Manual workers were paid ~£14 a week which is £700 a year. Clerical workers in the governments employ get just shy of £800 a year.
Your musician is earning approximately a third of your manual labourer.
Let's put that into modern day money, where £25K is the rate for a person that shuffles paper across a desk for some government. Would some musician really be earning all of ~£8.5K a year for their role in an orchestra?
The British critic probably was thinking in pounds, shillings and pence, not USD. Therefore, that $1600, at exchange rates of 1960 was £560.
Divide by two, how does £280 compare to salaries of 1960?
http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/written_answers/1960/nov/...
Manual workers were paid ~£14 a week which is £700 a year. Clerical workers in the governments employ get just shy of £800 a year.
Your musician is earning approximately a third of your manual labourer.
Let's put that into modern day money, where £25K is the rate for a person that shuffles paper across a desk for some government. Would some musician really be earning all of ~£8.5K a year for their role in an orchestra?
The answer is probably yes!!!