My First 6 Months as an Army Conductor

At the end of April, I'll celebrate my first six months as a Band Officer in the U.S. Army. As the Executive Officer and Associate Conductor of the U.S. Army TRADOC Band at Fort Eustis, VA, I have already conducted three big public concerts, three outreach concerts at schools, six military ceremonies, and a recording session. I have also marched in my first parade ever (St. Patrick’s Day in Norfolk) and conducted the National Anthem at a Norfolk Admirals hockey game. This summer, the band is very busy with concerts and ceremonies - I estimate I’ll conduct 25 TRADOC Band performances between now and September. I love it.

My job entails more than music-making, though. There is a great deal of paperwork and meetings, too. I imagine the work load is very similar to that of an assistant or associate conductor at a big symphony orchestra. Of course, as a Soldier-Musician, I am also required to stay physically fit and competent in “warrior tasks and drills” (like firing and cleaning weapons), and we Soldiers are tested in these areas periodically. It’s not for everybody, but I enjoy all these aspects of this job.

I love Army language. In the Army, we call rehearsals “training,” and performances are “missions.” So we do a lot of training and missions. I love some training concepts and principles, too, like “train as you fight,” and “train to standard, not to time.” All of these concepts apply directly to civilian music-making, so I think I’ll share them with you in the near future. This blog has languished lately (since I started it, really), but I’ll make a concerted effort to share with my civilian musical friends some interesting and useful musical ideas more regularly from here out. For now, I’ll just sign off with some of my favorite organizational mottos.

"Always forward" - 1-34 Infantry Brigade,
"Standards - no compromises" - Officer Candidate School,
"Victory starts here" - U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command,

Silas

Army Leader vs. Musical Director

I am in Basic Officer Leadership Course (BOLC) right now at the U.S. Army School of Music in Virginia Beach, VA. My buddies who are infantry, artillery, armor, or transportation officers are at their respective BOLCs, but nobody really knows what Army conductors do in BOLC. Well, here you go…

Here at the U.S. Army School of Music, we don't learn anything about music because my colleagues and I already know music—that's why we were chosen for this job. Instead, we learn a ton of non-musical subjects that are useful to us, like audio reinforcement, drill & ceremony, concert programming, copyright compliance, and unit cohesion/team development. Beyond that, we learn Army-important things, like supply procedures, how to prepare Army briefings and correspondence, fundamentals of joint operations, IED identification, soldier resilience, and a ton of regulations.

But the real subject of study here at BOLC is leadership, and it’s very interesting to learn the Army perspective on leadership. According to Field Manual 6-22 (Army Leadership), “An Army leader is anyone who...inspires and influences people to accomplish organizational goals. Army leaders motivate people...to pursue actions, focus thinking, and shape decisions for the greater good of the organization.” Hmm. Sounds like a music director. FM 6-22 also says that Army Leaders have three attributes—character, presence, and intellectual capacity—and Army Leaders essentially do three things—lead, develop others, and achieve results. Just like a music director. We Army leaders are expected to be agile, adaptable, and competent subject-matter experts who bring a team together and rely on the competence of others to accomplish a common goal. Wow. That sounds just like a music director.

Military leader vs. musical leader. What's the difference?

Now that I think of it, the Army's idea of a leader rhymes pretty well with what I've always thought a great musical leader was. As I begin my career as an Army Conductor, I am thinking a lot about how to incorporate my pre-conceived ideas about musical leadership into my military work, and I hope my military studies will help me improve my civilian musical work, too.

More soon...

I am a U.S. Army Officer! Hooah!

I just finished 6 months of Army immersion training – 3 months of Basic Combat Training and 3 months of Officer Candidate School. I won’t bore you with every detail, but here is a short synopsis:

Basic Combat Training (BCT) was a lot easier than I expected. I performed very well. I discovered that I like firing weapons and performing battle drills, and I excelled at both. The terrible part was being cut off from friends, family, and society. For ten weeks, we had no access to phones, email, or internet, and mail service was spotty. Also, I didn’t like being called “retard” (and worse), but it is all part of the game. Overall, the training was fun and easy (everyone who started with me graduated), and along the way I met some interesting and colorful characters, to say the least.

[click here to see a slideshow of my Basic Combat Training]

Officer Candidate School (OCS) was completely different. Designed to identify the best qualified soldiers for Army officership (and to eliminate the rest), the 12-week course was crazy difficult, psychologically stressful, and physically demanding. We ran miles and miles, and were tried physically and mentally, put under constant stress, and deprived of sleep. About 45% of my class dropped out (or was kicked out). Only the best of the best made it. OCS was the hardest thing I ever did in my life, but on July 28, 2011, my father, retired Lieutenant Colonel Rob Huff, swore me into the Army as a commissioned officer. Hooah.

[click here to see a slideshow of Officer Candidate School]

In my last week of OCS, the Fort Benning newspaper (The Bayonet) wrote this article about me: "Officer Candidate Strikes a New Chord in the Army"

Now I’m in Virginia Beach attending the US Army School of Music. It’s wonderful being with musicians again and learning how to run an Army band. I’ve recently learned that my first assignment – starting in November 2011 – will be as the Executive Officer and Assistant Conductor of the TRADOC Band (TRADOC = Training and Doctrine Command) at Fort Eustis, VA. The “TRADOC Band” is an amazing unit consisting of a concert band, marching band, jazz ensemble, rock band, Dixie band, brass quintet, trombone quartet, woodwind quintet, and a salsa band. I am very excited about this opportunity, and I look forward to blogging a little more frequently on musical and conducting issues.

As the 1-34th Infantry Battalion (where I did Basic Training) says: “Always forward!”

Thank you, New York

Hello there, New York City,

Got a minute? I need to tell you something. I have to leave you now, but I will miss you badly. Where am I going? Well, for the next six months I will live in Columbus, GA, then I'll spend 3 months in Norfolk, VA. After that, I'm not sure, but I won't live here. What? Of course I still like you!...No, I don't want to leave you, but I have to. I really would like to stay here forever, but I can't.

Before I go, I want to thank you personally for a few things. Thank you, New York, for:

1. Being the greatest city in the world
2. Having more great music and art than anywhere on earth
3. Being the most diverse and tolerant city I know
4. Having a generally cultured and intellectual populace
5. Having great public transportation, 24/7
6. 400 miles of bike lanes
7. Grand Central Station
   
8. 1,700 parks (so many great parks! Central Park is a little over-rated, but I have enjoyed her many, many times)
9. The Metropolitan Opera (Alas! How will I live without you?)
10. Oh yeah...Met broadcasts
11. American Ballet Theater and NYC Ballet
12. Carnegie Hall
    
13. Chinatown, Little Italy, Koreatown, Greenpoint, Washington Heights, and all the other good ethnic food neighborhoods
    
14. 18,951 restaurants. Seriously.
    
15. Great food, and bars that stay open until 4 am
16. Shoe-shine guys
    
17. MOMA, Natural History, Met, and all the other great museums
    
18. Times Square (to contain most of the tourists and keep them out of Astoria and other lovely places)
19. Diners and pizza joints
20. Abundant taxis
21. The jogging/bike path that encircles Manhattan
22. Fancy people
23. Weird people
24. Ridiculously liberal people
25. Really great people
    
26. Broadway, 30th Avenue, and Ditmars
    
27. The Bohemian Beer Garden
28. Astoria, the greatest neighborhood in the universe
29. Making Taylor happy (Veniero's is a nice touch)
30. Being invincible

Most of all, New York, thank you for all the opportunities you have provided, bringing so many talented people together, and offering me a chance to make it here.

Many of my friends and family members don't get you. "Why do you live in New York?" they ask. "What's so great about New York?"...I agree - they are dumb questions. You exposed me to higher standards in every field, the stiffest competition on earth, an audience for what I do, the largest/best community of talented artists and collaborators, and people and organizations with the means to support my work and growth. You taught me resilience, patience, compassion, and gratitude for what I have. You fostered my evolution in the most important part of my professional development.

Remember when I first came here to you? It was September 2002, and I had $100 in my pocket, no car, no job, no connections, and no apartment. I'm leaving 9 years later as the music director of 2 professional orchestras, co-director of an international conducting institute, and U.S. Army Conductor/Officer Candidate. You can't do that in many cities. You made me who I am, New York, and I am extremely grateful.

Next time I come here, I'll be a tourist. I'm truly sorry. I'll try to blend in, though. No, I won't wear a colorful ski jacket. No, I won't block pedestrian traffic by just standing in the middle of the sidewalk. No, I won't see the Spider-Man musical. Yeah, I heard it sucks, too.

Well, my friend, it's time for me to go. Thank you for all you have given me. You are New York City, the Big Apple. I made it here. I can make it any where. It's up to you, New York.

I love you.
Silas

Conductors in San Francisco

Recently, Taylor and I wanted to get out of freezing cold, snowy New York, and I found the perfect excuse: the 2011 Conductors Guild Conference in beautiful San Francisco. January 6-9 we went to California and had a great long weekend filled with food, fun, and a good dose of conductor-talk. (photo to the left by Taylor)

We stayed at the beautiful and historic Hotel Whitcomb. We could easily walk to most attractions in SF and it was an easy 5-10 minute stroll to the conference, which took place at the War Memorial Building, 1 block away from Davies Hall.

On the first day of the conference, we went to Davies Hall to watch guest conductor Kirill Karabitz rehearse the SF Symphony in Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances and Schumann's Piano Concerto (Helene Grimaud, piano). Davies Hall is amazing, and of course the orchestra is outstanding as well. And Helene...wow. This rehearsal was a great treat.

Davies Hall

The highlights of the conference included a discussion with Maestro Michael Morgan (Oakland Symphony) about finding one's place in the world of conducting, a panel discussion with concertmasters from several orchestras, and an enlightening lecture/demonstration with Maestro Vance George in which he discussed choral rehearsal techniques and examples. However, as a conductor who loves conducting ballet (and a lover of dance), my favorite session was probably the discussion entitled "The Role of a Ballet Conductor" by SF Ballet Music Director Martin West. I also discovered many new pieces for orchestra, band, and choir, and met quite a few colleagues I'd never met before.

The Conductors Guild is the only organization in the world dedicated exclusively to the art of conducting and to conductors. They offer publications, reviews, job postings, workshops, and so many other services to us conductors. Many of my European colleagues say, "You are lucky to have the Guild - there is nothing like it in Europe." Some of them join the Conductors Guild, even though it is based in the U.S. Let me say this: if you are a conductor, you should be a member of the Guild. It's affordable, and they have student rates, too. There's no excuse. If you are serious about your career and not a member of CG, join today.

The annual CG conference is an opportunity for conductors to gather, discuss problems, offer solutions, and learn from one another. It is also an opportunity to learn about services and companies that exist to make our jobs easier. It always happens in a great city (2012 in Chicago, 2013 in NYC!) and they are also a lot of fun. If you are able to attend the conference in January, you should do that, too.

I was at the conference representing the International Conducting Institute. Many conducting students, professionals, and teachers were interested in the Institute, and I anticipate full classes in 2011. We have already filled the NYC Workshop in March, and we are well under way with the Austin and CZ workshops (in May and July/August, respectively).

Me and the ICI Booth

Non-musical highlights of my SF trip included a wonderful lunch with my composer friend Jack Perla, a great walk with Tay from our hotel to the Ferry Building Marketplace, the best hot chocolate on earth - Recchiuti hot chocolate, and the Fisherman's Wharf where we ate an excellent dinner at Nick's Lighthouse - clam chowder in a bread bowl, a whole crab, and beer. Mmmmm...

Crab at Nick's Lighthouse, photo by Tay

We also shared a wonderful dinner with at Lers Ros Thai with a few new conductor friends, including the newly elected president of the Conductors Guild James Allen Anderson. We ate alligator! (among other not-so-weird stuff). We had lunch with my NYC colleague and friend David Leibowitz at a fantastic BBQ place called Tommy's Joynt, and we spent an amazing evening with my old buddy Suzanne and her beau - dinner at Le Trappe in North Beach and drinks and dancing at Top of the Mark - the bar where the martini was invented...supposedly. They were great martinis, and we had a fantastic night out.

Taylor and Suzanne

It was a beautiful weekend. I can't wait to go back to S.F.

This "Baton-Wielder" is Ready to Go!

Now that 2010 is winding down, I am contemplating the year behind me and the year ahead.

Taylor and I had an outstanding year. Taylor sold a 4-book series (look for her first Hello Gorgeous! book, Blowout, on Amazon or in a store near you April 14), and I landed a great job as an Army Officer-Conductor. We both enjoyed great health, exciting trips to beautiful places, and fun times together. We had a wonderful Christmas in Astoria and stayed warm in our apartment during this week's great blizzard. I got the coolest Christmas gift ever from my sister- and brother-in-law: an army bicycle jersey. I feel very "hoo-ah" in it, and can't wait to wear it on a long bike ride in the spring.

For me, most of of 2011 will be spent in Army training. Many friends and family members have asked me if I'm nervous about going to Basic Training. The answer is, "No." I love physical and mental challenges, so I can't wait to go to Basic Training and Officer Candidate School. My feelings on the subject can be summed up in this short video from the movie Bolt:



In all seriousness, though, Taylor and I are thrilled about what's in store for us. Taylor will spend most of 2011 in NYC without me, but the excitement and anticipation of what comes next is palpable. We are enjoying as much time together right now as we can, so I can go away for a few months and we can be reunited as Army officer and author. It will be tough, of course, but the reward is going to be amazing. I am ready to go!

Here are some excerpts from a news article that appeared about me in the NY Daily News:

Queens baton-wielder to be military maestro for 22 U.S. Army Band officers

BY Leigh Remizowski
DAILY NEWS WRITER

Friday, December 24th 2010

This Queens conductor has already proven he's a maestro with a baton, but for his next gig he'll have to show he can hold his own with a rifle as well.

Silas Nathaniel Huff has been chosen as one of an elite group of 22 U.S. Army Band officers. After a rigorous seven-month audition process, Huff will soon conduct one of the Army's six largest bands.

"It's such a prestigious job, and it's such a huge honor," Huff said.

In May, Huff, 37, was asked to guest conduct the Army Band at Fort Meyer, Va. He was almost immediately offered the job. But...Huff went through a whirlwind of fitness tests, interviews and a background check before being accepted into Officer Candidate School.

"We're not just hiring someone to be a conductor," said Col. Thomas Palmatier, commander and conductor of the U.S. Army Field Band. "We're looking for a leader, a manager - someone who wants to be a soldier in addition to being a fine conductor."

Last year, Army bands performed 27,000 free concerts for more than 27 million people, Palmatier said. More than 1,200 Army Band soldiers performed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"It's really kind of a dream job." [said Huff.]

On Feb. 1, he will be shipped off to 10 weeks of basic training at Fort Benning, Ga. Then there's another 12 weeks of Officer Candidate School.

"I've heard that [Basic Training] very physically and mentally challenging," said Huff..."I might be the oldest guy in the class," he said. "I plan on running circles around the young guys."

Read the whole article

An Officer and a Maestro

This Wednesday, December 8, 2010, I joined the U.S. Army as a Conductor and Officer Candidate. As a Conductor-Officer, I'll work with some of the best musicians in America (bands, choirs, and the Army Symphony Orchestra). I will tour frequently, perform more than I ever thought possible, and live in a variety of exciting and interesting places. Most importantly, I'll make outstanding music and I'll serve my community, the USA, and the world. There are only 24 U.S. Army Officer Conductors, so the selection process was grueling; It is a big honor and responsibility.

I ship out on February 1, 2011, to Ft. Benning, GA, for three months of Basic Training. On April 18, 2011, I will begin three months of Officer Candidate School (also at Ft. Benning). I will receive my commission on July 7, 2011, and head over to Virginia Beach, VA, for a three-month Army music leadership course at the Army School of Music. After that, possible assignments include Newport News (VA), West Point (NY), Washington D.C. (Ft. Meade or Ft. Myers), Ft. Bragg (NC), and Heidelberg (Germany). I don't know yet where I will live in the fall of 2011, but my sources tell me that my first station will either be Ft. Eustis (Newport News, VA) or Ft. Bragg, NC. I will find out next summer.

FAQ (frequently asked questions):

1. Is this a joke? No. I'm joining the Army and will be an officer and a conductor.
   
   
2. You have to go to basic training? Yes. I will go to 10 weeks of basic training (in Ft. Benning, GA), then 12 weeks of Officer Candidate School (also Ft. Benning, GA). I'm sincerely looking forward to both.
   
   
3. You have to shoot a weapon? Do push-ups and sit-ups, etc.? Yes. Army musicians must become soldiers first. By the time I start conducting army ensembles in fall 2011, I will be certified on an M-16 assault rifle and 9 mm sidearm, and I will have done thousands of push-ups and sit-ups. No problem. I am fit and ready. I've been doing intense PT (physical training) for months in anticipation.
   
   
4. You'll be an officer? Yes. In October 2011, I will start as a 2nd Lieutenant. I hope to achieve the rank of Captain in 2-4 years.
   
   
5. Who/what will you conduct? I could conduct any of the Army's 6 special bands, 3 professional choirs, the Army string orchestra, or the Army Symphony Orchestra (all comprised of great professional musicians). I will inevitably conduct concerts for presidents, royalty, heads of state, diplomats, soldiers and their families, and the public. I will conduct at the Capital, the White House, in concert halls across America, on TV, or wherever I am needed. I will conduct patriotic, pops, classical, and contemporary music for various ensembles. Essentially, I will conduct a lot. The job description is here: http://www.usarmyband.com/jobs/conductor_-_army_band_programs.html
   
   
6. Could you be sent to war? Yes, I could be deployed to entertain troops. No, I'm not scared of being deployed.
   
   
7. How does one become a conductor in the Army? You must first be talented and experienced, then you have to apply. If you are lucky, you are invited to a two-day audition, to be tested on musicianship, sight-reading, sight-singing, ear training, musical dictation, music theory, knowledge of instruments, and foreign languages. If you make it through that process, you get to conduct one of the great Army Bands. An interview by a panel of band officers follows. If offered a job, you must then begin the process of enlisting and becoming an officer candidate, which is as difficult as winning the job offer. You must pass a series of tests, including the ASVAB (aptitude test), a physical examination, a physical fitness test, and a background check. You must complete a ton of paperwork, provide mountains of documents, and sit before a Local Officer Board that will determined if you are fit to be an Army officer. Then, after final approval, you get a contract and ship out date.
   
   
8. How did it happen for you? I was invited to audition at Ft. Myer (Washington D.C.) in May 2010. During my audition, I conducted the U.S. Army Band "Pershing's Own" and the U.S. Army Chorus - they were amazing!
   
   
   "Pershing's Own" at Lincoln Center
   
   
   I was offered the job on May 25, 2010. I sat before a Local Officer Board at Ft. Hamilton, Brooklyn, on October 1, 2010. I received a contracton Wednesday, December 8, 2010.
   
   
   This is where I took my oath. Ft. Hamilton, Brooklyn.
   
   
   
9. Will you still conduct the Astoria Symphony and/or the Round Rock Symphony? Guest conductors will fill my shoes while I am in Basic Training and Officer Candidate School (thank you Bahman, Jonathan, Grant, Kirk, and Adam). After my initial training, I'll conduct those groups whenever possible. Of course, I'll have to resign my position at the Manhattan School of Music. My last day is January 21.
   
   
10. What does Taylor think about this? She is behind me 100%. We made this decision together and she supports it completely. Tay will stay in NYC for my 9 months of training, though she'll come visit me often in Georgia and Virginia. In October 2011, we'll be reunited for good. She is excited to go on this adventure with me, to be an Army wife, and to spend more time writing.

There is a lot of fine music to be made in the Army, and the Army has offered me a way to make a real mark as a conductor. I have a lot to offer and a lot to gain, so of course I am very excited.

Hooah!

Army Strong,
SPC Silas Nathaniel Huff
Officer Candidate and Conductor, U.S. Army