This March when the majority of college students leave town for Spring Break, Sean Copeland will leave for Washington, D.C. to compete in the American Trombone Workshop, an elite national competition.

That same month he will also compete for a positions in the Disney All-American College Band at Disneyland, California and the U.S. Air Force Ceremonial Brass band.

Alex van Duuren, Copeland’s current trombone instructor, described the position in the Air Force Ceremonial Brass band specifically as a one time deal.

“There was a bass trombonist in that band who is leaving or has already left, and they have a hole,” van Duuren said. “They’re gonna fill that hole and that’s it. It’s not something where they continually have these things coming up.”

Copeland recognizes this and is treating its rareness accordingly.

“If I went up there and won that … that would be the job,” Copeland said. “I won’t hold my breath. I’ll put my best foot forward, but we’ll see.”

The American Trombone Workshop holds an equal amount of pressure. If Copeland wins, it will be his third year as the champion.

He first won the competition in his senior year of high school.

“I was studying with Professor Don Hough who taught at UT,” Copeland recalled. “He told me to work toward it and see what I could make of it. And I won it.”

Copeland didn’t get these opportunities out of pure luck. As one of the top music students, he maintains a rigorous schedule.

“Typically I get up at four in the morning every day. I get to school by six, and I practice before my eight a.m. class every day,” Copeland said. “I pretty much don’t get done every day until about five or six in the evening.”

His instructors have noticed his dedication over the years, allowing him to earn positions such as squad leader and black suit in the marching band season.

“We don’t necessarily pre-design their practice schedule,” van Duuren said. “It’s pretty much as much, as far as they want to go, as ambitious as they want to be.”

Copeland described his leadership responsibilities in the marching band as mainly helping everything run smoothly. As a squad leader he lead a group on the field and as a black suit he operated behind-the-scenes.

Copeland displays this same behind-the-scenes leadership in the offseason.

“He’s one of our natural leaders simply because he’s one of the best that we have,” van Duuren said. “Our student leaders are great examples, because they are the people who are actually in the practice room or being section leader in the band. It has a sort of trickle down effect.”

“Its just countless long hours of practicing and recording yourself,” Copeland said. “Playing it back and trying to fix things about your playing … It’s a long process but it’s worth it.”

Copeland hopes to graduate next fall and pursue a masters degree followed by a doctorate toward collegiate musical education.