Is there a market in China for a Caucasian jazz pianist?
Posted by Diligent_Egg_5819@reddit | expats | View on Reddit | 11 comments
Hello, I GOTTA GET OUT of this absolutely DEAD END BACKWATER of a US state that I currently reside in! China looks dope ahhh hell and I've been hearing about these "white monkey" jobs where westerners can work kinda fake or indignant jobs and the only job requirement is not being a Chinese guy. As an aspiring jazz pianist I would really like to have a job where I play piano in a sophisticated lounge environment where Chinese people buy me drinks and give me big cash tips and I'm friends with a Chinese private detective and there are "dames" and "broads" there and they don't get mad at you if you describe them as "tall drinks of water on a hot Chinese style day". What city in China is good for a professional "lounge lizard"? How would I work out a visa as a freelance jazz pianist who wears a big stiff wool suit and a fedora but the fedora looks cool like Frank Sinatra and not lame like a gamer? Should I learn Chinese jazz songs to expand my chances of getting books at lounges? I do not speak Mandarin but I can kinda do a Sinatra impression due to my velvety voice (I DID NOT MAKE THAT UP, PEOPLE HAVE TOLD ME ITS VELVETY).
samelaaaa@reddit
This is the sort of thing my friends did in China to make some money while they were there traveling or studying. Definitely exists, but no clue if you could get a visa for it. Probably something you’d do in addition to teaching English.
GZHotwater@reddit
No, there isn’t a visa for it.
Both student visa and work visa options don’t allow working on the side (student visas allow up to 8 hours each week if the university agrees…)
Teaching English (TEFL) requires a bachelors and TEFL certificate to get a work permit (or 2+ years work experience).
The way the OP is written suggests they’re taking the piss.
Diligent_Egg_5819@reddit (OP)
So let me get this straight... There is no pathway into China for a soulful white boy living off "tickling those ivories"? Is there a different country that wants to get a bit jazzy with it? Please please please tell me I can be a mercenary for music somewhere far far far away from Biloxi
FinestTreesInDa7Seas@reddit
Finding a country that will offer you a long-term visa to do "gig work" is really tough.
Visas work differently in every country, but one thing that is common to most countries is that a work visa is typically offered for an ongoing traditional job. Often it's limited to a salaried job offer.
Some countries will have special visa categories for musicians to come and do work in their country, but the few that I've heard of are offered on the basis of you coming to that country to work on a specific collaboration, or if you've been hired by a local organization for a specific event, or for a number of events over a period of time. Often a visa like this might be offered only for that period of time, and then you leave. But again, visas work differently everywhere, so this isn't universally true.
Aside from that, a more traditional work visa in most countries would be offered only if you have an actual job offer. So unless you find someone who wants to hire you as their full time "house jazz pianist", its not going to be easy to find a country that will give you a long-term visa (something that would let you really move there, rather than just a temporary stint).
If you're under the age of 35, probably the closest you will come to finding something like this is by looking into "working holiday" visas. These are visas that a few countries offer to citizens of specific other countries to come live temporarily in their country (sometimes for 6 months to 1 year), and they're often limited to people under 35. You can arrive without a job offer, and you can work freely in the country, or not work. I can't confidently say that all of them will tolerate "gig work", but some of them might.
GZHotwater@reddit
You’re not going to get a work permit as a jazz lounge pianist….
Diligent_Egg_5819@reddit (OP)
Dang that's really unfortunate
Rsantana02@reddit
Yes, I’m sure China would love an American, oops I meant a white American, with no real skills.
Diligent_Egg_5819@reddit (OP)
JAZZ PIANO IS A SKILL
Jolly_Conflict@reddit
r/IWantOut
pencilbride2B@reddit
I feel like there must be! But I don’t know enough about it, but I’m following this to hear more. Good luck
truly_pompous_norris@reddit
okay but the "fedora looks cool like frank sinatra and not lame like a gamer" distinction is genuinely sending me
i don't know anything about the jazz lounge market in china specifically but i do know a few people who went the shanghai expat route for music stuff and it's... a lot more bureaucratic and a lookay but the "fedora looks cool like frank sinatra and not lame like a gamer" distinction is genuinely sending me
i don't know anything about the jazz lounge market in china specifically but i do know a few people who went the shanghai expat route for music stuff and it's... a lot more bureaucratic and a lot less "dame hands you a martini while the rain falls" than you're imagining. work visa situations for freelance performers are notoriously complicated and the white monkey gig economy is real but it's more like "stand next to our product launch" than smoky lounge energy
genuinely curious though. have you looked into the actual visa pathway for performing artists? because i feel like that's the thing that derails this before the fedora even gets its moment