Silence switch doesn't affect iPhone alarm

It was, of course, at the most dramatic point in the play we were watching that my boyfriend's phone started blaring Disneyland's "Tiki tiki tiki tiki tiki room" song. Mortified, he fumbles in his pocket and mashes at the screen. Tragically he'd only achieved the "snooze" function, and when the song reoccured 10 minutes later, he hurriedly turned the phone off. Mercifully the actors hadn't reacted, but audience members around us were less than amused. After the show, we examine his phone, and the silent toggle is definitely on. We test it: calls are silent, texts are silent, alarm is not.

So far all the information I've been able to find has been in praise of this feature, allowing one to make sure it is your alarm that wakes you up and not an unwanted phone call. Seriously though, is there a way to fix this? If I want the ringer off, I'll turn the ringer off, but my boyfriend and I both work in theatre: when I need my phone silent, it needs to be silent, and turning it all the way off during work isn't always an option.

In short: is there a fix that doesn't involve toggling each individual alarm off at the beginning of the silent period and back on at the end?

Thanks. I don't mean to sound so ranty, but I find this pretty unbelievable.