I went home

[Watchman]

I went home for the first time in a very long time this Thanksgiving. A old friend was there, and his son, who was a freshman, majoring in music. I couldn't help but feel so very, very sorry for him.

How do you not be cynical about this thing you used to love so much?

[k001k47]

How do you not be cynical about this thing you used to love so much?

Just because you fell out of love with it, doesn't mean the rest of the world has to follow suit.

[doublebuzzing]

Although somewhat cryptic, I think the OP may be referring to the fact that the majority of music majors are going to end up in a field outside of music struggling to make ends meet simply because orchestras are drying up, and there are way more qualified musicians than there are orchestral jobs. Additionally, the modern orchestra can't survive without debasing itself by appealing to mass taste (which is in contradistinction to what orchestras have done for hundreds of years). Soon, in many orchestras, there are going to be more pops concerts than traditional concerts.

[Three Valves]

Easy.

I’m just cynical about everything!!

[k001k47]

Easy.

I’m just cynical about everything!!

It seems I'm cynical about being cynical.

[Three Valves]

“You can’t be too cynical!!”

[bort]

Stop going home?

[DiveBomber]

Have you tried practicing more, that does seem to be the answer everybody likes to give.

[Ken Crawford]

this thing you used to love so much

What you loved was music. Degree programs in music aren't music. In most cases they are just a guarantee of the continuation of the student loan industry. Be as cynical as possible about those...

[Three Valves]

I love recursive humor.

DG

It’s a gift!!

[Lee Stofer]

"How do you not be cynical about something you used to love so much?" Whether in music or elsewhere, I think that everyone has the encounter at the intersection of youthful aspirations and adult-life reality. In the 1970's/80's, US universities were (and may still be) turning out many more music performance majors than can ever have a chance of playing for a living. If I had it to do all over again, knowing what I do today, I would have considered pursuing another major and would have played for fun, ie., become certified as a welder or electrician, made a very good living, and study music and play as a serious hobby. I find that some of my happiest customers are the ones that, although fine musicians, do something else for a living and play for the sheer joy of it.
Music can be a very stern and unforgiving taskmaster if you do it for a living. I do not regret having a career in music, but young students need to have someone sit down with them and tell them straight, what it's going to be like. I'm very thankful that Professor R. Winston Morris had "that talk" with me one evening in the latter 1970's, and even then I was shocked when I went to my first orchestral audition in 1979 and auditioned against 75 other people for a job that didn't pay a living. That summer, my options for the future looked to be - 1) family construction business 2) grad school or 3) US Army Bands. The Army had a shortage of tuba players at that time, so I took it and ran. Looking back on my life now, I see the guiding hand of Divine Providence, am not cynical, and wouldn't have it any other way.

[swillafew]

Modern musician is really a social media creature, and needs to be a songwriter more than anything. It would not hurt to be a dancer, either. My young friends who are making a go of it did not get degrees in music, but they are all good writers and composers, and clever at keeping a steady stream of promotional material going all the time.

Edit: I just poked around the Billboard 200, then went to YouTube to look at an artist I didn't know. Video in the list had 922M views, so I watched it. No one played an instrument, there was a tiny bit of singing, but the artist did some dancing.

[Kirley]

There are many paths. Sitting behind a bunch of string players counting rests is just one of them.
I've never auditioned for an orchestra (besides my college orchestra) and I doubt I ever will. But I make a living and love doing what I do. The experience/training I received in college was very valuable. Did it provide me with all the skills needed to become a professional musician? No way! But it also never promised that. I think that we conflate academics and vocational training all too often in our society.
Again, there are MANY PATHS.
And, yes, Swillafew, I end up dancing quite a bit.

[Three Valves]

Modern musician is really a social media creature, and needs to be a songwriter more than anything. It would not hurt to be a dancer, either. My young friends who are making a go of it did not get degrees in music, but they are all good writers and composers, and clever at keeping a steady stream of promotional material going all the time.

It seems the music bidness has always favored the writers/arranger/composer.