The curious thing I’ve noticed about studying jazz at university, is that it sells all the glamour of becoming a jazz star, but largely ignores the skills needed to be an actual working musician.
Now far be it from someone who’s moniker is the Professor to criticize the jazz education industry (and make no mistake—it is an industry). Instead, I’d like to tell you a little about my four months on a cruise ship after graduating from music school, working in the nine-piece show band.
The show band is perhaps the last bastion of old-school variety entertainment, where a young musician can learn real-life musical skills. I fondly think of it as my finishing school.
The gig consisted of performing six nights a week, reading dog-eared charts that travelled the world, with decades’ worth of pencil scribble... wow... if those charts could talk! (They’d probably say burn me now).
It was boot camp for sight reading and doubling- from classical flute solos to big band lead alto, playing cha-chas, waltzes, old popular tunes, backing opera singers, comedians, Chinese acrobats... you name it. It was old school vaudeville with a dose of Dramamine.
And music was only part of the job... you were also part of the crew. (Many of you would be familiar with jazz cruises, where musicians have passenger status. That’s not the case if you’re in the show band.) And as one of the crew, extr
