If you go
› What: U.S. Navy Band Concert› Where: Soddy-Daisy High School gymnasium, 618 Sequoyah Access Road› When: 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22› Admission: Free› For more information: 423-332-8828
The U.S. Navy Concert Band will sail into Soddy-Daisy on Friday, Feb. 22, for a 7 p.m. performance at Soddy-Daisy High School.
Soddy-Daisy is one of 25 towns in 10 states to host a performance by the Navy band on its 2019 tour.
The Navy Concert Band, the premier wind ensemble of the U.S. Navy, plays a wide array of musical genres. The Navy Concert Band has performed for the public for more than 90 years.
Within the Navy band's 174 enlisted sailors are five performing ensembles. The Concert Band includes 56 musicians, conducted by Capt. Kenneth C. Collins.
"We have two band personnel who are from the general Tennessee area," says Musician 1st Class Sarah Blecker, Public Affairs specialist traveling with the Navy Concert Band.
The two are Senior Chief Musician Courtney Williams (concert moderator) and Musician 1st Class Bryce Edwards (principal euphonium player).
Blecker says the program will include a variety of marches, vocal works, orchestral transcriptions and standard wind band repertoire.
"All of our programs end with a patriotic tribute that honors our nation's veterans. We have two different programs that we take with us on tour, so I cannot guarantee which program will be used in Soddy-Daisy," she says.
But, she says, examples of music the audience might hear: "Washington Post" march by Sousa, "God Bless America," the finale from Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5, "Be Our Guest: A Fairy Tale Medley" and "It's Better With A Band," which features the band's two vocalists.