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Musician CV example

A musician's CV is a list of playing work with the training behind it: your instrument and level, then orchestras, ensembles, recordings and teaching, each with who, where and when.

Most musicians are freelance, so it often covers several kinds of work at once. This example is a violinist five years out of conservatoire.

Classic design1 page
Musician CV example: fictional example, page 1. Full text is available below.
Read the example as text
Eleanor Price
Violinist
Manchester · 07700 900228 · eleanor.price@example.com · eleanorprice-violin.example.com

Profile

Freelance violinist working in orchestras, a string quartet and recording sessions across the North West. Strong sight-reader, comfortable leading a section and happy across classical, film and pop sessions. Teaches violin to 14 pupils from beginner to grade 8.

Playing

Orchestral

Extra first violin, about 25 concerts a season | Pennine Philharmonic | 2022–present

Section leader, second violins, summer season | Lakeside Festival Orchestra | 2024–2025

Chamber

First violin and founder | Irwell String Quartet | 2021–present

18 concerts a season; book the venues and run the quartet's website and social channels

Recording

Session violinist, two TV drama scores and one album | Ancoats Lane Studios | 2023–2026

Teaching

Violin teacher, 14 private pupils; 9 grade passes last year | Manchester | 2021–present

Training

MMus Performance (Violin), Distinction | Royal Pennine Conservatoire | 2020–2021

BMus (Hons) Music, First | Royal Pennine Conservatoire | 2016–2020

Grade 8 Violin, Distinction; Grade 7 Piano

Skills

Sight-reading and quick learning of new parts

Section leading and bowing parts

Recording to a click track

Sibelius notation; Logic Pro for demo recordings

Fictional example for a musician. Every person and employer in it is invented. Replace every detail with your own.

What orchestra managers and fixers look for, and where this CV shows it

The job asks you toWhere this CV shows it
Compose, learn and rehearse music piecesQuick learning of new parts for orchestral and session work
Prepare for and attend auditionsAn extra list place and a festival section leader post
Perform in front of a live audienceAbout 25 orchestral and 18 quartet concerts a season
Take part in recording sessionsTwo TV drama scores and an album, recorded to a click track
Arrange concerts and tours or deal with a manager or agent who does this for youBooking the quartet's venues and running its website and social channels

The left column follows the National Careers Service job profile for a musician.

Facts checked against National Careers Service: Musician on .

Inside this example
  • Profile: 39 words here
  • Playing: 89 words here
  • Training: 27 words here
  • Skills: 28 words here

How to write yours

01

Lead with your instrument

Say what you play and at what level in the first line; a fixer is filling a chair, not a job title.

02

Group the work

Orchestral, chamber, recording and teaching in their own lists show the range without a long story.

03

Name who and how often

The orchestra or studio, your chair and the number of concerts tell a manager how much you have done.

04

Link one recording

A website or recording link helps if it shows you playing. Put it in the contact line, not in the middle of the page.

Rules and checks for a musician's CV

  • Grades and auditions. Music degrees usually ask for grade 8 on your main instrument and an audition (National Careers Service). Give your highest grades and your degree with its class.
  • Freelance work. Many musicians are self-employed freelancers and often do other jobs alongside their music (National Careers Service). Teaching and other work can go on the same CV under their own headings.
  • Professional bodies. You could join the Musicians' Union or the Independent Society of Musicians for training, events and networking (National Careers Service). Give your membership if you hold it.

Classic and one page: plain headings and a serif face suit orchestras and schools, and each kind of work stays in its own group.

Help with your next edit

CV Skills: Lists by Job and How to Prove Each One Education on a CV: UK Qualifications and Examples Awards and Achievements on a CV: What Counts and Where How to Write a UK Cover Letter: Template and Example

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