The Concert
THE PERFORMERS
A Capitol Fourth 2011 features performances from some of the country's best known and award-winning musical artists:
- Jimmy Smits
- Steve Martin
- Steep Canyon Rangers
- Josh Groban
- Mathew Morrison
- Jordin Sparks
- Mark Ballas
- Chelsie Hightower
- Little Richard
- Million Dollar Quartet
- Kelli O'Hara
- The National Symphony Orchestra
- Jack Everly
- United States Army Presidential Salute Battery
- Choral Arts Society of Washington
- U.S. Army Herald Trumpets
- U.S. Army Ceremonial Band
- The United States Air Force Band, Ceremonial Brass
- Military District of Washington
Jimmy Smits
Proving that versatility is as important as skill in the acting profession, Jimmy Smits has built a career that allows him to move effortlessly between film, television and stage. The Emmy Award and Golden Globe-winning actor continues to do just that. Most recently, Smits starred in the NBC drama Outlaw in the role of Supreme Court Justice Cyrus Garza. Smits also served as an executive producer of the show. In 2009, he co-starred in Mother and Child with Annette Bening, Samuel L. Jackson and Naomi Watts. Smits has enjoyed an exemplary television career. Also in 2009, Smits finished a stint in Showtime’s hit series Dexter, for which he was recognized with his 12th Emmy nomination. In 2008, Smits’ El Sendero Productions company co-executive produced the CBS series, Cane, in which he starred. He also narrated the PBS documentary series, Latin Music USA. Coinciding with his West Wing presidency, Smits was seen in HBO’s award-winning television movie Lackawanna Blues. Smits received six consecutive Emmy nominations for his role as Victor Sifuentes on L.A. Law, winning the Emmy in 1990, and five Emmy nominations for his role as Bobby Simone on the critically acclaimed, Emmy-winning drama, NYPD Blue. Additionally, he received an ALMA Award and an Imagen Award for Best Actor for The West Wing, has four Golden Globe nominations – winning in 1995 for his role in NYPD Blue – and four Screen Actors Guild Award nominations. He also won the Humanitas Award for NYPD Blue. Smits’ filmography includes early works such as Peter Hyams’ Running Scared with Gregory Hines and Billy Crystal; John Schlesinger’s The Believers; Old Gringo with Gregory Peck and Jane Fonda; Blake Edwards’ comedy Switch; the critically acclaimed My Family/Mi Familia, directed by Gregory Nava, for which he received an Independent Filmmaker Project Spirit Award nomination; Carlos Ávila’s Price of Glory; Chuck Russell’s thriller Bless the Child; George Lucas’ Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones and Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith; Robin Swicord’s The Jane Austen Book Club; and El Traspatio (Backyard), directed by Carlos Carrera. Smits began his acting career in New York theater and returns often. He most recently starred on Broadway in the critically acclaimed hit God of Carnage (2009). Prior to that, he starred in Nilo Cruz’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Anna in the Tropics, preceded by the New York Public Theatre’s Shakespeare in the Park presentations of Much Ado About Nothing (2004) and Twelfth Night (2002). Smits has been involved with various charitable organizations over the years and has consistently been a strong advocate for education. In 1997, he co-founded the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts (NHFA), with actors Esai Morales and Sonia Braga and Washington attorney Felix Sanchez, to promote Hispanic talent in the performing arts. The organization offers graduate scholarships and cash grants at prominent colleges and universities to expand career opportunities and increase access for Hispanic artists and professionals while fostering the emergence of new Hispanic talent.
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Steve Martin
Steve Martin is one of the most wide-ranging talents in the motion picture industry today, having achieved success as an actor, comedian, author, playwright, producer and, most recently, musician. When performing on national concert tours, he drew standing-room-only audiences in some of the largest venues in the country. He won Grammy Awards for his two comedy albums, “Let’s Get Small”and “A Wild and Crazy Guy”; the single “King Tut” sold more than a million copies. Martin also won a Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance for his work on an Earl Scruggs’ album. On January 31, 2010, Steve Martin's banjo album, “The Crow: New Songs for the Five-String Banjo,” won a Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album. Martin recently released his second full-length bluegrass album “Rare Bird Alert” on Rounder Records. He was joined by the Steep Canyon Rangers, who toured extensively with Martin over the past year. “Rare Bird Alert” features 13 new Martin-penned tracks, including a live version of “King Tut,” and was produced by Tony Trishka. Paul McCartney and The Dixie Chicks make special guest vocal appearances on the album. Since becoming involved in the modern bluegrass scene, Martin has been impressed with the high level of musicianship that exists among the professional and semi-professional players. In 2010, Martin established The Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass, an annual award to bring recognition to an individual or group for outstanding accomplishment in the field of five-string banjo or bluegrass music. In its inaugural year, the award was presented to Noam Pikelny. Born in Waco, Texas and raised in Southern California, Mr. Martin became a television writer in the late 1960s, winning an Emmy Award for his work on the hit series The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. By the end of the decade he was performing his own material in clubs and on television. Launched by frequent appearances on Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show, Mr. Martin went on to star in and co-write four highly rated television series. He has hosted the innovative Saturday Night Live show 15 times, currently holding the record for most appearances as host. Mr. Martin starred in many classic feature films including Little Shop of Horrors (1986); The Three Amigos (1986); Roxanne (1987); Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987); Parenthood (1989); Father of the Bride I (1991) and Father of the Bride II (1995); L.A. Story (1991); The Spanish Prisoner (1997); Bowfinger (1999); and Bringing Down the House (2003). Earlier this year, Martin completed production on The Big Year directed by David Frankel and co-starring Owen Wilson and Jack Black, which is set to be released by 20th Century Fox in October 2011. Some of Martin’s other more recent films include Shopgirl (2005); The Pink Panther (2006); The Pink Panther 2 (2009); and It’s Complicated (2009). In March 2010, Martin, along with Alec Baldwin, co-hosted the 82nd Annual Academy Awards – his third time serving as host of the prestigious award show. He received an Emmy nomination in the category of Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Special for his participation. Mr. Martin also hosted the 75th Annual Academy Awards in 2003, and the 73rd in 2001.
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Josh Groban
Singer Josh Groban made his debut in the seventh grade, but put music aside for a few years until he enrolled at the Interlochen Arts Program. In late 1998, his vocal coach introduced him to producer/writer/arranger David Foster. Groban worked for Foster as a rehearsal singer on a series of high-profile events, including the Grammy Awards (where he rehearsed Foster’s “The Prayer” with Celine Dion in place of Andrea Boccelli). He was accepted into the theater department of Carnegie Mellon University, but put his education on hold when he was offered a recording contract. His debut album, “Josh Groban,” was released in November 2001. Over the next year, Groban became a star. His album went double platinum, and he had his own PBS special in November 2002. A month later, he performed “To Where You Are”and “The Prayer” at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo, Norway, and joined Sting, Lionel Richie, and others for a holiday performance at the Vatican in Rome. In November 2003, Groban released his second album, “Closer,” which skyrocketed to the top spot on the Billboard album charts. In 2006, Groban released his third studio album, “Awake,” featuring guest appearances by the vocal group Ladysmith Black Mambazo and jazz pianist Herbie Hancock. The holiday-themed “Noel” appeared in 2007, and “Awake Live” followed in 2008. In 2010, Groban paired with famed producer Rick Rubin for his fifth studio album, the Americana-informed “Illuminations.” Groban kicked off his worldwide “Straight to You”tour May 21, 2011 in New Orleans.
Mathew Morrison
Millions of fans know him as Glee’s eternally optimistic high school choir director Will Schuester. But Mercury Records recording artist Matthew Morrison shows you another side of that talent on his self-titled debut album, where the Tony Award-nominated Broadway musical star proves his skills as a songwriter and even at strumming a ukulele. Morrison studied at New York University’s renowned Tisch School of the Arts. No stranger to musical theatre, vocal performance and dance, Morrison’s first Broadway break came as heartthrob Link Larkin in Hairspray. He was later nominated for a Tony Award for his role in The Light in the Piazza, and received a Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Musical for 10 Million Miles. He also starred in the Tony Award-winning revival of South Pacific at New York’s Lincoln Center Theater before winning the role of Glee’s Will Schuester. Morrison is planning a world tour this summer.
Jordin Sparks
Grammy-nominated recording artist Jordin Sparks’ self-titled debut and sophomore album, “Battlefield,” have sold more than 1.6 million copies worldwide. Cumulatively, the popular singles “Tattoo,” “No Air,” “Battlefield” and “One Step At A Time” have totaled almost 9 million downloads and ringtones. Sparks has received American Music, People's Choice and Teen Choice Awards as well as Grammy and MTV Video Music Award nominations. She has toured extensively with Alicia Keys, the Jonas Brothers and Britney Spears and in the summer of 2010 headlined her own Battlefield Tour. Sparks made her Broadway debut starring in the Tony and Grammy Award-winning Best Musical, In The Heights. Sparks recently released her first fragrance, Because of You, which won a 2010 WWD Beauty Biz Award and is available for sale at retailers nationwide. This summer Sparks will join the New Kids On the Block and the Backstreet Boys as a special guest on their highly anticipated North American concert tour. The multi-faceted performer is also known for her philanthropy, including her own campaign, I'm M.A.D. Are You? M.A.D., which stands for Making A Difference, promotes volunteerism through the M.A.D, Girls Inc., nonprofit organization.
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Mark Ballas
A lifelong dancer and musician, Mark Ballas has wowed over 20 million viewers on ABC’s number one show, Dancing with the Stars, for eight seasons. No stranger to the coveted mirror ball trophy, he is a two-time champion (Season 6 with Kristi Yamaguchi and Season 8 with Shawn Johnson), and caused a media frenzy when he took performance newcomer Bristol Palin all the way to the finals in Season 11. Ballas and his partner, Disney star Chelsea Kane, made it to the finals on Season 12 of Dancing. On April 12, 2011, Ballas’ debut solo album “HurtLoveBox” was released by HitPlay Records. A true passion project, “HurtLoveBox” is an intimate, personal journey of the trials and tribulations of life and relationships. His first single, “Hotwire,” is currently available on iTunes. Born in Houston to a family of international dance stars, Ballas moved to London as a child, where he attended the world-renowned Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts. There, he was required not only to dance, but also sing, act and play an instrument. He began playing the guitar at the age of 10, training in classical flamenco. By age 12, Ballas was writing and performing his own music and playing guitar, drums and bass. With guitar influences including Kurt Cobain, Paco de Lucia, Gipsy Kings, John Mayer and Eric Clapton, Ballas is carving out his own niche in the music world. His rhythmic style and soulful melodies showcase his talent not only as an accomplished singer, but also as a skilled guitar player. As an actor, Ballas has played the lead in the musical Copacabana. He also took on roles in the U.K. tour of Maria de Buenos Aires, and was an understudy in the London Palladium production of The Buddy Holly Musical. In television, he has guest starred on Samantha Who? and Melissa and Joey. When Ballas isn't performing, he is passionate about speaking to school age children about acceptance. While on his 50-city acoustic tour this winter, Ballas carved out time to visit schools in each city to discuss this topic. Six years ago, Ballas and his family were forever altered by the suicide of his uncle, David. Through the grieving process, Ballas and his mother Shirley (David's sister) became involved with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. In the fall of 2010, they formed The Ballas Foundation, which is committed to removing the stigma associated with mental illness and suicide. While suicide is a somber and sometimes taboo subject, Ballas’ discussions with school kids are upbeat, and he delivers his message in a light manner that is easy to for them to absorb. Ballas believes that if we accept everyone for who they are, the lives of those who are considered "different" will be easier, helping all kids flourish in life.
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Chelsie Hightower
Chelsie Hightower is a dancer best known for her regular appearances on ABC’s hit show Dancing with the Stars. She partnered with entertainer, actor and basketball player, Romeo (previously Lil’ Romeo) in Season 12; with world-famous singer and songwriter Michael Bolton for Season 11; The Bachelor’s Jake Pavelka in Season 10; and Olympic snowboarder, Louie Vito for Season 9. She partnered and finished fourth with Ty Murray, 7-time World All-Around Rodeo Champion, in Season 8. In July 2010, Hightower received her first Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Choreography for her Dancing with the Stars routine set to Paso Doble/Malaguena. She co-choreographed the piece with fellow Dancing pro Derek Hough. Hightower was honored to be a part of the Latisse Wishes Challenge benefiting the Make-A-Wish Foundation. She joined Kathy Ireland and Bobbie Thomas in a campaign for the organization, raising more than $400,000. When not busy with Dancing with the Stars, she performs at various dance camps and charity events. She teaches at Center Stage in Utah, and has also taught abroad helping many students win national titles. Hightower was a fan favorite on Fox’s So You Think You Can Dance prior to joining the cast of Dancing with the Stars. Hightower continues to study all styles of dance with her specialty being Ballroom. “In my chosen field there is always something to learn and I study my craft constantly…striving to improve.” She has trained with current and former world champions including Corky Ballas, Katrina Smirnoff and Louis Van Amstel. Born in Las Vegas and raised in Orem, Utah, Hightower has five older brothers and started dancing in an after school program when she was 9 years old. She won her first national title when she was just 11. In 2005, she was asked to be one of the four couples in the country to be on Team USA, in the most prestigious dance competition in the world, held in Blackpool, England. She represented the United States in Latin Style, where Team USA took 3rd place behind Ukraine and Russia. That same year she had the opportunity to be one of the two couples to represent the United States at the Worlds for the standard style of ballroom held in Lavita. At just 21 years old, Chelsie has accomplished a great deal and even has her own dance and activewear clothing line, the Chelsie Hightower Collection for Sugar and Bruno. For more information, go to www.chelsiehightowerdance.com.
Million Dollar Quartet
Million Dollar Quartet is the new smash-hit musical inspired by the recording session that brought together rock ‘n’ roll icons Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins for the first and only time. On December 4, 1956, these four young musicians gathered at Sun Records in Memphis for what would be one of the greatest jam sessions ever. Million Dollar Quartet brings that legendary night to life and features the hit songs “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Fever,” “That’s All Right,” “Sixteen Tons,” “Great Balls of Fire,” “Walk the Line,” “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On,” “Who Do You Love?” “Matchbox,” “Folsom Prison Blues,” “Hound Dog” and more. The Chicago production of Million Dollar Quartet opened in 2008 and is still playing to packed houses at the Apollo Theater. The Broadway production opened in spring 2010 and received a Tony nomination for Best Musical. A West End production opened winter 2011 to rave reviews and is currently playing at the Noël Coward Theatre in London. An upcoming national tour will launch this October in Cleveland.
Kelli O'Hara
Kelli O’Hara has established herself as one of Broadway’s great leading ladies. She starred in the Tony Award-winning revival of South Pacific at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, enrapturing audiences and critics alike with her soulful and complex interpretation of Nellie Forbush and garnering a third Tony nomination. A native of Oklahoma, O’Hara received a degree in opera, and after winning the State Metropolitan Opera Competition, moved to New York and enrolled in the Lee Strasberg Institute. She made her Broadway debut in Jekyll & Hyde and followed it with Stephen Sondheim’s Follies; Sweet Smell of Success opposite John Lithgow; and Dracula. In 2003, O’Hara committed to a production of The Light in the Piazza at Seattle’s Intiman Theatre. The show landed on Broadway in 2005 and earned O’Hara her first Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations. She moved from one huge critical and commercial success to another when she joined Harry Connick on Broadway in the 2006 Tony Award-winning production of The Pajama Game, for which O’Hara received Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Circle Critics Award nominations. O’Hara has worked regionally and off-Broadway in Sunday in the Park with George at the Reprise Theatre Company, My Life With Albertine at Playwright’s Horizons, Beauty at the La Jolla Playhouse and most recently as Ella Peterson in Bells Are Ringing at City Center Encores. In addition to her critically acclaimed performance as Eliza Doolittle in the New York Philharmonic production of My Fair Lady, O’Hara performed a solo concert at Carnegie Hall with The New York Pops. She sang at Carnegie Hall with Barbara Cook and The New York Pops; at the Kennedy Center with Marvin Hamlisch and the National Symphony Orchestra; with the New York Philharmonic under Hamlisch; the Boston Pops under Keith Lockhart; at the Lincoln Center; The Cooper Union with the Philly Pops conducted by Peter Nero; the Seattle Symphony at the Orange County Performing Arts Center; Broad Stage; Ravinia Festival; and enjoyed sold-out runs at Café Carlyle and Feinsteins. She sang “God Bless America” at Yankee Stadium at Game 6 of the World Series and performed on PBS’s 2010 National Memorial Day Concert live from Washington, D.C. She performed at the 2008 Kennedy Center Honors as part of the Barbra Streisand tribute and again at the 2010 Kennedy Center Honors as part of the Jerry Herman tribute. Upcoming engagements include performances with the Boston Pops, the Seattle Symphony, at the New York City Opera, the New York Philharmonic, Town Hall and Tanglewood. Among her film and television credits are Sex & The City 2; Martin Scorsese’s short The Key to Reserva opposite Simon Baker; The Dying Gaul starring Patricia Clarkson and Campbell Scott; Blue Blood; All Rise, Alexander Hamilton starring Brian F. O’Byrne; NUMB3RS; All My Children and numerous live performances on national television shows. O’Hara’s recordings include “South Pacific,” “The Light in the Piazza” and “The Pajama Game” for which she earned Grammy nominations; “The Sweet Smell of Success,”“My Life with Albertine,” “Dream True,” “Jule Styne Goes Hollywood” and her solo album “Wonder in the World.”O’Hara resides in New York with her husband Greg and their son Owen.
Maestro Jack Everly
Jack Everly is the Principal Pops Conductor of the Baltimore and Indianapolis Symphony Orchestras, Naples Philharmonic Orchestra and National Arts Center Orchestra (Ottawa). This season he makes his Los Angeles Philharmonic debut at the Hollywood Bowl, returns to The Cleveland Orchestra and appears as guest conductor in Pittsburgh, Edmonton, Ft. Worth and Phoenix. Originally appointed by Mikhail Baryshnikov, Everly was conductor of the American Ballet Theatre (ABT) for 14 years, where he served as music director. In addition to his ABT tenure, he has teamed with Marvin Hamlisch in Broadway shows that Hamlisch scored, including The Goodbye Girl, They’re Playing Our Song and A Chorus Line. He conducted Carol Channing in two separate Broadway productions of Hello, Dolly! In television and film, Everly has appeared on In Performance at the White House and conducted the songs for Disney’s animated classic The Hunchback of Notre Dame. He has been music director on numerous Broadway cast recordings and conducted the critically praised Everything’s Coming Up Roses: The Overtures of Jule Styne. Daniel Rodriguez’s In the Presence,with the Czech Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra of Prague and conducted by Everly, was released in 2005. In 1998, Everly created the Symphonic Pops Consortium (SPC) and serves as music director. The Consortium, based in Indianapolis, produces a new theatrical pops program each season. In the past ten years, more than 225 performances of SPC programs have taken place across the U.S. and Canada, including this season’s Mysterioso: Music, Magic & Mayhem. Maestro Everly holds an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from Franklin College in his home state of Indiana.
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The National Symphony Orchestra
The National Symphony Orchestra of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, led by Music Director Christoph Eschenbach, is recognized not only nationally but also internationally, and is considered one of the world's finest ensembles. The Orchestra, in its 80th season (2010-11), maintains a busy concert schedule in this country and abroad, performing approximately 175 concerts each season, including a classical subscription series, pops concerts, a summer series at Wolf Trap, and one of the nation’s most varied and extensive educational programs. The National Symphony is particularly distinguished for its commitment to the music and musicians of this country. This is exemplified through several innovative projects, among them the American Residency program, which has so far taken the National Symphony to 21 states performing concerts and providing educational services, with all proceeds benefiting artistic organizations in the local states. Through the John and June Hechinger Commissioning Fund, the Orchestra has commissioned more than 60 works by American composers. Two have earned Pulitzer Prizes, and the series also includes cycles of fanfares and encores, which, taken as a whole, are representative of the diverse influences in American composition today. The Orchestra provides free public concerts on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol, as well as at other venues around the Washington, D.C. area. For more information on the National Symphony’s programs, please visit http://www.nationalsymphony.org.
United States Army Presidential Salute Battery
The 3rd U.S. Infantry Salute Guns Platoon is responsible for rendering honors to visiting foreign dignitaries and heads of state at the White House, the Pentagon and elsewhere in the Washington D.C., area. The platoon also fires the final salutes during many funerals at Arlington National Cemetery. The guns platoon is the only unit of its kind in the Army, and its busy schedule includes more than 300 ceremonies each year.
For more information, please visit: http://www.army.mil/.
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Choral Arts Society of Washington
Now entering its 47th season, The Choral Arts Society of Washington, under the leadership of its founder and artistic director Norman Scribner, is one of the major symphonic choruses in the United States. Consisting of more than 180 professional-caliber volunteer singers, The Choral Arts Society of Washington has performed under the world’s leading conductors and symphony orchestras, recorded a number of acclaimed CDs and toured nationally and internationally. The chorus is regularly called upon to help inaugurate presidents, honor world leaders, celebrate national holidays and participate in televised performances. For more information, visit: http://www.choralarts.org
U.S. Army Herald Trumpets
The United States Army Herald Trumpets is the official fanfare ensemble for the President of the United States. Founded in 1959 and patterned after traditional British “fanfare” trumpet ensembles, The U.S. Army Herald Trumpets was formed to add splendor to official military ceremonies. A performing element of The United States U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own” in Washington, D.C., the ensemble has performed for countless events of national and international significance. These include twelve presidential inaugurals, the “G8” Economic Summits in 1984, 1990 and 2004, the 50th Anniversary of the United Nations and, most recently, the arrival of Pope Benedict XVI at the White House in April 2008. In addition to its official duties, The U.S. Army Herald Trumpets has performed in the opening ceremonies for the 1980 and 2002 Winter Olympic Games, the 1984 Summer Olympic Games and the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games. The ensemble has also performed at such nationally and internationally televised events as Super Bowl XXXIX, The Kennedy Center Honors and the relighting of the Statue of Liberty. The U.S. Army Herald Trumpets has been featured with orchestras from around the world, including the National Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, the Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Pops and the Cincinnati Pops. For more information, visit www.usarmyband.com/herald_trumpets/
U.S. Army Ceremonial Band
The United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own” has been the premier musical organization of the U.S. Army since 1922. Army Chief of Staff General John J. “Black Jack” Pershing founded the band, emulating European military bands he had heard during the First World War. “Pershing’s Own” continues to play an important role in events of national and international significance, and leads every inaugural parade, a tradition begun in 1925 with the inauguration of President Calvin Coolidge. Since its original organization, The U.S. Army Ceremonial Band has grown to meet a wide range of commitments. While the Ceremonial Band’s primary mission is to support over 2,000 military funerals each year in Arlington National Cemetery, the band performs other missions of national and international importance. These missions include wreath-laying ceremonies by heads of state and other foreign dignitaries at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, monthly retirement parades, special reviews, and arrival and departure honors for foreign dignitaries at the White House and Pentagon. Recent major events include 2005 Presidential Inaugural festivities, the State Funerals of Presidents Ronald Reagan and Gerald Ford, and ceremonies honoring Her Majesty The Queen of England Elizabeth II during her visit to the United States in May 2007. The 70 musicians of The U.S. Army Ceremonial Band come from some of the most prestigious music conservatories and universities in the country. Beyond their ceremonial roles, members of The U.S. Army Ceremonial Band routinely display their versatility and superb musicianship while performing with other elements of The U.S. Army Band, in chamber group performances, on recital programs, and as soloists for summer concerts. Commitments performed by The U.S. Army Ceremonial Band are an integral and indispensable part of the overall mission of “Pershing’s Own” and are some the most visible missions performed by The United States Army Band. For more information, visit http://www.usarmyband.com/ceremonial_band/the_us_army_ceremonial_band.html.
The United States Air Force Band, Ceremonial Brass
Brass music has played an important role in public gatherings and ceremonies for hundreds of years. Military leaders have always been keenly aware of the strength and carrying power of brass and percussion instruments. They have often chosen them to perform signals, alarms, and other outdoor ceremonial and concert music. Today, amidst the great monuments that celebrate our nation's history, The United States Air Force Ceremonial Brass continues this ancient tradition by providing the finest musical support for state arrivals at the White House and arrivals at Andrews Air Force Base, full honor arrivals for foreign dignitaries at the Pentagon, retirements, changes of command, awards ceremonies, patriotic programs and funerals at Arlington National Cemetery. In addition to its ceremonial duties, the Ceremonial Brass performs in concert several times each year. Because of the variety of its commitments, the ensemble's repertoire ranges from traditional music to original commissioned works. The origins of the Ceremonial Brass trace back to 1964, when The United States Air Force Headquarters Command Band was incorporated into The United States Air Force Band as a separate ceremonial unit. Since its creation, it has evolved into the Ceremonial Brass, consisting of world-class brass players, percussionists and drum major. The group is responsible for more than 1,000 missions annually. Most recently, the Ceremonial Brass has represented the United States Air Force at the 50th anniversary of V.E. Day celebration in Moscow, as well as in military tattoo ceremonies in The Netherlands, Sweden and Norway. The Ceremonial Brass has made numerous appearances on radio and national television. For more information, visit http://www.usafband.af.mil/ensembles/BandEnsembleBio.asp?EnsembleID=59.
Military District of Washington
The Military District of Washington works with Capital Concerts in coordinating the Department of Defense participation of the Premier Service Bands and Service Honor Guards.