CCM alumna achieves historic first in renowned military band
Adrienne Doctor speaks on successes, dedication and overcoming hardships
Story by CCM Graduate Student Chet Rhodes
The UC College-Conservatory of Music has numerous alums employed by military bands all across the nation. However, one such luminary recently made history, achieving an unprecedented honor.
Adrienne Doctor (BM Music Ed, ’11; MM Trumpet, ’15) is the first female drum major to lead a band at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery. Sergeant First Class Doctor is a trumpet player, bugler and drum major in the globally renowned United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own.”
If you have a dream, don’t stop until you make it happen. Hard work will always pay off.
Adrienne Doctor
Adrienne Doctor and her husband, Barret, before a Presidential Inauguration parade. Photo/provided.
“I love so many things about my job!” she says. “My daily duties include providing musical support for military funerals in Arlington National Cemetery both as a trumpet player and a drum major, performing Taps at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier during wreath laying ceremonies, performing in military parades and reviews in the Washington DC area, performing for arrival and departure honors for foreign dignitaries at the White House and Pentagon, and performing in ceremonies, clinics and concerts with the Brass Quintet.”
Doctor shares the experience of making her conducting debut at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, recalling the anticipation and excitement leading up to the ceremony. “It will always be a highlight for me in the Army Band.” Doctor says that the experience was made even sweeter by the attendance of both her husband (a fellow CCM alum, and member of the US Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps) and their young daughter.
Though her achievement as drum major is certainly an unforgettable experience and amazing honor, Doctor speaks on how meaningful her more common daily duties are as well.
Adrienne Doctor (center) preparing to lead the band during a wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Photo/provided.
“Something I have always loved about music is how it affords the opportunity for us musicians to connect with people in so many ways," Doctor says. "For me, the most meaningful way that I can connect to people through music is when I perform Taps for military funerals in Arlington National Cemetery. The buglers of ‘Pershing’s Own’ may sound taps thousands of times each year, but each individual performance is the one time that family will hear taps for their loved one, making each time profoundly significant. The family listens quietly and reaches for each other, grieving together, and comforting the person next to them. Music connects people and speaks directly to the soul. It speaks when words fail.”
Doctor cites her time at CCM as helping push her into her successful career, mentioning the incredibly high caliber of the ensembles. She also shares details of the trying personal experiences she was faced with while a graduate student. “My master’s degree was incredibly challenging for me to finish because I spent my first year caring for my mom who was back home in Pittsburgh with cancer, and my second year handling her estate after she passed. I was even granted an emergency leave of absence at one point when she was very sick. She passed away between my first and second years as a master’s student, so the fact that I was able to make it through the degree was no small feat.”
“My professors were unbelievably accommodating and compassionate. They encouraged me to finish my degree, and there’s no way I would be able to have succeeded in music without their support during that trying time. It is not lost on me how lucky I was to be at CCM when I was going through all that.”
Doctor recalls an especially profound Philharmonia concert in which she served as principal trumpet on Mahler’s Third Symphony, having dedicated her performance to her mother. “I learned that life is all about people and relationships. It’s not about what you do, but how you make people feel.”
“If you have a dream, don’t stop until you make it happen,” Doctor advises current students. “Hard work will always pay off,” she says, encouraging dedicated and consistent practice time, and supportive collaboration with peers. “It is not about the product, but the process.”
Chet Rhodes
CCM Graduate Assistant, Marketing + Communications
Currently a Bassoon Performance master’s student at CCM, Chet received a Bachelor of Music from the University of Utah. He has held positions with the Salt Lake Symphony and the Utah Philharmonia.
Featured image at the top: Adrienne Doctor performing. Photo/provided.
Additional Contacts
Curt Whitacre | Director of Marketing/Communications | UC College-Conservatory of Music
whitaccp@ucmail.uc.edu | 513-556-2683
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