Personnel Bio

MUC Noel Marcano
Chief Musician Noel Marcano, a native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, where the Coast Guard’s presence left a lasting impression, graduated from the Escuela Libre de Musica de San Juan. Shortly after, he graduated from the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico with a Bachelor’s Degree in Clarinet Performance followed by a Master Degree’s from the University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music. In the summer of 2008, he won second prize in the International Clarinet Association’s Orchestral Audition Competition held at ClarinetFest in Kansas City, Missouri. Chief Marcano is the recipient of the Col. Finley R. Hamilton’s Outstanding Military Musician Award in 2014. His principal teachers include Richie Hawley, Kathleen Jones, and Ricardo Morales. MUC Marcano joined the U.S. Coast Guard Band in May 2009, has performed as a soloist with the band on numerous occasions, and became principal clarinet in the summer of 2025.