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United States Army Field Band to perform November 2
Local residents should not be surprised to hear a variety of patriotic music and other musical styles originating from the Fort Scott National Historic Site early next month.
The music will come from the internationally acclaimed United States Army Field Band from Washington, D.C., which will continue its long history of presenting free public performances when it performs at 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 2, in the Fort Scott High School auditorium, 1005 S. Main St.
"It's a fantastic opportunity for people to be able to hear them," FSNHS Superintendent Betty Boyko said. "We're very fortunate that we're one of the sites that they wanted to come back to."
The band, which has been active since the mid 1940s when it began performing as support for soldiers during World War II, contacted FSNHS earlier this year about returning to Fort Scott following the band's last appearance in 2003 in Fort Scott, and the band was so popular and well-received within the community at that time that FSNHS staff decided to honor their request, Boyko said.
"They called us and then we called around to the chamber and places like that to find out about how they were received," she said. "There was a real positive response. I think it was held at the same place and there was standing room only before at the high school."
The field band, which is composed entirely of soldiers who possess a variety of musical talents, is the premier touring musical representative for the U.S. Army, and travels thousands of miles each year throughout the nation and the world, keeping the will of the American people behind the members of the armed forces and supporting diplomatic efforts around the world. Since its formation in 1946, the band has appeared in all 50 states and in more than 30 countries on four continents, a FSNHS statement said.
Along with the Soldiers' Chorus, which was founded in 1957, the 65-member concert band presents a powerful and diverse program of marches, overtures, popular music, patriotic selections, and instrumental and vocal solos. A music critic for the Boston Globe called a performance by the band "a cause to stand up and cheer."
Some of the band's past performance highlights include 50th anniversary W.W.II commemorations in the U.S. and Europe; presidential inaugural parades; the rededication of the Statue of Liberty; nationally televised broadcasts on Memorial Day and the Fourth of July; and the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah. The band's joint concerts with many of the nation's leading orchestras, including the Boston Pops, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and Cincinnati Pops, have earned rave reviews.
Members of the band, who are chosen by highly competitive auditions, represent some of the finest musical talents in America. More than five decades as the U.S. military's most traveled musicians have earned the band the title, "The Musical Ambassadors of the Army."
Boyko said that 12 members of the FSHS band will receive a rare chance to perform with the field band as guest musicians during their Nov. 2 concert.
After its inception, the U.S. Army Field Band was called the First Combat Infantry Band, and later the Army Ground Forces Band. The band performed in the nation's capital and toured extensively in the U.S. and Europe. In 1950, the Army Ground Forces became the Army Field Forces, consequently changing the band's name to the U.S. Army Field Band. Although the band's early years brought many name changes, their mission to support American soldiers through music never wavered. Today, more than six decades later, the band's mission still remains the same.
For more information about the band's upcoming performance at FSHS, call the FSNHS at (620) 223-0310. Admission to the concert is free of charge. All ticket holders will be seated before non-ticket holders are admitted on concert day. To obtain tickets, visit the site or the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce Visitor Information Center, 231 E. Wall St., or send a request by mail, including a self-addressed stamped envelope, to Fort Scott National Historic Site, P.O. Box 918, Fort Scott, Kan., 66701.