Of all the characteristics that a cruise ship musician must possess, I'm learning that one of the most paramount is the ability to concentrate. Have A.D.D.? Don't bother trying to play a cruise ship gig. I may not work many hours in the day, but, I can guarantee you that the work I do takes a combination of expertise, patience, versatility, and most of all concentration. Concentration is key.
There are several sets on the ship gig that repeat weekly. The music for the production shows, Captain's Cocktail Hour, and Big Band performances are roughly, or in the case of the production shows, exactly the same each week. However, on the bigger ships, another role played by the house orchestra is the back up band for various headliner acts. These acts are usually singers (though, sometimes multi-instrumentalists) with their own arrangements. We typically have one rehearsal in the afternoon around 5:00 pm followed by shows at 7:00 and 9:00 pm. Almost all of the time this is new music that the band has never seen before. We are expected to read it at the rehearsal and play as if we've been playing with the headliner for years at the concerts that evening.
Sight-reading has never been that big of a deal to me. I've developed the skill over the years through school and on the freelancing gig trail. It's challenging and fun to read music for the first time and to have the pressure of performing it well with very little rehearsal, but, that's not the toughest part of this. Even though playing music for a living is often fun and very rewarding there are times when we end up playing music I'm not that fond of. Some nights you're playing Motown's Greatest Hits. Some nights you're playing a Can Can Medley. As my friend says, "The gig road has many a strange turn."
This is where concentration comes in. Even if the music is easy to read, I still have to pay strict attention to what's going on. I mean, mistakes by horn players are pretty glaring. I have to make sure that I don't play in a rest or play a note out of the key signature. Even if the audience doesn't necessarily notice, my band mates will for sure. Then I'll have to pay a beer fine…and nobody wants that. Except the band, sorta.
My point is, sometimes the hardest thing to do when reading these shows is concentrating for 50+ minutes and trying to be perfect musically. Rhythmic and note accuracy, intonation, and dynamics. Those are somewhat second nature to me at this point. The hard part is maintaining my focus for that long. Imagine playing catch with someone. Pretty easy, right? It involves a few different skills, but, it's not that hard. Now do it for 50 minutes without dropping a catch or making a bad throw. That's a somewhat lame, but, appropriate analogy.
Sometimes I think it's even harder as a horn player. Horn parts are often quite exposed. The icing on the cake. Lots of times the horn lines are the parts of the songs that people recognize. Can't mess those up or people really notice! As a horn player, we also usually have long periods of rests between our entrances in order to rest chops and to leave space for the singers. This is the most dangerous time. When you're resting, your mind wanders or you start watching the act and you make a mistake.
By the end of the night, I'm usually pretty tired. There is some physical fatigue with the amount of playing during the evening depending upon how taxing the shows are, but, most of the exhaustion is mental. This kind of 'brain' work is part of the cruise ship gig that is often overlooked. When I was playing a gig at Cedar Point, I played the same 22 minute show 6 times a day for 6 days a week. The first summer we stopped counting at 545 shows! That gig was all about the physical factor and keeping the show as fresh and exciting as opening night. This is different to be sure.
I guess what I'm saying is this: a lot of people assume that this job is 'easy' and 'fun' all the time. You know what? It is fun, but, there is actual work involved. And I've been training to do this work for all of my professional life. It's a difficult and a specific skill and I happen to be pretty good at it. That's rewarding in and of itself.
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