Third of musicians in Hungary considering leaving profession
A third of musicians in Hungary are considering leaving the profession as they grapple with the fallout of the pandemic and struggle financially, according to a recent survey by the ProArt Association published on Wednesday.
Fully 47 percent of respondents lost 90 percent of their income in 2020, the survey of songwriters and performers asked about the dent in their incomes left by the pandemic in 2020 found. More than 700 responses were given, with 80 percent having been active in the industry for at least ten years.
Fully 52 percent received no state support or any other subsidy earmarked for musicians.
Those who did received only 15 percent of their annual income on average. For 21 percent, tax relief for small entrepreneurs and subsidized loans provided some help. Half of respondents already could rely on several sources of income beyond their own profession before the pandemic and this went some way towards alleviating their hardships.
Regarding online concerts, 23 percent of respondents broadcast concerts online,
though many believe that after the epidemic online concerts are likely to fade away because they bring in lower revenue.
The vast majority of musicians said online concerts fell short of the real concert experience both for audiences and performers. Fully 59 percent of respondents said their earnings this year would be even worse than in 2020.
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Source: MTI
Foreigners think that all Gipsy music is the same but it is not true. Gypsies have their own distinctive music but play what we call Gypsy music or Hungarians. You cannot confuse the two. Hungarians of my generation loved Gypsy music. Dankó Pista was a famous Gypsy musician, loved and respected by Hungarians that grew up with his music.
All attempts to integrate the Gypsies into civil society have failed in Hungary and everywhere else. It is not that they did not try. But as the old English proverb says, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.” The communists employed Gypsy bands in restaurant. That kept most of them from begging, stealing and robbing people. It was one of the very-very few things that the communists did well.
Only a few restaurants kept their Gypsy musicians after “gengszterváltás”. This created a huge problem for unemployed Gypsy musicians. Many of them committed suicide. Very tragic because they were good people. Others went back to begging, stealing and robbing people. Tragic for the Gypsies and a growing problem for successive Hungarian governments.