i hear so much complaining about this subject, i just wanted to lay my practical experience on you. free.

first, three pre-conditions:

1. if you are a very materialistic person, skip this article, i don't think you are going to like what it says.
2. if you don't have the music where you want it art-wise, you might want to go work on that, this article isn't going to help you much either. you will be better off by practicing and studying and working on your music instead. you will need to get the art pretty close to where you want it, before you should worry about making much of a living out of it.
3. determine if you are actually called to be a musician. if you aren't called, all the gyrations in the world, won't make it work. if you are called, no matter what you do, it's going to work. this determination will solve most of the problems you are going to encounter.

assuming these three conditions are met, you are financially workable and you have the music where you want it and you are surely called into the art, here goes, in no particular order as i am wont:

every now and then, i play on the street. it's pretty fun thing to do.

one of the cool things about it, if you do a fair amount of regular gigs in a year, and record your own music and stuff and practice and take lessons and all that, usually when you open the instrument case, there's a reason for it. so, to just take a banjo and go stand down on the corner and pick for God is really cool. it's not really a money thing, sometimes i don't even put a hat or box or whatever out there, and just play and in the middle of a song when someone is trying to put a dollar somewhere i just shake my head no. sometimes i do put a box out or receptacle of some kind. depends on the mood.

hey here's a bit of inspiration for you and something to think about all at the same time. an oft mentioned essay from 1958, and one of the primary influences on the folktronic approach.

venue:
highline ballroom in manhattan june 20, 2008, 8:45 pm for one hour