The short answerA musician resume is a one-page summary of your experience as a player. List your contact details, instruments and styles, then your performance experience, recording credits, training and teaching, with the most recent and most relevant work first. Link to a live video, and tailor it to each audition or job.
A musician resume is different from a band's electronic press kit. An EPK sells an act to venues and press. A resume sells you, the individual player, to whoever is hiring: a band holding auditions, a producer booking session players, a music school, a church, a cruise line or a teaching studio.
Below you'll find what to include, a template you can copy, a filled-in example and the mistakes that get resumes ignored.
When do you need a musician resume?
More often than you'd think. Common situations include:
- Auditions for established bands, touring acts and theater pit orchestras
- Session and hired-gun work, where a producer or artist wants to know your credits
- Teaching jobs at music stores, schools and lesson studios
- Music school and college applications
- Worship teams, cruise ships, theme parks and wedding bands
If you're mostly playing in your own band, an EPK matters more. If you're looking to join other projects or get paid as a player, the resume is your calling card.
What to include on a musician resume
Contact details and links
Your name, city, phone and email at the top, plus links to a live video, your website or profile, and one or two places where people can hear you play.
Instruments and skills
Your main instrument first, then doubles (for example, guitar plus mandolin and backing vocals). Add the styles you can play convincingly, whether you read standard notation or charts, and any useful technical skills like DAW experience or running in-ear monitor rigs.
Performance experience
The core of the resume. List bands, projects, residencies, tours and notable shows, newest first. For each, include the role, the dates and one line about what stands out: venue sizes, notable support slots or festival appearances.
Recording credits
Albums, EPs, singles and session work, with the artist, your role and the year. Link to the strongest ones.
Education and training
Degrees, music school, private study with notable teachers, and workshops or certifications.
Teaching experience
Where you've taught, what ages and levels, and for how long.
References
One or two people who've hired you or played with you, or "references available on request."
Musician resume template
Copy this and fill it in:
YOUR NAME
Instrument(s) · City · phone · email
Live video: link · Website or profile: link
INSTRUMENTS AND SKILLS
Main instrument; doubles; styles; reading (notation / charts); tech skills
PERFORMANCE EXPERIENCE
Band or project, role, years
One line on venues, tours, notable shows
Band or project, role, years
One line on venues, tours, notable shows
RECORDING CREDITS
Artist, release, your role, year
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
School or teacher, program, years
TEACHING
Studio or school, levels taught, years
REFERENCES
Name, relationship, contact (or "available on request")
Musician resume example
Here's a short, made-up example for a guitarist auditioning for a touring indie band:
ALEX RIVERA
Guitar, backing vocals · Austin, TX · (555) 010-0199 · alex@example.com
Live video: link · Profile: link
INSTRUMENTS AND SKILLS
Electric and acoustic guitar; backing vocals; indie, alt-rock, pop, country
Reads chord charts and Nashville numbers; plays to click and tracks; Ableton Live
PERFORMANCE EXPERIENCE
The Lowlights, lead guitar, 2022 to present
Regional touring in Texas and the Southwest, 300 to 800 cap rooms
Downtown wedding band, guitar and vocals, 2020 to 2023
80+ private events, 4-hour sets, wide covers repertoire
RECORDING CREDITS
The Lowlights, "Late Signal" EP, guitar, 2024
Session guitar on 6 singles for local artists, 2021 to 2025
TEACHING
Local music store lesson studio, beginner and intermediate guitar, 2019 to 2022
REFERENCES
Available on request
Tips for a musician resume that gets callbacks
- Keep it to one page. Cut anything that doesn't help with this specific job.
- Tailor it every time. Put your country gigs first for a country audition and your pit work first for a musical.
- Show, don't tell. A link to a live video does more than any adjective.
- Use numbers where you can: shows played, venue capacities, years taught.
- Keep the design simple. Clear headings and plenty of white space beat graphics.
Musician resume vs portfolio
A resume lists your experience. A musician portfolio shows it: recordings, videos, charts and photos collected in one place. Most working players have both, with the resume linking to the portfolio.
That's the idea behind a Mixstro profile. It keeps your whole history in one place, including the bands and projects you've played in, your role and years in each, and the music you made with them. So when someone's looking for band members, they can see what you've actually done.
FAQ
What should a musician put on a resume?
Contact details, instruments and skills, performance experience, recording credits, education, teaching and references, plus a link to a live video.
How long should a musician resume be?
One page for most players. Experienced session musicians sometimes add a second page listing credits.
Should I include non-music jobs on a musician resume?
Usually not, unless they're relevant, like sound engineering, stage management or teaching. For general job applications, use a regular resume and mention music in a skills or interests section.
Do I need a musician resume if I'm in a band?
It helps. Bands break up and lineups change, and a resume makes it easy to land your next project, session or teaching gig.