Diki, my dad had some great, old sayings, one of which was "There's only one thing that money can't buy - POVERTY!"
It's called the music industry, music business, etc... Maybe you may enjoy living in poverty, but I, for one, do not. I treated this as a business and I was in it to make a profit. I was not a home, hobbyist player, though I enjoyed playing every instrument I laid my hands on. I was the booking agent, bookkeeper, tax accountant, advertising agent, repair guy, and most of all, I was the onstage performer. All this took lots of time, dedication, hard work and discipline. Through it all, though, I still managed to find time to spend with my family, took the wife and children out on the boat to go fishing and sailing, went to my son's little league games, and sat in the audience while my daughter performed gymnastics at a very young age, doing back flips, which was very scary.
I taught myself how to play a 6-string guitar at age 12, then graduated to a 12-string guitar at age 21, a mandolin at age 23, then graduated to an arranger keyboard. I was a self taught piano player at age 5, and while my parents thought I was very talented, I just was not happy with that instrument. While I am self taught and can read music, but not enough to hinder my playing and entertainer skills.;) I guess it would be fair to say that I would be a better player had I attended Peabody Institute in Baltimore for a few years, but despite the lack of formal training, I did manage to get along in the Music Industry. Almost forgot, I did take a college course called "Voice and Articulation" which was taught by one of the mid-Atlantic Region's best jazz singers. I learned a lot from Maryanne P. and she really put an emphasis on diction. I later encountered a lady in Nashville that taught diction to many of the top singers throughout the nation, including Elvis and many other country and rock stars.
So, Diki, is it about the money, or is it the love of playing? Well, from my viewpoint, it's both. I damned well would not be very happy if I could not support my wife and children and I have always been of the opinion that if a person is not happy in their job, they should do something else where they would be more productive and happier. Ironically, many of the full-time entertainers I came across during my years as a musical entertainer, included a lot of great, pro musicians that switched from other instruments to an arranger keyboard. Some of which frequented this forum in past years, and many of them called upon me for my technical expertise when they encountered difficulties with their keyboards. For the most part, I was able to help them overcome the problems. I still do this today, and two days ago, helped an old friend with creating a special, setup registration on his SX-900. I still solve problems for individuals on this, and a couple other arranger keyboard forums.
I sincerely wish you and a few others would stop this incessant squabbling about who is a pro and who is not, and who's keyboard is better, etc... This kind of activity usually leads to the demise of what was a great forum just a few years ago. Just in case you have not noticed, most of the individuals that made this a great forum have left. I have been here for a lot of years, and still believe that I can continue to help others with their technical issues, and assist them in making a livable income in the Music Industry. When I can no longer do this, I will check out, just like my friend Zuki (Jim) did yesterday.
Good luck,
Gary
