Careers In Premiere Military Bands

Transcription

1 Careers In Premiere Military Bands Lecture at Texas Christian University MUCS Jarrod Williams 21 September 2015 We re going to talk about Careers in Premiere Military Bands. What is it? Why is it? Differences between premiere and fleet/field/post bands. I contacted friends of mine in the Air Force Ceremonial, Army Ceremonial, Air Force Band, Navy Band, Marine Band, Army Field Band, and West Point Band and discussed what their daily life is like. What s great. What s not great. Things like this have been covered many times over the years in the Journal, but when you have to affix your name to a printed document, things tend to get a bit sanitized. By reaching out to people directly, redacting names and running their comments through me, we can get closer to reality. We ll go over some dry, but important stuff such as pay and benefits. We ll talk about auditioning. We ll talk about the military aspect of the job. We ll talk about creative opportunities outside of normal working hours. Please feel free to ask questions at any time. This is more a conversation than lecture. Premiere vs. Field/Fleet/Post For me, what defines a premiere band isn t playing ability, it s E6 entry paygrade, permanent duty, direct assignment to your band, and mission of the band. Take the Navy for example there are 11 bands: two premiere and nine fleet. The Washington, DC band has a national touring mission, White House support, and Arlington National Cemetery support. The Naval Academy band supports the brigade of midshipmen and the Mid Atlantic region with the exception of the National Capital Region (the DC Beltway). These two bands have permanent duty assignment, meaning that you will spend your entire career serving in one place. Fleet bands around the world support their AOR (Area of Responsibility) and advance the foreign policy of the United States through cultural and musical diplomacy. These players serve the needs of the Navy and will rotate between the nine fleet bands approximately every three years.

2 Auditioning: The average age of applicants for the Army Ceremonial Band is 28. Twenty eight. Most people have their bachelors and masters degrees and some professional experience. At the Naval Academy, it s the same. Of the 38 people we have serving at the Academy, 29 have a masters degree. Four of us have doctorates. That s not to say that level of education is required, it just demonstrates the experience level of people auditioning for military band jobs. The following chart is a breakdown of current players in premiere bands and their current time in service. Premiere Band Players and current (2015) years of service Of the 38 jobs, 15 are in or within five years of retirement at 20 years. Vacancies, though rare, will be there. Regarding auditioning, in a nutshell: prepare, prepare, prepare! Have solid fundamentals and quality sound. Know the literature the same excerpts appear again and again. The more you know, the less you ll be sight reading when you get to that round. Having sat on over 30 audition panels at the Naval Academy and also on ~10 mock audition panels for college students, the constant problem is people don t have the standard literature mastered.

3 Pay and Benefits The charts that follow show your monthly pay and allotments before taxes. Why are there two charts? What does that mean? Your pay is taxable, but your allotments aren t. When a job is advertised in the $60,000 range, you ll only be taxed on about $30,000. This is significant Pay Scale 2015 Housing Pay Allotment 2015 Sustenance Pay Allotment : 367 Yearly active duty pay (all numbers are with dependants): 2015 E6 starting salary (Annapolis) : $60, E7 at 10 years of service (Annapolis) : $76, E8 at 15 years of service (Annapolis) : $85, E9 at 20 years of service (Annapolis) : $102,972 Though it seems like a long way off, thinking about retirement can shape your decisions on whether you stay in and how hard you try to gain promotion. The following charts show what your pay would be in retirement should you retire today at the most junior paygrade that rates retirement (E6 at 20 years) and also at the most senior paygrade (E9 at 30 years). Different paygrades are allowed to stay in service different lengths of time. In the Navy, an E6 can stay no longer than 20 years; an E7 no longer than 24 years; an E8 no longer than 26 years; an E9 no longer than 30 years.

4 Compare the remuneration of the military music community with top orchestras. Consider the stability of both sectors. E6 retirement in 2015 (20 years of service) E9 retirement in 2015 (30 years of service) As you can see, there is a significant difference in your retirement pay based on what paygrade you achieve through promotion. Benefits: Full medical benefits for you and your dependents. Full dental benefits for you: subsidized dental care for your family. College loan repayment. This fluctuates greatly, but at times has been up to $65,000 in college loan repayments. Post 9/11 GI Bill. This is huge. Huge. Also, a bit complicated. I believe this site has the most concise packaging of information: For me, the best part of the 9/11 GI Bill is the ability to transfer the benefit to your dependants. With the passing of this bill, both my children got half of their college paid for. Instantaneously.

5 Tuition Assistance. Varies between services, but simply described, it allows you to further your education while on active duty at a subsidized cost. The Navy will pay up to $250 per credit hour for 16 credit hours per year for virtually every degree except a doctorate. There are many other smaller programs, but I feel these are the most important. Promotion: How do you get promoted? Not through playing your instrument, but through collateral duties. In my last ten years in the Navy, there hasn t been a single word about my playing on my annual performance review. Why? Remember that you are in the minority when you re in the service. Of the 325,000 people serving in the Navy, only ~680 are musicians. The entire system is set up to further the military mission, not the musical. Here are some collateral duties to choose from: Administration Operations Supply Public Affairs Unit Leader Command Fitness Leader Command Financial Specialist Career Counselor Duties outside the band: Urinalysis Program Coordinator, Pistol Team Coach, Crew Coach, Marathon/Cycling Team Enlisted Representative, Radio Station Enlisted Representative Boot Camp: Not required for the Coast Guard Band or the Marine Band. Boot Camp should be a non factor in your decision whether to audition for a military band. Thousands upon thousands of people have made it through military boot camp. You can, too. By this point, boot camp represents.8% of my military career. It will be over with before you know it. Physical Requirements for Service: These are different depending on the branch of service. Willingness to accept an active lifestyle is paramount for success in a military band. You don t have to be an athlete, but you must meet standards for a 1.5 mile run, situps, and pushups. Also, you must be in body composition standards. Either by weight or body fat percentage, you must be below the maximum listed for your age and gender. A simple google search will yield specific data for each branch of service.

6 You are tested twice yearly for body composition and physical fitness. In the Navy, three failed tests in four years will separate you from service. Daily Life in the Band: Ceremonial: minutes of preliminary music followed by minutes of speeches and occasionally a brief postlude. This is commonly coupled with a short travel commitment. Depending on the situation, these can be very brief or take all day. Marching: You will stand beneath a sousaphone It s part of the gig. Jobs like the Army Ceremonial Band are nearly 100% sousaphone. The Army Field Band may go months or years between sousaphone jobs. Chamber: Quintet and Brass Ensembles fill both ceremonial and musical roles. Depending on the situation, you ll perform a ceremonial function just like a ceremony band or you ll play cutting edge music of your choice in recital. It varies. Concert Band: Again, it varies by job. For my first 18 years at the Naval Academy, I played concert band concerts per year, indoors and outdoors. Since our recent restructuring and reduction of people, I will play zero; we don t have enough people for a concert band. Each band (other than the Army and Air Force Ceremonial) have winter and summer concert series in addition to their month long national tours. Soloist: It s on you to make it happen. This isn t a core mission of any of the bands, but most support a recital series at local venues. That covers the musical life, now for the military life. Regardless of service, you need to realize You. Are. In. The. Military. The Navy currently has over 325,000 sailors serving, of which ~680 are musicians. This is a very, very small percentage. Realize you are serving the mission of your service first and your own personal mission second and you be much happier. There are military education and training obligations that must be met. Many of which are neither challenging nor time consuming, but are required. They may have zero applicability to what you do for the service you are in, but they are required and they will be completed.

7 Touring: (Tour=gone from home overnight) Naval Academy: I have been gone 15 days in the past 19 years. (Yes, years.) Air Force, Army, Marine, and Navy Band: ~30 day tour annually. Army Field Band: 100 days a year (not consecutive) West Point: depending on the unit, days. People who tour regularly have mixed feelings. While it is difficult being away from family and the routine of daily life, it s very rewarding to play music for enthusiastic audiences across the country. For many civilians, you, as a military musician, represent the thousands of soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines deployed around the world. It is a strong connection. Extremes Best of gigs: Concert Band with Leonard Slatkin/Gunther Schuller/John Williams/etc.. Performing in great halls around the country. Collaborating with top orchestras and soloists. Being a part of the history of our country. Quintet in recital at universities and conferences. Working with university students and young children. Giving back to the next generation of performers. Worst of gigs: Anything in extreme weather (35 degrees/wind/rain/snow/100 degrees). Super early departures. Super late getting home. Last minute schedule changes. (When you re single, it s one thing; married with children in school is another) Outside Interests: Ceremonial units (Army Ceremonial/Air Force Ceremonial) have a more 9 5/Monday Friday job. This allows for more quality family time, consistent availability for pay gigs and students, and a sense of routine. Other groups have more erratic working hours. At the Naval Academy, I ve played duty jobs as early as 0545 and as late as 2300 on every day of the week. The only constant is the lack of constant. Here s a list of what folks do in off duty hours:

8 Triathlons Ironman Marathons Cycling Outside groups Grammy winners orchestra subbing Brass Band Tons of hobbies So there it is, warts and all. If anything is not clear, or you require additional information, contact me at anytime through my website: Best of luck!