Annie

Could anyone fill me in on cruise gigs? For example, type of music, what it's like, what kind they are looking for?

Thevor

Annie,

If you contact TM member Nicholas Dyson he can give you all the in's and out's of cruise gigs. He is currently on vacation in South Africa but will be back with the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line (Mariner of the Sea) the first week of April. He has spent the last year doing cruise gigs in the Caribbean, Hawaii and Alaska on various cruise lines. Send him an email via TM website. I am sure he'll answer any questions when he is available (and pray that he doesn't become lunch scuba diving with the Great Whites or Lion bait)

George

Jazzman

Well, after 4 completed contracts with Holland America, here is some info that may help:
1.Sightreading skills (scale of 1 to 10) 8 to 10 needed
2. Range- You should have at least a C above the staff everyday....7 days a week. This is the min. requirement on most ships.
3. Musicianship- very good. You need to "adapt" to some of the bad charts that hit your manhasset on a weekly basis. Good idea to brush up on theory, just to have the tools for the trade.
4.Endurance* (out of 10) 10. If you get a gig where you are playing 7 nights week, a solid routine and endurance would be required.
5. Patience plus- You will spend alot of time with many different people from all around the world. Sometimes, the players spend a wee too much time in the bar and their patience goes out the window. Find things to do to keep yourself healthy and occupied.....
6.Standards- they provide fakebooks, but they are almost always filled with terrible mistakes. I took the book and corrected all of the bad notes and changes in it. Made the contract that much easier.
*Most ship gigs will pay $350 to $400 per week. It can seem too little depending upon the ship that you are on.....
Try and get your gig direct with the cruise line and stay away from Pro-ship.....

Annie

Thank you!

Jazzman

Annie-
I was going to say that you also have to share a cabin, but Women will always get their own cabin! Let me tell you that having your own cabin can be a real blessing. Out of the 4 contracts, I did manage to have my own for about 3 weeks and it was a godsend. I have heard that the Carnival cruise line is the best gig on the sea. If you want to play all the time, then get a gig with Holland America. Some players did not like the fact that they had to play so much, but I viewed it as an opportunity to improve my playing. When I came off of my first contract, I went to a jam session and all of my friends were stunned at how much I had improved. When you step off of a contract, you really have "chops of steel" because you are required to play so many styles. An example would be after a Las Vegas style show with *many* double F's and tons of notes, we would take a 20 minute break and then play a 40 minute dance set. Then after going from screamin' to swingin', we had 30 minutes to get ready to do the whole thing again. Yup, we would play the Vegas show twice in the night with a dance set between them and after the last show. It worked out to be about 4 hours of playing, almost non-stop. I used to hate the dance sets, then I looked at them as a way to "warm down" my chops for the second show. If you go, you will play a ton and no matter what happens, that is a good thing! Good Luck Annie!

Annie

Erk! My range is nowhere near double F - double f is above double c, right? My range is solid from Low G to High C - Before I go and try to get a cruise gig or anything - should I increase my range?

Mikey

Annie, I think he meant F above high C.


Mike

Annie

I was checking out ProShip Entertainment's webpage, it seemed to be the most informative webpage, and it makes it quite clear you've got to be 21 to even be considered to be hired! I've got two years until I'm 21! Are there any lines that would hire me at 19?


F above high C is the top of my range, I've never played higher than that, and I've never played higher than C during an ensemble rehearsal...