Leeds Conservatoire BA Popular Year One Research portfolio
After I graduate from Leeds Conservatoire, I aspire to be a working professional in the creative industries. There are thousands of full time jobs in the music industry that exist in the year 2025, some require various qualifications and experience more so than others. The job that I have decided to research for this portfolio project is the job of a musical theatre pianist, specifically in the London west end collection of theatre venues.
I am personally a big fan of musical theatre. I have seen many productions including; Grease, Back To The Future the musical, Tina Turner the musical, Hades town and The Producers. Almost all professional musical productions will have a live band. They normally perform out of sight of the audience in a ‘pit’ in front of or below the stage. In the past, it was necessary to have live performers playing music in theatres to produce a high quality sound. Although in the modern day recorded music and playback technology has improved significantly, most audience members would admit that they prefer to experience music being played live as it adds to the experience and helps to justify the ticket price. Musical theatre is a very profitable industry, the London west end generates an average of £1 billion a year in net profit. Therefore, it is obvious that many performing musicians are using this as there entire income or are using it to contribute towards this. Another reason why live bands are necessary in theatres is that the songs are often broken up with dialogue and scenes. Occasionally the band will vamp on a chord while something is happening on stage and then wait for a cue to continue the song. Musical tunes are often statistically complex with time signature and tempo changes. This is why live bands are preferable over recordings.
I was inspired to write this research portfolio as I happen to have a personal connection to someone in this profession, Johnathan Pilkington is a family friend that although is now retired, spent over thirty years working full time in the west end in London. I decided to interview Pilkington to obtain some detailed insight in what it is like to work in this industry.
Interview between Raphael Frost and Jonathan Pilkington on Monday the 24th of November 2025, 15:00-16:00. Location: Costa Coffee Stony Stratford High Street, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire
Raphael: “How did you first get into performing in the west end?”
Johnathan: “I was working in a music shop in London in 1981 called Charles’ pianos and strings, tuning pianos and teaching students. […] A man walked into the shop and told me that there was a production company in town auditioning musicians that day for a show called ‘Pound’, I went along and sight read some pieces and a few days later they told me I had got the part.[…]
There were two weeks of rehearsals and then the show ran for twelve nights, during that time in introduced myself to every musician and musical director in sight, just to get my name out there.”
Raphael: “What qualifications did you need to get these jobs?”
Johnathan: “I studied music at the University of Lincoln in the sixties, but I never used my certificate to get work, it all came down to the audition. […] if you could play the parts and work well in the band you got the job. The more shows I did the more experience I had and there was more to put on my CV”
Raphael: “What was the daily life like working in the west end”
Johnathan: “Most shows would have about four to six weeks of rehearsals with just the band, then about two weeks with the cast and crew. But the first few performance nights still felt like rehearsals to me. A handful of times I would get called in last minute to substitute in for someone in a different show who couldn’t make it on the day. […] that was a real thrill, sightreading a whole show in front of two thousand people.”
This interview was very valuable and provided me with a lot of insight into the profession. However I am aware that times have changed a lot since then, and the industry has had to adapt over the years. Arguably the biggest impact of live theatre is the rising popularity of the internet since the start of the twenty first century, particularly its impact on networking and digital marketing.
Academic, professional qualifications
Qualities and attributes required for this profession
Pit bands come in all shapes and sizes. For a popular west end show the average is about fifteen musicians. Musicians will almost always learn their parts from sheet music as it is a fast and efficient method. Therefore, being able to read music to a high level is a necessity. It is highly unlikely that a musician will learn to play the songs by ear as it can take a very long time. I personally practice sheet music and sight reading daily. I have found it to be the most efficient method for learing songs for large ensembles. Before home media devices like CDs and Ipods, most musicians would have to learn to sight read as learning music by ear was not an option all the time. The songs are usually written as fixed parts, with little to no improvisation. Therefore the musicians must be able to play the parts consistently and accurately. As there are often a lot of musicians in the band, a conductor is often used. In certain situations, the pianist will take on the roll of the conductor or the musical director. This is only practical if the piano score is not already too complicated. For complicated scores, the conductor will likely be a stand alone role. Leeds Conservatoire has opportunities to take part in large ensembles such as the orchestra or pit band. Although I have not yet had any experience taking part in any of these. I hope to use my time studying here to gain some experience in this field.
Musicians are expensive, so companies will try to save money by employing people who can play multiple instruments. Brass and woodwind players are often asked to learn and play multiple different instruments for a show. Known as ‘doubling’. A pianist should be able to turn his hands to many different keyboard instruments. The most common are synthesizer, organ, harpsichord and celeste. In certain situations a pianist might even have to play accordion or tuned percussion. Therefore, it is incredibly valuable to be a multi-instrumentalist as you will be more appealing to production companies that are looking to bring complicated scores to life. Being a multi instrumentalist is a very valuable skill. In the world of gigs anything can happen, and sometimes a crucial musician might not be able to make it to the performance. Being able to play one or two additional instruments can drastically increase your employability level.
How much do theatre pianists get paid?
The answer is that is depends on experience, and from show to show. The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) governs the minimum rates that musicians are paid for their work. In September 2024 it was reported that a musician playing a single instrument once per night in London would receive £1183.74 per week. Whereas a musician playing four instruments in a show twice per day would receive £2217.45. This is before tax after all. If a musician is working full time or part time for a company then it is the employers responsibility to calculate tax deductions. However many musicians are self employed and are what is known as freelancers. This means they are not tied to a single company for their income and can spread their time across multiple clients to create their income. There are huge advantages to doing this for a working musician, including more control over scheduling and more choice of the work they get to do. But the duties surrounding tax calculations are passed on to the musician. In my career I am hoping to at some point become a freelancing musician as I really like freedom and flexibility.
How to market oneself
During my conversation with Jonathan Pilkington, I learned about a time before the internet. However networking and self promotion were still very much important. During the dark ages, it was quite commonplace to advertise oneself in trades magazines or newspapers. (The equivalent of the yellow pages for musicians) but word of mouth was a very powerful thing. As it is still to this day. Many musicians play in public places like bars and hotels to gather attention. It is quite possible that a producer might be looking for someone like you. In the modern age, we have the internet and social media to let people know what we are about. But just having a website does not guarantee that people will discover it. In person promotion is a more powerful form of networking. Many west end musicians get their start by offering to sit in on performances. Essentially ‘shadowing’ the rest of the band. In doing so, it becomes possible to get to know the other performers and if possible exchange details. Enabling them to share opportunities with you when they arise. Many working professionals have come to Leeds Conservatoire in the first semester to gives talks on their career and workflow. They will almost always have a website that displays their unique selling point and their previous experience. A website should be very direct and to the point about explaining who you are and why people should hire you. Including your contact details is also very important. Many musicians have told me that it is better to give out your phone number to people that you meet rather than just your email. This is because many musicians are hired for last minute jobs and sometimes people do not have the time to wait for someone to reply to an email.
Travelling to perform is a great way to get your name out there. In a given city, especially a small one, there is a limited number of musical opportunities. Travelling to new cities will significantly increase the number of people you are likely to come across.
Career progression and development
London is the home city for grand scale musical theatre in the UK. However many shows that are successful in London will travel the UK in an effort to reach a wider audience and make more money. Theatre pianists will likely have ample opportunity to travel and perform. This is something I have a great deal of interest in as I enjoy traveling and I would like to do so and get paid at the same time. Some successful shows will even breach the boarders of the UK and go on to perform in mainland Europe and possibly the rest of the world. Broadway in New York City is another famous location for musical theatre. Becoming a successful musician is partly down to your practice and ability level but also down to being in the so called ‘right place and the right time’.
Some musicals are adapted into films. These films normally put a lot of effort into the music production as it is their unique selling point. Recording music for film and television can be a way of progressing in this career as it leeds to more work opportunities. The film industry is responsible for more global income than any other form of entertainment. Many high budget films are released every year and most will have a bespoke written musical score.
Bibliography
(No date) The state of british theatre in 2025: Growth, risk and the urgent need. Available at: https://uktheatre.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/05/SOLTUKT-State-Of-British-Theatre.pdf (Accessed: 24 November 2025).
West End Theatre Musicians: Advice & Guidance (no date) The Musicians’ Union. Available at: https://musiciansunion.org.uk/working-performing/theatre-work/working-in-the-west-end (Accessed: 24 November 2025).
Solt & Mu Agreement for Musicians (no date) The Musicians’ Union. Available at: https://musiciansunion.org.uk/working-performing/theatre-work/theatre-agreements-and-rates-of-pay/the-society-of-london-theatre-west-end-of-london-agreement (Accessed: 24 November 2025).
Emery, R. (2021) Behind the scenes in a west-end show: Part I, www.robertemery.com. Available at: https://www.robertemery.com/backstage/behind-the-scenes-in-a-west-end-show-part-one (Accessed: 27 December 2025).
Shenton, M. (2022) Mark Shenton’s favourite musical theatre performers: Leading men of the west end, London Theatre. Available at: https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatre-news/news/mark-shentons-favourite-musical-theatre-performers-leading-men-of-the (Accessed: 27 December 2025).
