A Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Band officer has been awarded the prestigious Dame Adrienne Stewart Performance Bursary, recognising his outstanding musicianship and professional achievement.
Lieutenant Marcus Salone said the award came as an unexpected but deeply meaningful recognition of his work.
"The bursary was a pleasant surprise and something I could never have dreamt about when I was younger," Lieutenant Salone said.
He is the first Royal Australian Navy musician to be awarded this bursary.
Established in 2010, the Dame Adrienne Stewart Performance Bursary supports talented band musicians from Australia and New Zealand by providing access to high-level performance opportunities and expert mentorship.
The initiative was designed to foster artistic development and help emerging and established musicians broaden their professional experience on an international stage.
Receiving this award follows a more than 20-year career with Navy. Lieutenant Salone enlisted in 2003 and has taken part in countless ceremonial events as one of the RAN Band's buglers.
'The bursary was a pleasant surprise and something I could never have dreamt about when I was younger.'
He has acted in this role in such events as the one-year anniversary Sea King Memorial on Nias Island in 2006 and at the Lone Pine Memorial in Gallipoli for an Anzac Day ceremony.
Since commissioning, Lieutenant Salone has acted as the RAN Band Sydney's second in charge, responsible for the administration of the sailors in the work group and on occasion acting as the conductor for the RAN Band.
"I am just grateful to have this career as both an enlisted musician and now an officer, leading and being accountable for the people I work with," Lieutenant Salone said.
The bursary will enable him to further develop his performance skills while engaging with leading figures in the performing arts, enhancing both his individual career and his contribution to Navy's music capability.
As part of this bursary, Lieutenant Salone is under the mentorship of Professor David King, who himself has a more than 40-year career as a conductor, instrumentalist and music educator.
"The training and study where Professor King worked with the RAN Band Sydney could not have gone any better. Not only did I get great tutelage, he provided inspiration to the RAN musicians and officers present," Lieutenant Salone said.
Lieutenant Salone hopes his participation in the program will inspire other Australian Defence Force musicians by demonstrating the opportunities available for those striving to excel in Defence and the performing arts.
