Composing for a Living?

I've always wanted to be three things:
1) A composer
2) A performer (in like either a) a symphonic orchestra or b) a movie orchestra type thing)
or
3) a computer geek person (like programmer)

I guess the easiest of them all would be a computer geek but I have ALWAYS loved music, I play just about everything and i've always been good at picking up instruments and learning them to a decent level within a day or two.
But then about 5 years ago, i found out about this cool amazing wonderful thing.. called composing.
I guess i just never realized that somebody has to write all that stuff that i played. I downloaded finale (back when I ran windows) and tried to write something, i can't remember what it was now, but it sounded pretty cool to me (when i was 10)
Now 5 years later I still like composing, i'm not too good but I have some general grasp of how to write stuff. I can't really put big cool sounding chords down because I have never learned them, so what I write is mostly basic and simple sounding, mostly in minor keys 'cause i like 'em (and when you compose it's what you like, who cares what everyone else thinks? =P)

So now i'm nearing 16 and just 2 more years before college where I have to decide what I want to do for the rest of my life (or at least most of my life) and since I'm pretty good on Bassoon and piano and sax I might have a good shot at some sort of scholarship (but even if I get one I'm going to Julliard, no matter what it takes [okay maybe i was kidding, but we all gotta have dreams, right? XD])
I was pondering the question of "What do I want to be when I grow up?" the other day on our 10 hour drive to the Lake of the Ozarks, and I think that what I really really would LOVE to do is compose. I don't care if I become the next John Williams or if I just write small short pieces for solo piano or if I write orchestrations that the Symphonic Orchestra plays, I want to write music for a living, and, if I don't make anything from it to actually live, I'm sure I could get a job performing somewhere. (But it would be cool to be known like some of those big composers, e.g. John Williams, 'cause he will be in his late 80s I believe once I get outta college XD)



SO, after that big long life story (which will probably not turn out that long, it just looks long in this typing thingy) I come to my question: How do you make yourself known?
I'm sure I'll be a decent composer, have have a lot more knowledge at least in composing (i'll be taking music theory next year) but once I get into college, how do I make myself known to the rest of the world (or at least the state) so people might think about hiring me?

My ultimate goal is to write for some TV show, doesn't matter what I would just love writing for a tv show.

and, like I do in just about every thread i make, I have no idea how to bring it all to a close, so... i'm done


-Smart.A1ec-

K, do some research...

Be realistic...

Don't look at reputation alone...

And think harder.

I've been down the college road for three years in a row now... it is a little bit harder then "Juilliard no matter what."

I'd love to talk about it with you.

My aim is corbinhines

Charisma and connections.

Programmer.

Originally Posted by Nyu001

Programmer.

XD

ahh the sweet smell of givin up..

hey, if i had that mentality i wouldn't have learned how to water ski two days ago

Originally Posted by Smart_A1ec

I'm pretty good on Bassoon and piano and sax

Piano == you and a million other pianists.
Sax == if you want an uphill battle... classical musicians tend to treat saxophonists poorly.
Bassoon == Profit!

LOL! Yes indeed! If you want to be a performer, play either bassoon, or oboe, or english horn, or perhaps viola. Rarities in instruments make you valuable. Remember, every Mahler symphony has at least 3 bassoons in it!

Piano isn't too bad if you're willing to give lessons. There may be a million of other pianists, but there are also millions of students. And you can always pair it with stuff like correpetition/accompaniment. Or even get a minor organist job in a small church, if you can play the organ a bit, which often isn't paid too badly. (Of course never so well as if you were an actual organist.)

If you want to get into a good orchestra, you need to be excellent, no matter what your instrument is. And orchestra life isn't always just fun.

Originally Posted by Justin Tokke

...If you want to be a performer, play either bassoon, or oboe, or english horn, or perhaps viola. Rarities in instruments make you valuable.

Another option is to just not suck.

ANYWAY...

Is it possible to make a living as a composer or performer?

Absolutely. If you have the dedication, drive, and passion for the art, you can do anything... depending on what 'making a living' is to you. Levels of 'success' vary greatly from one person to the next.

It requires a lot of effort and perseverance, but if you have the heart for it, and take it seriously it's definitely possible...remember, you get out what you put in.

I think the biggest problem with your whole outlook here is that you think that when you go to college, you have to decide what you're going to do for the rest of your life. I got into Whalen school of music at Ithaca as a clarinet education major...and then decided that I wanted absolutely nothing to do with it, even though I had played and dedicated myself to it for over 8 years.

Now, I'm heading into the field of forensic psychology, and will soon be going for a JD and a PhD conjointly. Do I still compose? Yes. Do I wish that my parents had let me go for composition? Sometimes, yes. Do I regret switching majors? Hellz no....it opened up a whole new world for me. Now I do research about eyewitness testimony and I'm a part of a team that's researching the latest in treatment of Autism.

what I'm trying to get at is that you don't need to decide to become a composer at 16 - thee most popular thing to do in college is change majors, lol. It's all up to you, and how big of a part you think music will play in your life. Even if you get into a great school, making a living as a composer is very difficult nowadays.

I say, go to college as undecided, take as many classes in different majors as you possibly can, and still compose.