Originally Posted by bringbackmarty
(Post 5088229)
So can I run the band or what? What kinda tunes you guys want to hear, and are there any volunteers to fill out the band? I'll make sure they don't slack off on both of their jobs, and rehearse them until they know the drill backwards forwards and sideways. Their loyalty will be to the supreme commanders only. Sort of a republican guard with weapons and instruments.
I could also plan the victory parade for when the troops come home! I was just kidding about the bitches, well sort of. I'm married, but I'll still cockblock those sunsabitches so they have no chance at reproducing!
To do my job, and have the appropriate amount of authority, I propose the rank of Col.
That's the highest ranking musician in the United States military.
Here's a blip about the director of "The Presidents Own." Which is how I would eventually hope to model our band.
Director
The Director is commanding officer of “The President’s Own” and has two other traditional roles: music advisor to the White House and music director of Washington’s Gridiron Club. He serves as both artistic and executive director and guides the daily operations of the Marine Band.
The Director leads the Marine Band and Marine Chamber Orchestra for the following performances:
White House performances (year-round)
Concert season (roughly 20 public concerts, January—May)
Summer concert season (roughly 25 public concerts, June—August)
Annual concert tour (roughly 45 public concerts, October—November)
International clinics and conferences
There have been 27 Directors since the Marine Band was formed in 1798. To meet them, click here.
Colonel Michael J. Colburn
Colonel Michael J. Colburn is 27th Director of “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band. During his twenty years with “The President’s Own”, Col Colburn has served as principal euphonium, Assistant Director, and since July 17, 2004, the Director who is leading the Marine Band in its third century.
As Director of “The President’s Own,” Col Colburn is music advisor to the White House. He regularly conducts the Marine Band at the Executive Mansion and at all Presidential Inaugurations. He also serves as music director of Washington D.C.’s prestigious Gridiron Club, a position held by every Director of the Marine Band since John Philip Sousa..
Col Colburn joined “The President’s Own” in 1987 as a euphonium player, performing at the White House, in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, and throughout the country during the band’s annual concert tour. He quickly distinguished himself as a featured soloist, and in 1990 was appointed principal euphonium. Col Colburn also was active as a conductor for “The President’s Own” chamber music series and served as a tour coordinator for the Marine Band’s annual concert tour. In 1996, he was appointed Assistant Director and commissioned a first lieutenant. He accepted the position of Senior Assistant Director and Executive Officer in 2001, and in 2002 was promoted to the rank of major. Col Colburn was promoted to lieutenant colonel the day before he assumed leadership of “The President’s Own” on July 17, 2004. He was promoted to his present rank on July 3, 2007, by President George W. Bush in an Oval Office ceremony.
While Senior Assistant Director, Col Colburn worked to strengthen and expand the reputation of “The President’s Own.” He was especially involved in the refinement of the Marine Band’s audition process and development of the chamber music series. He also arranged for the band’s participation in numerous high-profile events. In July 2003, in celebration of the Marine Band’s 205th anniversary, he brought to the podium renowned conductor and Academy-Award winning film composer John Williams, who led the Marine Band for a gala performance at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. As Director, Col Colburn has continued to attract prominent guest conductors for the band, including Leonard Slatkin in 2006 and José Serebrier in 2007.
Col Colburn is deeply committed to seeking new works for “The President’s Own.” While Assistant Director, he facilitated the commissioning of David Rakowski’s Ten of a Kind, a work which was honored in 2002 as a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in music. In 2006, Mr. Rakowski was awarded the Barlow Endowment Prize, a distinction that will result in a new work to be premiered by “The President’s Own” in 2008. Future Marine Band commissions include compositions by the American composers David Chaitkin and Melinda Wagner. Col Colburn also has worked to expand the Marine Band’s educational outreach efforts by increasing master classes at schools throughout the nation during the band’s annual concert tour, and by initiating Music in the High Schools, a program that sends musicians from “The President’s Own” to perform in Washington, area high schools.
Col Colburn is a native of St. Albans, Vt., where he graduated from Bellows Free Academy in 1982. Following high school he attended the Crane School of Music at the State University of New York in Potsdam for two years. He continued his education at Arizona State University in Tempe, where he studied euphonium with Daniel Perantoni and earned a bachelor’s degree in music performance in 1986. In 1991, Col Colburn earned a master’s degree in conducting from George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., where he studied with Anthony Maiello. In addition to his duties with “The President’s Own,” Col Colburn is an active clinician and guest conductor.
|
