Pundits and prognosticators often surmise that today's musicians and composers are living in an era of unparalleled opportunity. While it's safe to say that musicians' access to the marketplace has greatly improved, thanks to digital sales, social media, YouTube and the like, how have these changes impacted musicians' ability to generate revenue based on their creative work? Almost all analyses of the effects of these changes rest purely on assumptions that they have improved musicians' bottom lines.

We hear often from record labels, music services, publishers, and entrepreneurs about the state of the music industry. Now it's time to hear how musicians and composers themselves are navigating these enormous changes.

In this conversation we will look at how revenue streams for freelancers and session musicians have evolved over the years, from changes in the amount of in-studio session work, to the pay for shows on the road.

Gail Kruvand, Bassist, Freelance/NY City Opera
Dave Pomeroy, Bassist/Writer/Producer, President, Nashville Musicians Association, AFM Local 257, International Executive Officer, American Federation of Musicians
Jean Cook, Director of Programs, Future of Music Coalition (interviewer)

This interview was recorded on October 4, 2011 in Washington, DC at Georgetown University during Future of Music Coalition Policy Summit 2011.

Event website: futureofmusic.org/events/future-music-policy-summit-2011

For more on FMC's Artist Revenue Project, please visit futureofmusic.org/article/research/artist-revenue-streams

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