• Music Internships and Careers

    Music Internships and Careers - Descriptions

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    Music internships
    and careers allow music enthusiasts to receive hands-on training. These internships are typically for those who are majoring in music. Categories within music internships include vocalists or singers, talent scouts, talent managers/scouts, arrangers, composers, and back-up vocalists or singers. Music interns should choose an area to focus on and master it. Like most internships, music interns can be current or recent graduates.

    Types of Music Internships

    The following list with descriptions explains different music internships in more detail:

    • Vocalist Internships: vocalist interns learn to vocalize, express and interpret a song or music by making use of their knowledge in melody, rhythm and harmony. They specializes in one of the many music genres, be it pop, jazz, ballad, rock, classical, or opera. Vocalist interns may choose to be a classical singer who normally sings on theater or opera shows, or an all-around singer who could perform on stage, television, or other shows.  Most of the time, a vocalist internship can be contractual and paid, especially for recordings, concerts, or other shows.
    • Back-up Vocalist Internships: when there’s a vocalist, there’s always at least one back-up vocalist. The responsibility of back-up vocalist interns is to learn how to sing in harmony with the lead vocalists. The training for a back-up vocalist intern is mainly to enhance their skills in hearing and singing harmony lines. This includes learning the ability to read and sing notes at the same time.
    • Composer Internships: one of the most important fields within music internships is that of a composer. Composer interns can become the future foundations of the music industry just by following the footsteps of renowned composers. The responsibilities involved in this field are the ability to compose with rhythm, melody, and texture in so many different ways. One has to be able to think of or write down an outline of what kind of music he intends to compose. A composer intern needs to be creative and it is an advantage during the training if an intern is already knowledgeable in playing a musical instrument like the piano or the guitar. If the composer intern intends to compose music of any genre, he will have to learn and be trained for instrumental music training. Creativity, the ability to improvise, and prompt submission of due projects are some of the essentials emphasized when training. In some music industry companies, a composer may also be known as a song writer.
    • Arranger Internships: these internships are for those who want to work hand-in-hand with song writers. Arranger internships require interns to have the capability to re-write existing music or songs using their own personal style.  Arranger interns need to be as creative as a composer or song writer. These internships are valuable in that they allow the interns to hone the skills needed and learn the collaboration process with song writers and composers.
    • Talent Scout Internships: last but not least, we have the talent scout interns who will undergo training for eyeing and hiring talented musicians. The talent manager intern will learn how to take charge over the careers talented musicians. The talent manager intern will learn how to handle job offers to a talent, act as middleman between producers and talents, and help the talent manage his finances.

    The Berklee College of Music in Los Angeles offers summer music internships. This would be a great opportunity to intern in one of the music capitals of the world.

    Other Information about Music Internships

    Music internships are part of the entertainment industry. Companies that commonly offer music internships are record companies, and they can be paid or unpaid. For unpaid internships, students will need to receive school credit.  The duration of the internships can vary between a semester, a school year, or just the summer for summer internships. Regardless, the intern will get an invaluable opportunity to gain exposure to a very lucrative business, and get the chance to meet established professionals for networking.  Remember, the most important part about internships is getting the much needed training that will be the foundation in building your career.

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