Career Choices in Music beyond the Pandemic: Musical and Psychological Perspectives - Hardcover

by Julie Jaffee Nagel (Author)

"A must-read for musicians young and old as well as general readers." -- Joseph W. Polisi, President Emeritus, The Juilliard School

Choosing a career is one of the most important decisions we make in our lifetime. Career choice is more than just working to earn a living but also an important window into how we feel about ourselves. In this groundbreaking and provocative book, musician and psychologist Julie Jaffee Nagel explores how musicians' work beyond the COVID-19 pandemic casts a light upon the necessity of rethinking, rebuilding, and possibly redesigning our concept of careers and music education in the arts.

The book takes an interdisciplinary approach to a wide range of pressing topics such as career disillusionment, mental health in relation to lack of professional and personal security, the unavailability of jobs that reflect the depth of the musician's formal training and talent, and the healing role and value of musicians in a post-pandemic world. The pandemic was an unwelcome and sudden shock in the lives and careers of countless musicians, with many experiencing crises. Importantly, Nagel emphasizes that this trauma also has the potential to energize and expand horizons for rewarding, creative work. Musicians' gifts include resilience and discipline, and their art has important social value. Music has the power to be an aural antidote to some of society's ills--during trying times, it is vitally important to express and share the musician's artistic imagination and creativity in teaching studios, on stage, and through off stage interactions with others.

Author Biography

Julie Jaffee Nagel brings her unique, interdisciplinary background and education in mental health and music to understanding the personality of the musician, performance anxiety, the psychological impact of COVID-19 on music careers, and the value of music in mental life and in promoting social justice. She is a graduate of The Juilliard School, The University of Michigan, and The Michigan Psychoanalytic Institute. Nagel has received grants from the Ernst and Gertrude Ticho Foundation and the American Psychoanalytic Foundation to support her interdisciplinary work and outreach. She is in private practice in Dexter, Michigan. Visit www.julienagel.net.