The thesis analyses the career opportunities of Slovenian academic musicians of guitar, guitar professors, and other classical musicians, as they differ only in certain aspects. Firstly, the general possibilities for classical musicians in general are presented. Here, we used a classification into three possible categories: performers, non-performers, and integrative musicians, and examined what each one of them represents. These are then connected and compared with the specific options for classical guitarists, followed by an overview of their artistic opportunities in Slovenia. Furthermore, the characteristics of music education for 21stcentury academic musicians are explored. Firstly, we outlined the Slovenian music education system and compared two second-cycle programs at the Academy of Music, University of Ljubljana (UL AM): Musical Art and Instrumental Education. Secondly, we explored the success of young musicians in their independent work within the 21st-century music market. In the empirical part, we presented our own survey, which was based on a questionnaire targeting Slovenian classical guitarists who have already completed their education. We examined various aspects including: - the career options chosen by academic guitar musicians and the reasons for them, - the extent and methods of artistic engagement among classical guitarists in Slovenia and internationally, - the extent of pedagogical activities undertaken by academic guitarists, - potential activities in other non-musical fields and other music genres, - motivations driving individuals to pursue a professional career in classical guitar, - challenges within music education and proposed solutions, - potential enhancements to career opportunities for classical guitarists. Particularly noticeable in our findings was the prevalence of pedagogical activities among the participants in the survey. Alongside this, we observed a relatively high percentage of artistic engagement. However, it's noteworthy that for the majority of respondents, this artistic activity does not serve as their primary source of income and is pursued to a lesser extent. Approximately half of the respondents are also involved in other music genres. Participants exhibited enthusiasm for their own guitar playing, with minimal to no signs of regret regarding this engagement. Several potential enhancements in music education were brought to attention, notably the integration of broader musical and non-musical subjects into the curriculum of standard programs. In terms of enhancing the career prospects of our guitarists, besides advancing education, the aspect most emphasized was fostering greater collaboration among musicians and securing increased support from media and government for professionally trained musicians.
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