the WHOLE family! Lorelei</p>
<p>Excellent news - congratulations to all.</p>
<p>That's Fantastic!
As you know, he already has a great following amongst some adult chamber musicians. Will he still do other auditions?</p>
<p>Wonderful news, congratulations. Along with the paycheck he gets that all important experience, resume listing, and confidence boost. Don't know which is most critical!</p>
<p>I'll bet you're flying high, as well. So nice to see some light at the end of the tunnel!</p>
<p>My thanks to all who posted.</p>
<p>We're not talking Vienna, Cleveland or NY Phil here... a level or three up from Podunk Community Orchestra is more like it. ;)</p>
<p>The pay is a pittance, it's an hour and a half each way travel time. But it does allow him to maintain his main source of income with the rental car company, to teach studio in two different venues without schedule conflicts because of rehearals and performances, and broadens his base of contacts It also further serves to keep his chops up for grad school auditions. </p>
<p>He will continue to take additional regional auditions as openings occur. He currently has two more scheduled.</p>
<p>He feels elated and vindicated, and had planned to spend this weekend in Hartford with his Phi Mu Alpha buddies still in school. This at least gives them a valid reason to party (probably harder than I really want to know).</p>
<p>Thanks again for all your best wishes.</p>
<p>Yes, but he was selected. Better things to come. He's got is toe in . Congratulations!</p>
<p>Great news, Violadad. I hope it's close enough that you all can go and hear him play. Binx summed it up well...good experience and resume building. Plus it's got to feel good to get "in" on one of those auditions.</p>
<p>That is great news Violadad! Add my congrats as well...</p>
<p>mythmom, thumper, shennie- Thank you.</p>
<p>Just read the great news. Congratulations from a Phi Mu mom. I will have to tell the son. He will probably stop rolling his eyes when I tell him the good news is about a brother :)</p>
<p>My news isn't as exciting as Violadad's, but I'll share anyway. DS had an audition this morning with a very small symphony about an hour away from where he is going to grad school in NC. He was selected for the sub list and has already been given five jobs to play. It's not the BSO, but it's a start.</p>
<p>lamom- Those Sinfonians do seem to stick together. Thanks.</p>
<p>thumper- That's great. Maybe this will help prove that musicians do get jobs.</p>
<p>Weird - I posted a response to Thumper, and it isn't here! Where did it go?</p>
<p>Anyway, Thumper, congratulations. Five sub jobs already is great. My S is also a sub for an orchestra, but hasn't been called yet, and doesn't know if he will. His teacher says he probably will; the question will be if he is able to take it.</p>
<p>I never heard where your S ended up living though - apartment? With a roommate? How is he liking NCSA?</p>
<p>Thumper-Congratulations to the son. Do fill us in on where he ended up living.</p>
<p>Highlight last year for son was his road trip to Cleveland last summer for Phi Mu convention.</p>
<p>Not wishing to highjack the thread...so I'll make my response quick. DS is living in a cute little one bedroom apartment in Winston Salem...off campus. He does not have a roommate. It's about a 4 minute drive to the school. I went down in June to find the apartment. DH and I drove him down at the end of August and set him all up with his "stuff". The place looks great. He is getting around Winston-Salem, meeting many folks in the music business, has found himself a couple of coaching jobs, a private student (wants more), and his orchestral sub jobs (he is a sub for two of the regional orchestras...has gigs with one but not the other yet). Thanks for asking...and now back to the thread!!</p>
<p>violadad: congratulations to your son! Hopefully this will be the start of many good things. We do have one friend in a major orchestra who we have known since she was a young teen. She started out on the sub list while teaching and gradually moved up that way. Three orchestras later, she has been the principal on her instrument for several years in a location and orchestra she seems to really like and is making a liveable salary. Here's hoping that will be your son's path as well!</p>
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<blockquote> <p>She started out on the sub list while teaching and gradually moved up that way. Three orchestras later, she has been the principal on her instrument for several years in a location and orchestra she seems to really like and is making a liveable salary.>></p> </blockquote>
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<p>That would be great for ALL of our performing kiddos!!!!!</p>
<p>Fiddlemom- Thank you. I think a sound philosophy is to get your toe in the door in a smaller orchestra or two if luck permits, get some experience, expand your contacts, and keep auditioning upwards. </p>
<p>The "liveable salary" can be a number of years coming, and I think most musicians realize that.</p>