Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Army Band "Pershing's Own" Tuba Vacancy


[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ TubeNet BBS ] [ FAQ ]

Posted by Sean Chisham on March 29, 2002 at 10:38:09:

In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Army Band "Pershing's Own" Tuba Vacancy posted by Jay on March 28, 2002 at 21:31:18:

The US Government and politics and military are more about image than substance. The image is sometimes formed from the substance, but usually from the politics itself.

If you read page 1 of the Army Weight Control Program pdf file I linked to you can see than some of the main points the Army out are a fit appearance, health, and stamina to perform effectivelly. When the Washington, DC bands perform ceremonies they are usually standing next to 19-24 year old infantry guys who are among the most fit in the military. Those infantry guys are chosen in no small part due to appearance. They are supposed to convey strength through appearance to foreign dignitaries who are visiting and witnessing the ceremony. Have you ever watched a foreign ceremony from a third world country where their military people are fat and wearing their uniforms sloppily? I have and what sticks in my head is a lack of decipline and lack of readiness to carry out their mission. Those people on TV might have just been a pool of military admin file clerks pulled out of work to hold a rifle for TV, but they looked bad. The world saw it and formed an opinion. All politics.

Every band in the military from the US Marine Band to the 82nd Airborne Band have to meet weight restrictions. The US Marine Band is the only one I know of which does not have any other physical requirements such as a PT test, but they are still very strict on weight. Imagine the President entertaining the leader of China with a string quartet in the background playing for the dinner and the first violin weighed 300lbs and was wearing a US Marine Corp uniform!

On a sidenote. Most military units have organized physical training where the whole unit has to get together several times per week and exercise. We don't do that in DC bands. As long as you pass the tests twice per year, you are trusted to do whatever you want as far as exercise goes. If that means eating Ho Ho's for dinner and only running 4 miles per year is what it takes, than good for you. For myself and a large if not majority of the band it means watching the scale carefully and preparation twice per year for a test we almost all hate.

The upside is that the job is well worth it and more. The Ceremonial Band is probably tied with the Air Force Cereminial Band in the least musically fulfilling category, but the schedule is great. Very rarely do you work nights as most ceremonies are done by 4:00pm. It is not uncommon to have a day or two each week were you are not needed and can stay home. Like a free vacation day. The Army gives you 30 days vacation each year. When you do work, it is typically for only around 4 hours that day. You start out as an E-6, which is about $36,500-$41,700 per year. That is military pay which is taxed waaaaaaaay less than civilian pay. For example, I am payed at the very bottom of the chart right now. I have been in for less than 2 years and am getting non-dependant BAH. My take home pay, twice per month, is around $1,300/paycheck. That comes out to around $31,000/year take home. If my gross was $36,500 and my net is $31,200, than you can see that the tax breaks are awesome. This is a military thing. There are details as to how that happens but I won't get into them right now.

A little over a year before I auditioned I was around 40lbs over the limit to stay in the Army. I made an effort to loose most of the weight. Took about 6 months of hard work, but it was way worth it.

The weight requirements to join to Army and those to stay in are different. You can be a good deal over the weight limit and still go off to basic training. You will loose it there. My current max weight is 194lbs. Going into basic training I could have weighed something like 225.

Music jobs are so scarce, that it is difficult to justify turning down a decent paying one because it means keeping weight off and staying in minimum physical shape. If you win the San Francisco Symphony gig, than all the power to you. If you don't, than work hard on that "second" career field.

sean



Follow Ups: