Illinois National Guard/Reserve/.... Bands

[MikeMason]

Bob,I have to say this may be your best idea yet.You would have access to some nice horns,some wise veterans for advice,money for college,a potential career path,and a focus for all your energy.If you can get in,I'd say do it...

[Dean E]

. . . . I then found out that as I had some slight asthma problems (now long gone, perhaps it was just a few attacks?) that I wouldn't be able to do basic training which is mandatory for the band. . . .

You may qualify for a medical waiver. The people doing the physical will set up pulmonary function and vital capacity tests for you.

. . . . What are the different National Guard/Reserve/.... bands in Illinois?
Which are closest to Chicago (no car!)?
How do they differ?
Which one has the least "actual" military face time/commitment, including basic training? If one requires much less than another and offers less pay/tuition reimbursement/... I would still be inclined to go for that one.
How does one deal with moving after enlisting? Say, I win some hot orchestral job in another state like 2 years from now but I'm enlisted for 3. What happens then?

National Guard benefit programs do not transfer from one state to another. However, Reserve programs are transferable, and the Army Reserves will normally permit transfer to another unit after a move. Unless there's a planned or pending deployment in your present unit.

[LoyalTubist]

Try an Air National Guard Band, they may be close enough to you.[/url]http://www.af.mil/library/band/angstateside.asp[url]

Try this link:

http://www.af.mil/library/band/angstateside.asp

One thing I notice--THERE ARE NO AIR FORCE RESERVE BANDS.

This means that you have three choices if you plan to be a musician in the military reserve:

--ARMY RESERVE
--ARMY NATIONAL GUARD
--AIR FORCE NATIONAL GUARD

There are no reserve bands in the Navy or Marine Corps.