Lebo native performs at inauguration
After beginning to play the trumpet in the fourth grade, Mt. Lebanon native Adrienne Doctor found a passion that she wanted to turn into a career.
With knee injuries throughout her youth, never did she think that career would be made possible as a staff sergeant in the United States Army Band with the opportunity to perform at the 58th Presidential Inauguration Jan. 20.
Doctor, 27, along with other members of the “Pershing’s Own,” joined the crowds in Washington, D.C., to commemorate the swearing in of Donald Trump’s four-year term as the new commander in chief.
“It was really exciting to perform at an event with this type of magnitude,” Doctor said. “It was quite an experience to see the contrast of supporters and protestors that are able to openly display their own feelings in our country. It’s eye opening to see all the people that show up for one reason or another.”
Regardless of national political beliefs and opinions that continue to stem from the aftermath of the election, Doctor was focused on only one thing during the historical event.
“As a member of the military, it’s our job to support our commander in chief regardless of how anyone may personally feel,” she said. “When we are at a particular event, we have a job that needs to be done. Regardless of what’s going on around us, our main job is playing our instruments as well as we possibly can.”
Prior to joining the United States Army Band, Doctor, a 2007 Mt. Lebanon graduate, obtained her undergraduate in music education degree and a master’s degree in trumpet performance from the University of Cincinnati. That led to becoming an active freelance musician performing with the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, Dayton Philharmonic, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra, the Lima Symphony Orchestra and other orchestras throughout the greater Cincinnati area.
“It’s incredibly cool to play the trumpet as a career,” Doctor admitted. “That’s something I’ve wanted to do for quite some time. I feel lucky to be able to be able to do it, but it took very hard work and a lot of hours from starting at a very young age. It’s just about having patience.”
The opportunity to apply and audition for the army’s band intrigued Doctor after experiencing a master class in 2013, a class where current members performed and taught musicians.
“I was really struck by their professionalism and musicality,” she remembers of immediately wanting to send in a résumé. “I had only been taking orchestra auditions and never expected to join the military. I was worried that with my knee problems that basic training and medical backgrounds might become a problem.”
Thankfully for Doctor, neither was an issue. After officially joining in 2014, unforgettable experiences like the inauguration and playing for military funerals in Arlington National Cemetery have allowed her to turn her passion into a unique career.
“The work we get to do is very unique,” Doctor said. “In high school, I never thought I was going to be anything like this. It’s quite a rewarding job. To play at a historical event like the inauguration is something to remember.”