“They give you a piece that’s really hard, and if you do really well on that one, you get to play another piece, and then maybe you do really well on that one, you get to play another piece. And she was on the sixth excerpt, and then she messed up and missed a note. And then it’s like, thank you very much.” Think you face a tough job market? Try playing violin for a living. Even in smaller markets, there are often hundreds of talented people competing for a single position that will barely pay enough to cover a student loan. From PBS/Newshour: Performing Artists Compete, Move, Adapt in Tough Economy.