Perspectives on the Career Path of Musicians in the Padang Besar Border Area of Sadao District, Songkhla Province

Abstract

This qualitative research aimed to study the perspectives and career paths of musicians in the Padang Besar border area, Songkhla Province. Data were collected by in-depth interviews with 20 people who had experience in the musician career in this area, obtained using the snowball technique. The research instrument was a semi-structured interview that experts assessed as being appropriate and valid, and the accuracy of the data was checked by triangulation. Data were analyzed using content analysis and categorized for presentation. The research results found that the perspectives on the career paths of musicians in the Padang Besar border area were divided into 6 aspects: 1) The path to becoming a musician, which mostly comes from liking and having musical talent as capital 2) The nature of the career can be both full-time and freelance work 3) Qualifications and compensation will be considered based on the skills, experience, personality, and age of the musician as specified by the employer 4) Problems and obstacles of the musician career are uncertain income and no welfare. When getting older or having               a family, they will be less popular 5) Self-development is mostly about practicing, learning to play new musical instruments, and finding ways to increase income. However, the development is not systematic. There should be a group in a club, association, or network to create group power to help each other and 6) Creating a family and quality of life is something that everyone wants. But the income is still not stable and not enough. Some people choose to be a musician as a secondary career to increase their income. The findings of this research can be used to plan and set policies to help musicians and other careers in the area very well.