The Air Force Band Erfurt () is a

German Air Force The German Air Force (german: Luftwaffe, lit=air weapon or air arm, ) is the aerial warfare branch of the , the armed forces of Germany. The German Air Force (as part of the ''Bundeswehr'') was founded in 1956 during the era of the Cold War a ...

(Luftwaffe) military band founded in 1991 to provide musical support to the city of

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital and largest city in the Central German state of Thuringia. It is located in the wide valley of the Gera river (progression: ), in the southern part of the Thuringian Basin, north of the Thuringian Forest. It sits in ...

and the German Air Force. Its

area of responsibility Area of responsibility (AOR) is a pre-defined geographic region assigned to Combatant commanders of the Unified Command Plan (UCP), that are used to define an area with specific geographic boundaries where they have the authority to plan and cond ...

spans across the German states of Thuringia, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Brandenburg and northern Bavaria. The 56 member band has travelled internationally to concerts in Belgium, France, Great Britain, Canada, Poland, and the United States. Its scope of duties include protocol operations such as state visits and military parades, as well as other events such as charity concerts. The band has 6 ensembles: *

Concert band A concert band, also called a wind band, wind ensemble, wind symphony, wind orchestra, symphonic band, the symphonic winds, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of members of the woodwind, brass, and percussion famil ...

* Egerland band * Brass quintet * Saxophone quartet * Clarinet quartet * Woodwind Trio It emerged from the Central Band of the National People's Army Air Forces of the Military Music Service of the NPA In March–April 1991 as the Army Band 70 in Erfurt. It was renamed to the Heeresmusikkorps in July 1994 and the Military District Band III in October 2001. until the end of March 2015, it appeared as a military band music corps III. Since 1 April 2015, it has been called Air Force Band Erfurt. Just under a year earlier, on 30 July 2014, Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen announced that the northern Thuringian Garnisonstadt

Sondershausen Sondershausen is a town in Thuringia, central Germany, capital of the Kyffhäuserkreis district, situated about 50 km north of Erfurt. On 1 December 2007, the former municipality Schernberg was incorporated by Sondershausen. Until 1918 it ...

military bands will be preserved in Erfurt and the resolution planned for 2017 will not be pursued.

Conductors

* Captain Georg Nitsche (1991–1993) * Lieutenant Colonel Bernd Männel (1993–2006) * Captain Christian Prchal (2006–2007) * Lieutenant Colonel Roland Kahle (2007–2015) * Lieutenant Colonel Burkard Zenglein (2015–2018) * Lieutenant Colonel Tobias Wunderle (1 July 2018–Present)

References

{{Authority control German military bands Units and formations of the German Air Force Erfurt Musical groups established in 1991 Military units and formations established in 1991 1991 establishments in Germany Air force bands