joseph1088933 + Musician in Rising Sun, MD

SEEKING

ABOUT

Big Band Musicians & Vocalists Wanted

If you enjoy playing in a Big Band & doing tunes from the 1920’s forward, this may be an opportunity you wish to explore. The is a brand new Band & will be based & rehearse in the North Eastern part of Maryland. This is not intended to be a “Rehearsal” Band but a paid performing band with good/great players. What is required from selected personnel is professionalism, punctuality, competence on your instrument, confidence, enthusiasm, corroboration amongst each other, at least a good level of sight reading ability, & a real desire to be a part of a great band. Any professional experience will be a plus as well. What will be provided will be a Fun, Varied, Enjoyable, Sometimes very challenging Book, a Rehearsal Venue, Professional Leadership, Marketing, a Sound System, & as much work and exposure as I can get for us. Should things progress & blossom into a full time band, you will be asked to make a larger commitment to the band, accepting the additional responsibility & remaining with the band. As with any Big Band, there will be several folks deep on each chair in case of emergencies or sickness. No one is irreplaceable, no matter your skill level. It is not easy to get 20 or so folks to get along with each other given different backgrounds, upbringing, etc. but it is Paramount that all members of the band maintain mutual respect for each other. Hopefully all minimal discrepancies can be worked out amongst yourselves. Major issues will be dealt with on an individual basis with the Bands’ best interest always coming first. Any bad apples will be removed from the band promptly. This is a large investment of work, time & money for all of us, especially a giant undertaking for me putting this all together to make it happen, but will be a very rewarding & well worth all of our effort.

The Chairs of the band to be filled will be as follows: Alto Sax I, Alto Sax II, Tenor Sax I, Tenor Sax II, Baritone Sax (All Sax chairs should be proficient doublers – soprano, clarinet and or flute - as necessitated by the music we will be performing), Trombone I, Trombone II, Trombone III, & Trombone IV (Bass Trombone), Trumpet I, Trumpet II, Trumpet III, Trumpet IV, Piano (Synthesizer) Bass, Guitar, Drum Set, Female Vocalist (Alto/Mezzo) & Male Vocalist (Baritone) (Vocalists should have a happy, engaging stage presence, professional attire, attractive appearance, & good musicianship).

Auditions will be held for all chairs one section at a time, at times convenient for everyone in the Rising Sun, MD area. Attire will be discussed at this time as well as your expectations. The band is in a location making it accessible to folks in the Philadelphia, Baltimore & Lancaster areas alike. You will be required to sight read, improvise, & demonstrate your facility and interpretation in various genres. Section leaders/managers will be appointed & will not necessarily be the first chair player of each section. It may be beneficial in achieving our goal for sectional rehearsals at times outside of the entire bands’ rehearsal time in which case the section leader will orchestrate that. Sectional rehearsals should be very minimal, if at all, since everyones’ reading proficiency will be at a good or higher level.

This is a Ground Floor opportunity to start a journey making music as a big band. Some of the last of the Big Bands went out of existence in the early to mid 1980’s & were actually known as territory bands back then. I was fortunate enough to cut my teeth right out of college in one of those bands roaming the Mid West & the Western United States doing one nighters bouncing to a different state every day. It was exciting & a great learning experience musically as well as culturally. So you see, not only am I the band leader, but I am also a lifelong pro player and I will take some turns playing as well as leading. There are no limits to what we can do together. We will always strive for excellence & be the very best band we can. I am not one to ever settle for doing anything half assed and neither should you. We all have a great gift from God to make folks smile, tap their feet, & dance. Let’s work together and see how many people we can touch.

If you would like to inquire about being a part of my band, you can submit your interest to me at Saxman1958zoominternet. Please put “Big Band Interest” in the subject so your e-mail is not deleted with other junk mail. Resumes (please indicate any writing/arranging skills you may have here) & photos as attachments are welcome at this initial interest stage. All interested parties need to be at least 18 years old. I look forward to meeting each & every one of you, working with you, & developing a Big Band with which we will be able to offer much delight & happiness to our listeners as well as putting some jingle in our pockets. A love of music is mandatory.

Screen name:

joseph1088933

Member since:

Sep 05 2015

Active over 1 month ago

Level of commitment:

Very Committed

Years playing music:

40

Gigs played:

Over 100

Tend to practice:

More than 3 times per week

Available to gig:

6-7 nights a week

Most available:

Days