Could a new composer replicate this? is too broad a question. Rather,
- could they support themselves with a blue collar job?
- could they support a family with said job, as the primary breadwinner?
- could they do it in X, where X is the geographic location of the cultural center of their art form?
Glass was lucky enough to hit all three. Today's young artists might be lucky to hit 1, and maybe the internet helps with 3 a bit, but if you work in an art form that really, really needs in person connection (eg theater, or you need to be where the gallerists and dealers are), I guess it doesnt solve the problem. 2 is very difficult.
The perfect trifecta is when you have a dense urban center that happens to be the center of your art form, but still has enough of a rough edge to it that you can live and work cheaply. New York, 1970s, classical music.
Berlin, visual arts, 2000s. Or you can create the scene yourself given enough mass and energy (see: Atlanta, 1990s, rap, or NYC, 1980s, hip hop).
The next Glass is therefore more likely working in an urban coffee shop than a suburban landscaping crew, living with roomies or parents rather than alone, has no children or spouse to support, and exists on the fringes of a city like London, NY, or Berlin.
What do you mean? It's still normal to have a "blue collar job", isn't it? Not to mention "retail"? Whether or not one is an artist. "Many" people do that and support their family that way. And it's still normal for artists to have a day job. Not just for young ones.
I don't think the Philip Glass story is all that different from today's artists'. More retail, less steel mill.
if anything, there is more awareness now that a day job is normal. And that the main concern is that this job needs to not be "toxic". That is, it needs to leave you enough energy to do your art. That's the main requirement.
I have no data to back it up, but my instinct is that “today’s artists” are increasingly supported by rich parents or spouses when compared with those of 50 years ago.
This is a consequence of wealth concentration and the destruction of the middle class.
Frameworks and examples now exist showing how to gain this freedom. Jacob Lund Fisker[0]'s ERE[1] in particular is an interesting system theory based approach .
I invite you to read the book or read one of the interviews with the author. It goes so much wider than FIRE. Rather than a guide, it's an invitation to build your strategy. That should workas an individual or a couple, with or without children.
I have a friend who lives near NYC and is a theatre director for a company in St Louis. Travels in person 1 week a month and remote with Zoom the other 3 weeks. It pays better than what he gets in his local market and allows him to support his family and spend more time with his children. Opportunities and life has changed significantly since COVID.
- could they support themselves with a blue collar job?
- could they support a family with said job, as the primary breadwinner?
- could they do it in X, where X is the geographic location of the cultural center of their art form?
Glass was lucky enough to hit all three. Today's young artists might be lucky to hit 1, and maybe the internet helps with 3 a bit, but if you work in an art form that really, really needs in person connection (eg theater, or you need to be where the gallerists and dealers are), I guess it doesnt solve the problem. 2 is very difficult.
The perfect trifecta is when you have a dense urban center that happens to be the center of your art form, but still has enough of a rough edge to it that you can live and work cheaply. New York, 1970s, classical music. Berlin, visual arts, 2000s. Or you can create the scene yourself given enough mass and energy (see: Atlanta, 1990s, rap, or NYC, 1980s, hip hop).
The next Glass is therefore more likely working in an urban coffee shop than a suburban landscaping crew, living with roomies or parents rather than alone, has no children or spouse to support, and exists on the fringes of a city like London, NY, or Berlin.