Hi everyone!
I'm a student preparing to apply to an excellent conservatory in my home city in order to study voice. Unfortunately, my understanding is that finding work as a musician, especially in classical music, is becoming more and more difficult each year. As a person who discovered my true calling quite late, I already feel I'm at a disadvantage in an increasingly competitive and crowded profession.
Things are looking pretty bleak for aspiring musicians in the U.S., but by all accounts, Switzerland is a fantastic place for classical musicians to live in work. The more I learn about it, the more attractive it seems--the culture, the language(s,) and standards of education...what more could I possibly want?
I've been trying to do some research on legal residency in Switzerland, and I understand that anyone planning on staying in the country for more than three months requires some kind of residency permit, work or study visa. However, I can't find any information on the options available to professional musicians attempting to relocate to Switzerland. Can musicians obtain a work visa or permit? Would one need to show the Swiss authorities that one had already secured a contract with an opera house or symphony orchestra?
It occurred to me that I might be able to obtain a work visa to teach English at a Swiss institution. I have a background in Italian, and won't even think about relocating to Switzerland until I have a grounding in German and French as well (I'm aware that the Swiss dialects of these languages are distinct, but as an American, I think Parisian French, German Standard German, and standard Italian are decent places to start.)
Anyway, I would appreciate any advice. If anybody here could direct me to other sources of information pertinent to my situation, I would be eternally grateful! Thanks in advance, everybody.
More details please. Which instrument do you play, which passport(s) do you hold? Are you planning to apply to a conservatory here? How old are you?
Assuming you don't have an EU passport:
The easiest way to get a visa is to be a student here. Or get married. There are excellent schools in CH (In order: Basel, Zurich, Bern/Geneva/Lausanne) but they have age limits, depending on the department.
It is technically possible to get a "real job"with a symphony or theater, but if you are just starting/finishing a US degree you can really just forget that option. Trust me, forget it.
What most of us do is to get the artists visa, which is a sort of freelancer visa which allows residence (at least in Basel) and the right to work 2/3 of the year. To get this, you need to already have enough freelance work (anywhere in Europe) to support yourself. That's why I suggest you enroll as a student first.
Any other questions?
Yes, and the employer must apply for the permit on your behalf.
That is a possibility assuming you hold the relavanent teaching qualifications. Be warned though - there are many, many aspiring English teachers here .
Hey, thank you so much, guys! I wasn't aware of the artists visa, but that sounds perfect.
10:30--I'm studying voice in order to sing operatic music and art song. I'll be doing my undergraduate work at the conservatory here in my hometown. I'm 22, so I know that I'm already going to have a difficult time. Thanks for being honest with me, especially about getting freelance work in other parts of the EU; that makes a lot of sense. My teacher and my coach have studied and worked in Europe (Germany and France, respectively,) so maybe they'll be able to refer me to somebody when (and if) I decide to leave the States. I'm in no hurry at the moment.
You have both been really helpful. I'm so glad I went ahead & posted here!
Regarding your age. Yes, 22 is quite old already to be starting an undergrad in art song.
Regarding the English teaching: IF you do not have an EU passport, you will likely not get an english teaching job, certainly not a permit-giving job. I should mention that I'm a classical freelancer who teaches English on the side. The teaching job was allowed, as an exception, on my artist visa. It doesn't work the other way around.
If you are serious about this, you'll need to make some decisions pretty soon, within the next year or so. You can either aim towards a European conservatory or stick to the US.
To aim for a school in Europe, you'll need to get informed about their audition deadlines and age limits (esp. Paris, which has a very low limit) and start your application preparation now. That means you will need a MUCH higher standard of solfeĢge and keyboard skills, for example, than what is taught in the US.
Don't rely on what your teachers recommend. Trust me. Do your own research, request your own information, and do it yourself. Whatever your coaches experienced is likely out of date now. So much has changed just in the last 10 years I have been here.
You don't mention where your 'hometown' is, but if it's not a vibrant metropolis, I would suggest getting out of there. If you're serious about this career, you need a lot of growing up and making contacts with the outside world. Unless your hometown is Oberlin or Bloomington, you need to get moving.
In a word,or two, not really. It's not as cool as busking in Paris or London.
May I respectfully ask; as an SS why do you want to busk anyway?
Oh... There was a new post above, guess it was deleted or banned...