Purpose of the roll: The Musical Director is responsible for synchronising the Vocal and Instrumental performances making sure they blend well together and work in harmony. A Musical director will work with the performers and the band on a show, they will also work with the creative team ensuring that there full vision is achieved through the music and singing.
SKILLS AND ATTRIBUTES A Musical Director needs to be able to know how to work with people in a professional manner but also be able to be liked so that they can gain the trust of the people they are working with, they also must be able to take control when they need to as some casts will be very big and a Musical Director will need to have hold the attention of each cast member. It is important that a Musical Director is reliable as they play a huge role in the making of a performance and are needed at every rehearsal as if they are missing it will really affect everyone. A Musical Director should be able to read music and have a lot of knowledge about the different instruments that are in the bands orchestra so that they can correctly direct the band and listen out for which instruments may not be tuned properly or playing wrong notes. A Musical Director must be passionate about what they are doing and 100% committed.
SALARY The salary of a Musical Director will really depend on the size of the show they are working on. For example, a Musical Director working on a show that is part of a school drama club may not get paid any extra as they are volunteering, or a Musical Director working on a show that is going to be put on in a local theatre for three nights will not earn the same amount of pay that a Musical Director working on a popular musical in the West End or on Broadway will receive. Also, the PayScale Report stated that from August 2010 onwards, the greater the experience of music directors, the higher their salaries. Those with one to four years of work earn £11,296 to £23,052 annually, while those with 10 to 19 years receive £14,545 to £30,660. However, again this may vary depending on the scale of the production.
OVERALL VIEW AND PURPOSE OF THE ROLE A Musical Director plays an important part in many aspects of putting on a performance; they will be present in the audition process and will have an impact on who is cast for certain parts in the musical based on what voice is needed for different roles, during the rehearsal period they will teach songs to the cast and then during the performance period the Musical Director will be conducting the band. Most importantly the Musical Director has to ensure that they are portraying the Director's vision through how they are teaching songs to the cast and how they are telling the band to play the music.
DAY TO DAY TASKS AND RESPONSIBILITIES During rehearsal time the Musical Director will have to lead vocal warm ups for the cast, conduct and direct band members, arrange vocal harmonies, supervise the musicians, take soloists for extra rehearsal, consult with the Director to ensure that they are pleased with what the Musical Director doing, set the pace of the music and ensure that everyone plays or sings the right notes at the correct speed. It is important that they interpret the musical score in accordance to the performance and decide whether musicians or singers should perform softly or loudly and also balance instruments and voices against each other in a performance. They will also evaluate the rehearsals and give notes to the Director at the end, During shows the Musical Director will be conducting the band and the performers ensuring that the band are playing at the same tempo the performers were taught to in rehearsals, they will also make notes on the shows and give these notes back to the performers and the band the next day.
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCEAlthough you don't need any specific qualifications to become a Musical Director (successful Musical Director), a degree in music or musical theatre is highly recommended as preparation for this career which will help you when you apply for jobs etc. There are plenty of courses available that will develop really important and key skills needed in a Musical Director such as, composition, orchestration, conducting. Training in musicianship, voice, and acting would also be helpful. It is generally expected that a good Musical Director would be proficient at sight-reading music, would be able to write at least simple tunes or cues, and to be able to play the piano—ability to play additional instruments is a bonus and definitely would make you stand out against other candidates. WORKING HOURS During the rehearsal period the Musical Director will be needed everyday and rehearsal hours are normally very long starting in the morning and sometimes finishing very late at night. On performance dates the Musical Director will usually be there an hour and a half before the show starts to lead vocal warm-ups and give any notes that are needed and the shows often finish fairly late in the evening. The job is full on as you don't really get weekends as such as shows are constantly on and rehearsals are long and tiring but a Musical Director should be prepared for this and remain completely focused and committed.
Working conditions: Musical directors can work in a variety of conditions depending what job and contract they are working on. Mainly a musical director will spend time working with the performers and band within a musical, in a rehearsal space. Musical directors may be working with a larger company and this will require a larger rehearsal space to fit In a band and performers and may also be more time consuming to organise everyone. The musical director will also be required to work within the performance space. If in a theatre they will have to work in the theatre and band pit to rehearse the show. If in another space they will have to also rehearse there to make the performance as slick as possible.
Career progression: The career progression of a Musical Director can go many ways. The best way to progress as a musical director would be to work on larger scale more well-known productions. You could begin by working on smaller productions more locally and end up working on large scale productions on the west end. You may also aim to become a free-lance working and begin creating your own branding. Other musical directors may also decide to have a change in path as you can do many things as a musical director such as working on opera or in just music concerts, you could also begin working in education and working on other projects.