Marine Barracks Annex, Washington, D.C. -- Marine Band Director Colonel Jason K. Fettig will conduct “The President’s Own” in concert this week in two performances highlighting brass soloists and a lineup almost exclusively comprised of 20th century composers. The program begins with a circus march by Karl L. King followed by a brass concerto featuring soloists Master Gunnery Sgt. Mark Jenkins on euphonium and Master Sgt. Hilary Harding on French horn. Mezzo-soprano vocalist Master Sgt. Sara Sheffield will also solo on the program, singing Harold Arlen’s “Lose That Long Face” from the 1954 film A Star is Born featuring Judy Garland. Other works on the program include John Mackey’s This Cruel Moon and Giouse Bonelli’s Symphonic Concert March.
The concert will close with Come Sunday, a piece American composer Omar Thomas wrote celebrating black musicians and “for the culture.” According to Thomas, this two-movement tribute to the Hammond organ’s central role in black worship services follows the organ through the first movement—Testimony—as it “readies the congregation’s hearts, minds, and spirits to receive The Word via a magical union of Bach, blues, jazz, and R&B.” The second movement, Shout!, is a “virtuosic celebration—the frenzied and joyous climactic moments when The Spirit has taken over the service.”
The concert on Wednesday, June 15, is free and open to the public and will take place at 7:30 p.m. at National Harbor, Md. The concert on Thursday, June 16, will take place at 7:30 p.m. in the John Philip Sousa Band Hall in Washington, D.C., and requires free tickets. It will also livestream here: www.youtube.com/usmarineband/. For tickets and further details: https://marineband.ticketleap.com/
Complete Program and Notes