Best Cruise Ship/Recruiting Agencies to Work for???

[TheMartianBassist]

Title pretty much says it all. Can anyone recommend a company or recruiting agency for a cruise ship gig? I know there's so many to choose from and apparently some should be avoided.

Any help will be appreciated!

 

[Clark Dark]

#1 Disney
#2 Carnival
#3 Norwegian

 

[TheMartianBassist]

#1 Disney
#2 Carnival
#3 Norwegian

Is this from experience or stuff you've heard?

 

[Clark Dark]

I went on a Disney cruise from Cape Canaveral Florida to the Bahamas last summer. While on the ship I asked our cabin asst. about his origin and how he came to work for Disney. He was from the Philippines as are many working for the cruise lines. He said he chose Disney because of the family oriented service whereas Carnival and the others aim at the adult clientele with casinos on board and to a lesser degree children programming. He said the money is good but you work. Think about close to 4,000 people boarding and the luggage that needs to be brought on board then distributed to the correct cabins. Up side is the pay is good and you travel in your home at sea. If you think it's for you check out the websites and see if any of them are a good fit for you.

 

[TheMartianBassist]

I went on a Disney cruise from Cape Canaveral Florida to the Bahamas last summer. While on the ship I asked our cabin asst. about his origin and how he came to work for Disney. He was from the Philippines as are many working for the cruise lines. He said he chose Disney because of the family oriented service whereas Carnival and the others aim at the adult clientele with casinos on board and to a lesser degree children programming. He said the money is good but you work. Think about close to 4,000 people boarding and the luggage that needs to be brought on board then distributed to the correct cabins. Up side is the pay is good and you travel in your home at sea. If you think it's for you check out the websites and see if any of them are a good fit for you.

Were you playing bass on the ship?
And if so, what level of difficulty was the sight reading?

 

[Clark Dark]

No, I went to enjoy the island. You really should peruse the websites for the cruise lines to see how they hire musicians. While on my Disney cruise there was this man and woman act doing R&B and Pop covers. He played guitar but had a sequencer doing the bass and drums and strings and while he played she sang the songs. I didn't see any groups or bands but I'm not saying there are none, I just didn't see any on the cruise I took.

 

[Jon Moody]

It all depends, really. I have a number of friends that worked in Carnival, Disney, Holland America, and all have love/hate stories. You work your ass off, there's no denying that. Some people love it, and some don't (those are the ones that only last one contract). From what they've told me, sight reading is definitely helpful when guest artists come in and bring their charts. You usually have A rehearsal with them before the performance.

I'll check with them and find out who the contractors are.

 

[arbiterusa]

Had two friends of mine do this, one a dancer, one a bassist. On the one hand, it's good training. You'll be working sixteen hour days, bussing tables, tending bar, washing dishes, toting luggage, delivering room service, changing beds, and playing gigs from one end of the boat to the other, having to haul you and your rig all over while absolutely staying out of sight of the guests at all times. They both hated it and said they'd never do it again, and neither one has. When you divide hours worked by income, it comes out to about minimum wage with no overtime. You do have to read. That is not optional.

 

[TheMartianBassist]

Had two friends of mine do this, one a dancer, one a bassist. On the one hand, it's good training. You'll be working sixteen hour days, bussing tables, tending bar, washing dishes, toting luggage, delivering room service, changing beds, and playing gigs from one end of the boat to the other, having to haul you and your rig all over while absolutely staying out of sight of the guests at all times. They both hated it and said they'd never do it again, and neither one has. When you divide hours worked by income, it comes out to about minimum wage with no overtime. You do have to read. That is not optional.

Dude, what???
I'm not saying what you just described isn't true but I did quite a bit of research and as a working musician on the ship, you literally don't do ANYTHING all day aside from a single rehearsal and a show or two at night.
It's like a common issue for musicians on ships - how to make good use of all the free time.

 

[arbiterusa]

Dude, what???
I'm not saying what you just described isn't true but I did quite a bit of research and as a working musician on the ship, you literally don't do ANYTHING all day aside from a single rehearsal and a show or two at night.
It's like a common issue for musicians on ships - how to make good use of all the free time.

Do more research. They don't have the room or resources to keep someone lounging around all day - save paying passengers. You'll be working nonstop, and if you're not playing bass, you'll be doing something else.

 

[TheMartianBassist]

Do more research. They don't have the room or resources to keep someone lounging around all day - save paying passengers. You'll be working nonstop, and if you're not playing bass, you'll be doing something else.

If you can find out what companies they worked for and if they bothered reading their contracts before signing because cruise ship musicians don't do that stuff. I can send you links to the plethora of online articles, YouTube video journals and actual friends of mine who didn't do any of that stuff.
The musicians are part of the entertainment crew. They shouldn't be asked to bus or serve or do anything else aside from playing music.

 

[ArtechnikA]

Do more research. They don't have the room or resources to keep someone lounging around all day - save paying passengers. You'll be working nonstop, and if you're not playing bass, you'll be doing something else.

Donno - but I expect the truth is somewhere in between...
_IF_ it's a "theme cruise" and you're on the marketing poster, you're probably in "guest star" status and just doing your act.
E.g. - I doubt Joe Bonamassa on his "Keeping The Blues Alive At Sea" cruise is bussing tables when he's not onstage.
If you're "part of the crew" I expect you have many menial assignments when you're not playing.

I've been on -one- cruise, and I was a customer, not a performer. There were several very striking fashion-model types acting as dining room hostesses. At mealtime, which is A Big Deal on cruises... But I did see them in much less fancy dress doing much more "ordinary" stuff throughout the week. This was not a music-themed cruise and we didn't spend much time in the cabarets, so I can't say for sure what the musicians were doing when not onstage. But I did notice that the 50's SockHop band looked just like the Swing band that looked just like the R&B band that looked just like the Top 40 band...

 

[MrLenny1]

Been on 4 cruises as a passenger. Never saw musicians busing tables or room steward or ...
Talked to them, they play every day and do menial tasks like life boat safety drills.
Some play in 2 bands if needed.

 

[TheMartianBassist]

Been on 4 cruises as a passenger. Never saw musicians busing tables or room steward or ...
Talked to them, they play every day and do menial tasks like life boat safety drills.
Some play in 2 bands if needed.

Exactly.
That's what I understood from every musician I've spoken to who has done a cruise. Musicians only play once, sometimes twice a night and do life boat safety drills that last 25 minutes every two/three weeks or so.

 

[MrLenny1]

There is a recruiter in Montreal, Pro ship I believe.
Do a search here on TB about cruise ship gigs.
The guys have actually worked different ships and have a lot of info.
Auditions are done live in your home with Skype.

 

[P. Aaron]

There is a recruiter in Montreal, Pro ship I believe.
Do a search here on TB about cruise ship gigs.
The guys have actually worked different ships and have a lot of info.
Auditions are done live in your home with Skype.

I inquired about this and there is a thread or 2 here with excellent info.

REMEMBER: As a cruise ship employee, you are crew first, musician, then a passenger in the life boat. IF I wasn't kickin' it in a fun Country band, I'd have dug a bit deeper into it if only to improve my sight reading.

 

[Blake Bass]

I currently work as a bassist for Cunard out of Southampton England.. I can tell you we don't work 16 hours a day. The max may be five but that is not the norm. We occasionally have to do tender duty, which is only for two hours, and once every ten or twelve ports I do in port manning duty..It is a very easy gig if you are a good reader and can play some jazz. I went through Proship out of Montreal to get the gig.

 

[Nickricebass]

#1 the US Army

They pay for your bass, amp, food, housing, your family, insurance, and everything else you need.

 

[Phildevoid]

Exactly.
That's what I understood from every musician I've spoken to who has done a cruise. Musicians only play once, sometimes twice a night and do life boat safety drills that last 25 minutes every two/three weeks or so.

I believe it depends on what line you employ with. I have heard both stories and talked to some of the musicians. Some worked a lot and others did not. I think it comes down to where you are as a musician. If you are playing the shows in the forward theater, I believe you have a better chance of a selection of what you must do during sown time. If you are playing a bar that no one knows about, and there are a couple of those on each ship, I think you are considered differently. It is a shame but I think there is a pecking order there as well. I have cruised a lot and talked to quite a few musicians aboard. From what I gather, it is not all that much fun. It is more of a place to get chops worked on. And don't forget, these bands take tons of requests from paying passengers.

 

[Scott Lynch]

I did three tours for Crystal Cruises after auditioning with Proship Entertainment. My experience with Proship was a good one - the folks there are nice to deal with.

Proship Entertainment - Work for musician, performer and technician – Entertainers and shows for cruise ships, resorts, hotels and casinos.


Generally I worked for about 3 hours a day - a rehearsal in the morning and two shows in the evening. Occasionally we did more for special events, or worked less for the occasional show that didn't need a backing band. At the beginning of each cruise, we did lifeboat duty as assistants to the lifeboat commander.

Each experience is different, though, and each line has different work requirements for each musician. It's worth doing the research to find out more.