New Horizons Community Band
Dallas, TX
Contributed by Jim Lawrence, trombonist and media relations
Late on a windy morning in April, musicians from Dallas’ New Horizons Concert Band gathered inside the Frontiers of Flight Museum, a huge converted hangar at Love Field. Assembled near rows of U.S. Navy personnel in dress blue, with historical aircraft suspended overhead, the band entertained with a concert as the audience arrived, then played for a change of command by the Dallas Navy Recruiting District.
It was the sixth U.S. Navy ceremony the band has been called to play for in as many years. While it is just one example of the varied appearances booked annually by Frank Bray, 1st trumpet and vice president of scheduling, it is described by Bitsy Laney, band president, as highly rewarding. She notes that the musicians consider it an honor to be part of the tradition, and the Navy’s continuing invitations reflect the quality of the band.
NHB Dallas, a nonprofit association of more than 65 volunteer musicians, has come a long way since four founding members met in the back of a local music store in 1999. Today, in addition to the Navy ceremonies, repeat performances include the popular Christmas concerts at Dallas’ NorthPark Center, the Denton Arts & Jazz Festival, and the V.A. Medical Center during National Salute to Veterans Week. The remainder of the concert year is booked by private groups such as retiree, church and business organizations.
Concert programming includes marches, patriotic and other holiday-appropriate music, along with selections from motion pictures and Broadway, spanning the decades from “The Sound of Music” to “The Phantom of the Opera.” Audiences might hear a light classical touch such as a Holst suite, Pachelbel’s Canon or something by Johann Strauss II. Recent additions to the play list include Frank Erickson’s “Toccata for Band” and the alternately stately and energetic “Encanto” by Robert W. Smith. Other sure-fire audience pleasers are John Williams’ “March from 1941” and a medley of his familiar movie and television themes. Music Director Mike Rossi also likes to keep Elmer Bernstein’s theme from “The Magnificent Seven” handy as a popular stand-by.
When it comes to marches, Bob Sims, 1st trombone and music librarian, has ensured that NHB Dallas audiences hear the real thing by providing the original arrangements of Sousa compositions, Karl King’s “Barnum and Bailey’s Favorite,” E.E. Bagley’s “National Emblem” and others.
Vocalist Stephanie Askew, who regularly doubles as MC, is frequently featured on pop standards from the era of Gershwin or Rodgers & Hart, and her moving version of “I Dreamed a Dream” from “Les Misérables“ has captivated audiences of all ages. During livelier numbers, she often delights young people in the audience by inviting them forward to dance or march to the beat. Another vocal soloist, Joe Staser, consistently earns ovations at patriotic-themed concerts.
Contributing to the success of NHB Dallas are its members’ passion for making music – many play for more than one ensemble in the area – and a tradition of professional-level leadership, with each conductor building on the foundation of the last. Under Rossi, who took the helm in 2010, the band has achieved its highest artistic level to date and has seen unprecedented growth, with some instrumental sections reaching capacity. He continually seeks to inspire and challenge the musicians to be their best, through technical polish and musical interpretation, while never forgetting another priority: Have fun with it.
A professional trumpet player with a master’s in music performance, Rossi has taught music at the university level, has substituted on trumpet for several symphony orchestras and has judged band competitions in several states. He is also a veteran whose service included a tour of duty with the U.S. Marine Drum & Bugle Corps, known as “The Commandant’s Own.” He occasionally finds time to join other former Marines in a group called The Band of America’s Few. At 41, Rossi is the youngest member of NHB Dallas, which generally requires a minimum age of 50 and has a couple of musicians who are 80-plus.
Throughout the band are veterans of the armed forces. Those who played in a military band, by current instrument and branch of service, are: Walt Dean, trumpet, Air Force; Buddy Givens, bassoon, Air Force; Ken O’Grady, saxophone, Navy; Epi Quintanilla, trombone, Army; Perry Stephens, clarinet, Marine Corps; Jimmie Stewart, bass clarinet, Air Force; and Rick Vishnesky, trumpet, Navy. A member of the tuba section, D. K. “Dinty” Moore, is a graduate of the U. S. Naval Academy.
Helping to set the organization apart from many North Texas community bands is its affiliated 20-member jazz band, UpSwing. Conducted by Rossi and managed by Phil Cook, French horn player and past president of NHB Dallas, UpSwing keeps a busy schedule taking its “big band” music to hospitals, senior and church groups and other audiences. A recent performance was for a banquet honoring POWs from World War II, Korea and Vietnam.
The newest and most compact offshoot from the main band is an eight-member Dixieland group called DixieSwing, which started booking engagements in late 2011.
More information is available at the band’s website
Visit us on Facebook at Dallas New Horizons Band
North Cascades Concert Band
Contributed by: Alan Baker, Band President
The North Cascades Concert Band was formed in 1995. The band currently has approximately 55 members. The senior member is 84 years old and the youngster is 13 years old.
Our band director, Lylburn Layer, started in music like many of us, in the fifth grade band. He played in the Navy Band in the 1950’s and was one of the founding players of the Navy Steel Band. Since leaving the military he went on to college and became a music educator. Lylburn is now retired and spends his time directing, as well as being a fine performer in the Port Angeles Symphony.
The band has five other members that played in military bands, including myself, who played my Navy enlistment during the late sixties in a unit band.
April is spring concert month for the Cascades Concert Band, which means it is John Philip Sousa Time. Normally, every other number in our concert is a Sousa composition. It is a traditional concert series every spring. The crowd loves Sousa and we love playing Sousa.
The band also travels to Canada every June (this year will be our 3rd time) to perform at the Ladner Band Fest in Ladner , British Columbia. Ladner Band Fest is a two day event with community bands from all over the province.
The band’s board of directors is in the process of putting together a scholarship program for a high school student that excels in music and plans a music career after college. We often feature high school performers as guests at our concerts.
The North Cascades Concert Band is very fortunate to have a fine conductor and assistant conductor. We play pieces that are extremely difficult and require much rehearsing. We perform pieces by some very impressive composers: Anderson, Bernstein, Copland, Paganini, Shostakovitch, Sousa, Gershwin and Grainger, just to name a few. We pride ourselves in giving a solid performance. Lylburn Layer and his assistant Rob Pattermann do all the music selections. During our fall concert series we sometimes will do theme concerts: Show Stoppers, Dances, etc.
The North Cascades Concert Band membership is from all over the north west portion of Washington State, from Blaine at the International border to as far south as Mercer Island near Seattle. Geographically we cover a lot of territory and try to spread our concert venues around to many communities.
Visit the band’s website.
Contributed By: Stacy Flankey
Montrose Community Band of Colorado
Montrose, Colorado has a rich history of municipal bands, dating back nearly 100 years. Herb Probasco organized the Montrose Community Band in 2002 with just 12 members. Today, the band has over 30-40 members per concert and continues to grow. The band features a wide range of musicians from High School students to accomplished artists. The youngest player is 11 years old, and the oldest musician is 82 years young! There are several veterans in the band, Lyle Miller on tuba; Don Macdonald with the percussion section; alto saxophonist Dave Loncar; Dave Reddish playing trumpet; Jim Gibson on Bari Sax; Steve Nelson on Tenor Sax; Kalynn Carlton, who is a member of the 101st Army National Guard Band, on French Horn.
Toby King is the Montrose Community Band director. King started playing the saxophone in 6th grade at Delta Middle School. He played through the ranks of the Delta School District and studied Music Education in college. He received a Bachelor of Music Education and achieved a Masters in Instrumental Conducting. He currently works as a Certified Financial Planner for Raymond James Financial Services.
The band has a special committee that decides what music will be played for each concert. There is also a Band Member of the Quarter that is awarded each concert, and that person gets to choose a piece to be played in the following concert as part of the reward. The band likes to play a variety of music. The 4th of July concert is patriotic and filled with marches and an annual salute to veterans. The Christmas concert has classics and a few new songs to keep everyone excited for the holidays. The spring and fall concerts vary and usually have a theme-based lineup. The committee tries to honor the soldiers and veterans throughout the year and remember important dates surrounding them and the battles fought by picking pieces based on or dedicated to these events. The next concert will be on April 15th, at 3 pm and included swing music and other songs from the big band era titled “Spring Swing.”
Along with the four main concerts each year, the band will participate in the Telluride’s 4th of July parade, and at Deltarado Days Fair and Rodeo in Delta, CO. The band has also traveled to Ouray and Lake City to play with the Lake City Stingers. Montrose Community Band also performs for nursing homes and assisted living centers, and in the Christmas parade. Some members of the band also went “caroling” at businesses around the holidays. The Saxophone Ensemble performs after intermission at regular concerts, and is often called on for special events. The band offers younger musicians the chance to earn some community service credits while gaining more experience playing with the Montrose Community Band.
This year marks the 10-year anniversary for the band. The first concert was played in December 2002 for Christmas. Founder Herb Probasco passed away last fall, and is greatly missed by the band members and community. Tina Woodrum added, “We are a group that really loves playing their instruments and we welcome all ages and skill levels.” All concerts are free and open to the public.
Thank you, Tina Woodrum for taking the time to gather the information for us!
You can view the band’s YouTube video here.
View the Montrose Community Band Website
Compiled By: Stacy Flankey
Community Band Spotlight this month features the band of Plano, Texas.
The Plano Community Band is a non-profit volunteer organization, which currently has 85 active members from all walks of life: college students, doctors, mechanical engineers, software engineers, teachers, financial analysts, veterinarian, music teachers, geologist, marketing, and many more! Throughout the years there have been many retired military service members who have joined the band, and some even played in one of the military bands! The mission of the Plano Community Band is to provide quality music, free of charge, to a wide variety of audiences in the Plano and surrounding areas for their enjoyment and appreciation of music.
Musical Director, Tommy Guilbert, leads the band. Tommy was raised in Jackson and Vicksburg, Mississippi. His mother was an organist, piano player, and teacher, which gave Tommy great exposure to music. He started playing the trumpet in the 7th grade, and during his sophomore year of college decided to major in Music. He received a Bachelor and Masters of Music degrees from Northeast Louisiana University. Tommy taught band in Mississippi and Louisiana prior to coming to J.J. Pierce High School in 1969, producing consistent sweepstakes bands, many of which received state and national honors for outstanding performance. Since leaving teaching to become a school financial consultant, Tommy has continued to be active as a clinician and conductor. Tommy joined the Plano Community Band as Conductor in 2001. Tommy and his wife, Denise, reside in Richardson, Texas.
Jim Carter, Associate Conductor, was born in Texas City, Texas and has made Plano home since 1969, going through the Plano schools and its band program at Plano Senior High. During his high school days, Jim was privileged to have played with Doc Severinsen and Alan Vizzuti, but his first love always seemed to be jazz. After graduation, he was selected to play with the National Bandmasters Association Jazz Band, performing with Marvin Stamm at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. Jim attended Sam Houston University on a music scholarship, receiving his degree in Music Education in 1991. After teaching a couple years, Jim returned to Plano. To keep music in his life, Jim joined the Plano Community Band in 1993 as a baritone saxophone player. He became the band’s associate conductor in 1995. Jim resides in Plano, Texas.
The Music Director selects the music with input from the Associate Conductor. They consider a few things when picking out music for the band: a. is the band capable of playing the piece in rehearsal time available? b. Is the music challenging and will the members grow musically from the piece? and c. Will they enjoy performing and the audience enjoy listening to it?
The band performs for many different venues, for example, formal concerts in the esteemed Eisemann Center, which allows the band to play more intricate works, to concerts in the park, which is casual and concert goers will bring picnic dinners and children dance and play while the band performs. They have also participated in the Barnes & Noble “Bookfairs” as a fundraiser. The band plays summer concerts every other week, with fresh repertoire each time! One of the summer concerts is always a “Children’s” concert, one is always a “Patriotic” theme, and one is always a swing/big band concert. Other themes have been “Broadway Favorites,” “A European Stay-cation,” “International Dances,” and recently “Band Member Favorites.” Some “Band Member Favorites” consisted of: “American River Songs” by Pierre LaPlante, “In the Miller Mood” arranged by Warren Baker, John Philip Sousa’s “King Cotton,” and “Texas Star March” by David Lovrien. But the band’s favorite piece performed was Steven Reineke’s “Pilatus, Mountain of Dragons” with pipe organ.
The band is continually looking for ways to partner with the school in the area. They recently brought an 11-year-old trumpet prodigy to perform with them and speak with students. In the Children’s Concert, the band allows the children to “conduct” the band and use the summer concerts in the park as an opportunity for children to see the instruments up close.
The Plano Community Band is a proud member of the Association of Concert Bands, an international organization dedicated to the advancement of adult community bands.
Check out the website here: www.acbands.org/
Visit the Plano Community Band’s website: www.planoband.com
Thank you, Nancy Michalek for your gathering all of this great information, and helping us set up this Community Band Spotlight!
The Bellefonte Band from Bellefonte, Pennsylvania
Contributed by Stacy Flankey
Community Band Spotlight this month features the band of Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, a historic town full of Victorian charm. The group consists of volunteer musicians of all ages from the surrounding areas. Their mission: “to share our love of music, and have fun while doing so.” This year the band celebrates it’s 27th anniversary!
Bellefonte Community Band consists of about 50 members, ranging from middle school students to retirees. Five members of the band are veterans, and three were military band musicians! The director, Natalie Stanton, began her musical training on the piano at an early age and participated in bands and choirs throughout high school and college. She received a music degree from Lebanon Valley College and worked as an elementary school band instructor in Baltimore before moving to Bellefonte. Natalie has been with the band since 2005. The director selects the musical pieces, but with input from the band members. The current favorites are marches, pieces based on popular films, such as “The Pirates of the Caribbean,” and a medley of theme songs from TV crime dramas. The band also enjoys playing more challenging classical pieces, like “Russian Christmas Music” and “Poet and Peasant Overture.”
Bellefonte Band performs at community events and festivals throughout the summer, and at several nursing homes during the summer and holiday seasons. The band provides funds each year for an award given to a local high school student that allows him or her to attend a summer camp at Penn State University. The scholarship covers the cost of attendance for the week-long camp.
The band has received the award of a citation from Kerry Benninghoff, their local member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, in honor of the band’s 25th Anniversary in 2008.
“Our band is a great combination of friendship and musicianship. It’s not uncommon for band members to socialize outside of rehearsals and we pride ourselves in having a welcoming environment for all musicians.” says Jenna Spinelle, member of the Bellefonte Community Band.
If you live in the central Pennsylvania area, check out this wonderful community band and see when they are playing next!
You can visit the band’s website here: http://bellefonteband.net/
The Karl King Band
Contributed By: Jack Kopstein and Stacy Flankey
The Karl King Band is the municipal band for Fort Dodge, Iowa. This ensemble has historically provided a summer concert series in the Karl King Bandshell in beautiful Oleson Park and an indoor concert series held in the auditorium of Iowa Central Community College. The outdoor, summer concert series is an 80 year tradition. The first summer concert was in 1921, after Karl King arrived in Ft. Dodge. These concerts are free to all, and are provided as a service by the City of Fort Dodge. The Karl King Band performs most concerts with an instrumentation of 40 – 45 musicians. Most players live around the area, but there a few that come from as far away as Des Moines and Sioux City. Many of the band’s members are band directors, but many other occupations are represented as well. The band also includes younger players among the musicians that have been playing for 20, 30, and 50 years. “We make an effort to include young people from Ft. Dodge and the surrounding area who show a promising talent or who are pursuing music as a career. The band wants to encourage young people so that the supply of musicians continues,” says Duane Olson, the band’s personnel director. The Iowa Chapter of the American Institute of Architects has included the Karl King Bandshell in a list of Iowa’s most significant structures.
http://www.karlking.us/municipal/about.htm
Karl King was a United States march music bandmaster and composer. He grew up as a self-taught musician with very little schooling of any kind. At eighteen, he began a career playing with circus bands, including “Barnum and Bailey,” “Robinson Famous Shows,” the “Sells-Floto Circus,” and “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.” King settled down in Ft. Dodge, Iowa in 1920, and for the next 51 years conducted the city’s municipal band. King published more than 300 works: galops, waltzes, overtures, serenades, rags and 188 marches and screamers.