Music

For information on employment trends, see the Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Design cluster page.

Training snapshot

Program enrolments in Music-related qualifications increased between 2016 and 2020, with enrolments in 2020 reaching 14,990. Program completions fluctuated between 2016 and 2020, reaching a peak of 5,600 in 2018 before declining to 4,780 in 2020. Music-related qualification enrolments were distributed across certificate II levels and above, with about half of enrolments in Certificate III level qualifications (54%), followed by certificate II (27%) and Diploma or higher level (13%). All of these qualifications were in Music Business and Industry, with the only intended occupation of Sound Technician.

The majority of Music-related qualifications were delivered by private training providers (62%), followed by TAFE (25%). Over half of Music-related qualifications were Commonwealth and state funded (62%), followed by domestic fee for service (37%).

The largest proportion of students in Music-related qualifications resided in Victoria (43%), with 16% of students in Western Australia and 14% in Other.

More than two fifths of training was delivered in Victoria (44%), followed by Western Australia (27%), New South Wales (13%) and South Australia (8%).

There were insufficient enrolments in apprenticeships or traineeships to allow any further analysis.

For more data specific to your occupation, industry group or training package, visit NCVER’s Data Builder.

For more data specific to your region visit NCVER’s Atlas of Total VET.

If you are interested in extracting NCVER data to construct tables with data relevant to you, sign up for a VOCSTATS account.

For an analysis of skills needs and workforce demand, see the Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Design cluster page.

Technological change has been identified in the Culture and Related Industries IRC’s 2019 Skills Forecast as impacting job roles and skills needs across the Culture and Related Industries sector. Technological disruption is expected to have to impact: the way workers collaborate and produce art and services; the way art and expertise is sold, including self-promotion to employers and consumers; and the demand for skills of creativity and design.

The report Performing Arts by FutureNow states opportunities for performers to work have been severely diminished during COVID-19 owing to restrictions on gatherings. Creative artists, and in particular live audience-based performers, have been profoundly impacted by quarantine measures undertaken. Sectors and workers affected include live music venues, bands, booking agents, opera, and music festivals. Live touring is by far the most lucrative income stream for contemporary music artists. Therefore, the ongoing nature of the COVID-19 crisis globally is having a magnified impact on the professional contemporary music sector, who are unable to tour their performances currently, or forward plan to tour in the coming financial year.

As reported in an article by The Conversation Five ways musicians are responding to the coronavirus crisis, with creators and lovers of music depending on digital mediation a wide range of approaches to making, sharing and experiencing music have arisen. These include writing music about the crisis, collaborating over social media, rediscovering old music together, public service announcements (using music to reinforce local and national governments’ safety messaging), and livestreams for venues.

According to Unite and Recover for Queensland Jobs, the Queensland Government is helping their live music industry with new investment of $7 million in 2021–22 supporting the sustainability of the state’s live music venues. This funding backs Queensland-based live music venues that have been significantly impacted by COVID-19.

The Culture and Related Industries IRC's 2018 Skills Forecast outlines a number of key drivers for change within the industry and related vocational training. These include:

• A current inadequacy of training which fully prepares learners for a career in the Music industry
• A need for qualifications to better reflect the new technologies and related opportunities in the sector, as well as to impart specialised technical skills to enable learners to stand out
• The importance of equipping those in the sector with relevant freelancing, self-publishing and collaborative skills, including the use of data analysis in either a freelance or more traditional working environment
• An unmet demand for songwriters existing in the sector, with a lack of relevant skills covered by existing vocational training.

The Culture and Related Industries IRC’s 2017 Skills Forecast identified a number of key challenges and opportunities for the Music sector, for example, musicians reported business and marketing skills as the most crucial skills that they did not currently have. This suggests the need for these skills to be integrated within qualifications that mainly provided more technical skills. The report also noted that digital distribution of music presents both opportunities and challenges for Australian musicians, providing opportunities for Australian music to access new markets while at the same time forcing them to compete in a global marketplace.

The 2016 National Contemporary Music Plan, also from Music Australia, considered the global media landscape as central to the issues facing the Australian music sector. This plan identified these challenges as being primarily in the area of contracting market revenues, due to global media technology reducing product returns for all recorded music and this globalisation leading to Australia holding a diminishing share of the global market. This, the plan argued, places more importance on live music revenues for performing artists. The plan set out several strategies to address these challenges, including a strong push to regain global market share for Australian artists.

For insights relevant to music and other related fields generally, see the Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Design cluster page.

Below is a list of industry-relevant research, organisations and associations. Hyperlinks have been included where available.

IRC and skills forecasts

Culture and Related Industries IRC

• Culture and Related Industries IRC’s 2019 Skills Forecast
• Industry Skills Forecast and Proposed Schedule of Work 2018
• Industry Skills Forecast and Proposed Schedule of Work 2017
• IRC membership
• Skills for Australia – Skills Service Organisation.

Relevant research

Five ways musicians are responding to the coronavirus crisis – The Conversation

National Contemporary Music Plan – Music Australia

Performing Arts - FutureNow Creative and Leisure Industries Training Council (WA)

Unite and Recover for Queensland Jobs - Queensland Government

Industry associations and advisory bodies

Association of Music Educators (Vic) Inc.

Australasian Music Publishers Association

Australia Council for the Arts - Music

Australia Council for the Arts

Australian Guild of Screen Composers

Australian Independent Record Labels Association

Australian Music Association

Australian Music Examinations Board

Australian Music Industry Network

Australian Network for Art and Technology

Australian Recording Industry Association

Australian Songwriters Association

Australian Sound Recordings Association

Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance

Music Australia

Regional Arts Australia

Training data has been extracted from the National VET Provider Collection, Total VET Student and Courses from the following training packages or qualifications:

• CUA Creative Arts and Culture and CUS Music Training Packages.
• Music
  
  • CUS20109 - Certificate II in Music
  • CUS30101 - Certificate III in Music
  • CUS30109 - Certificate III in Music
  • CUS40109 - Certificate IV in Music
  • CUS50109 - Diploma of Music
  • CUS60101 - Advanced Diploma of Music
  • CUS60109 - Advanced Diploma of Music.
• Music Business and Industry
  
  • CUA20615 - Certificate II in Music Industry
  • CUA20620 - Certificate II in Music
  • CUA30915 - Certificate III in Music Industry
  • CUA30920 - Certificate III in Music
  • CUA40915 - Certificate IV in Music Industry
  • CUA40920 - Certificate IV in Music
  • CUA50815 - Diploma of Music Industry
  • CUA50820 - Diploma of Music
  • CUA60515 - Advanced Diploma of Music Industry
  • CUA60520 - Advanced Diploma of Music
  • CUS30309 - Certificate III in Music Business
  • CUS40309 - Certificate IV in Music Business
  • CUS50309 - Diploma of Music Business
  • CUS60309 - Advanced Diploma of Music Business.
• Sound and Technical Production
  
  • CUS30201 - Certificate III in Music Industry (Technical Production)
  • CUS30209 - Certificate III in Technical Production
  • CUS40209 - Certificate IV in Sound Production
  • CUS50201 - Diploma of Music Industry (Technical Production)
  • CUS50209 - Diploma of Sound Production
  • CUS60209 - Advanced Diploma of Sound Production.

This includes superseded qualifications and training packages.

Data covers a range of selected student and training characteristics in the following categories and years:

• 2016 to 2020 program enrolments
• 2016 to 2020 program completions.

Total VET students and courses data is reported for the calendar year. Program enrolments are the qualifications, courses and skill sets in which students are enrolled in a given period. For students enrolled in multiple programs, all programs are counted. Program completion indicates that a student has completed a structured and integrated program of education or training. Location data uses student residence. Subject enrolment is the registration of a student at a training delivery location for the purpose of undertaking a module, unit of competency or subject. For more information on the terms and definitions, please refer to the Total VET Activity students and courses: terms and definitions document.

Low counts (less than five) are not reported to protect client confidentiality.