What is the pay like as an Army Musician?

Hi It's worth double checking the Army Jobs website for the most upto date info as pay will change over time. For the moment, pay as a Private starts at £20,000 on completion of Initial Trade training and increases up to £24,902 Pay as a Staff Sergeant maxes out at £43,957 (4 Ranks/ Promotions higher). Your pay will feel much higher though as you are entitled to subsidised food and accommodation, free gym and sports facilities, free dental and medical care and a free pension. Plus qualifications, apprenticeships and world class training.

Does this mean you get paid £20,000 once you complete you initial 14 week basic training or only after you get put into a band?

Hi Kim, so pay during your initial Phase 1 Training is just under £16,000 per year, then once you have passed out of training as a Private soldier (or Musician in the case of the Corps of Army Music) that rises to £20,000. So you are paid £20,000 per year while you are in your Phase 2 training and beyond. There are lots more benefits besides the basic pay though, that make it feel like a lot more. You can see some of these explained here: https://apply.army.mod.uk/what-we-offer/regular-soldier/benefits Pay as a Lance Corporal can be up to just under £30,000 per year, as a Corporal up to £34k, up to £39k as a Sergeant, and then as a Band Master or Band Sergeant Major as a Warrant Officer you could be earning as much as just over £50k. Beyond that there are the Commissioned Officer roles (Directors of Music, and other senior managers within the Corps of Army Music), so further down your career path there are opportunities to earn as much as £80k per year, and that's without things like subsidised housing, dental care, a non-contributory pension scheme, cheap food, rail cards etc. plus extra pay when you are away travelling for work. Hope that helps!

Ok thank you. I’m only asking because I have a spouse that requires a visa and I need to meet certain financial requirements so was trying to work out how long it would take to earn enough. So basically once my 14 weeks initial training is done I move up to £20,000 while I’m in phase 2.

Hi Kim, yes, that's right. Once you have completed your 14 weeks Initial Training the pay would increase to £20,000 per annum.

Great! Thanks Bethan! I also wanted to ask, how manageable is it being a musician in the army and being married? Will I have time to spend with my spouse? And also, I see it is a priority job, does that mean the time it takes to get into the army is quicker or how does the process differ if it’s a priority position? And FINALLY! Which instruments are specifically down for priority? Sorry for all the questions!

Hi Kim, Thanks for your questions. We have lots of people in the Corps of Army Music who are married, in a civil partnership, or in long term relationships - and often have couples who are both serving too! I would say it's very much workable, and people often stay in for a full career as they grow their families, but like any job you have to be a little bit flexible. In the summer, especially around May/June it tends to be particularly busy, but is quieter in the winter around January and February. We get 38 days paid holiday per year, which is really excellent, and if you are asked to work at an engagement on a weekend you will get that day back as 'Time off in Lieu' when it's less busy. The British Army offers flexible working now, so there is the opportunity to negotiate more limited working hours or particular days off per week, for a slightly reduced salary, and there's also a scheme where you can take up to a 3 year non-paid career break before returning and picking up where you left off. I'll have to defer to Connor D. to see if he can say approximately how long the entry pipeline should take and which instruments we particularly need at the moment, as that's not my area of expertise, but it's safe to say the audition process is open to any woodwind, brass, string or percussion players who are around grade 5 standard. If you wanted to discuss your particular circumstances, or ask about your instrument or the audition, in more depth you can email our careers team on [email protected] and they will be really happy to help you.

Thanks a Bethan for all the info! Appreciate it!

Hi Kim, instruments that we have a particular focus on at the moment are Clarinet, Oboe, Bassoon, Tenor Trombone and Tenor Horn, though we would still be interested in the rest of the band instruments. Due to Covid 19, Selection Centres and Army Training Centres are not fully operational which would have an impact on the time it will take to join. I would encourage you to make an application (https://apply.army.mod.uk/login) as this would get the ball rolling on other elements such as your audition with Army Music and it doesn't commit you to anything. As Bethan W. Has said, contact us on [email protected] and we will be able to support you throughout the process should have any issues, questions or concerns. We hope this has helped.

Great! Thanks Connor D!

Hi Bethan, I was just on the discussion live chat event for army musicians. I got told that you only get paid 20k once you have completed your training at the music school and are in a band? But further up this discussion you mentioned it was once you start your phase 2 which I'm guessing is the music school for musicians?

Hi Kim, my apologies if I might have made an error on this - I'm a serving musician just here to give my perspective on what a fantastic career it is in British Army Music, rather than a dedicated careers specialist, and advice on pay and benefits, which is administered at a wider Defence level, does change sometimes. The Army guidance on pay and benefits can be found here: https://apply.army.mod.uk/what-we-offer/regular-soldier/benefits. @Connor D.'s team will likely have the most up to date answer though, so I would encourage you to discuss this further with them at [email protected] if you need a very specific answer on the timings of particular pay increments. As Connor mentioned, the best way to get the ball rolling is to apply online at apply.army.mod.uk/login where, as well as the support from the Corps of Army Music engagement team, you also get access to a dedicated candidate support manager from the Army Recruiting centre to help you through the process. Do stay in touch if there's anything more we can help with.