You may have heard lots of different stories and opinions about cruise ship musician jobs.
The truth is this: There simply aren’t any other musician jobs in the world that offer the same advantages as cruise ship contracts.
Full time secure employment is a rare thing in the entertainment industry, and especially for musicians. Even if you are contracted on a Broadway show in New York, or a West End show in London, there’s always the chance that the show won’t run as long as planned. Plus, you’d be playing the same thing every single day, which is a pretty hard to do without getting bored!
As well as full time and secure employment, cruise ship musician gigs offer free international travel! Now – you are absolutely not going to be on vacation, but you will have plenty of time to get off the ship in some of the most desirable places. Most ships also offer special tours for staff members so you can really take advantage of this aspect of the job.
When you factor in that flights, accommodation, medical care and all meals are included for the duration of your contract, it’s no surprise that it’s such a desirable gig!
So, what is the best way to get a job as a musician on a cruise ship?
The first thing to consider is: Is it the right gig for you?
Most cruise lines have positions available in the ship’s main theatre orchestra for trumpet (lead players and soloists), trombone, alto sax, tenor sax, trombone, piano, bass, guitar and drums.
To apply for one of those jobs, you need excellent reading skills, and a broad knowledge of a wide range of musical styles. Big band, rock, jazz, musical theatre etc.
Whatever you may have heard about cruise ship gigs, they absolutely are not easy! The production shows and theatre shows are technically demanding and you’ll be playing different shows every week, so your reading skills need to be excellent.
The best way to discover if this is the gig for you is to apply for an audition.
You can apply for an audition by clicking here. You’ll be asked to play some typical cruise ship charts on a video call and we’ll let you know right away if we think we can help you.
We have a 100% success rate when it comes to hiring musicians. And the best part? We’ll negotiate the best possible starting salary on your behalf and we DO NOT charge any commissions or fees.
If you pass our audition, we are very confident that we’ll find you a job with one of the large international cruise lines.
How soon you’ll start work can vary. Demand for different positions varies through the year, often randomly. Generally though, we aim to get all of our successful applicants on to a ship within 3 months of their audition. Often much quicker.
Once you’ve passed your probationary period and completed your first contract onboard, arranging subsequent contracts is easy. Most of our musicians like to take 6-8 weeks off in between contracts. You’ll have the option of returning to the same ship too, and most people do that.
To take your first steps towards an amazing career, simply click on the link below to apply for an audition and we’ll do everything we can to help.