The American Band is a

community band A community band is a concert band or brass band ensemble composed of volunteer (non-paid) amateur musicians in a particular geographic area. It may be sponsored by the local (municipal) government or self-supporting. These groups rehearse reg ...

based in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...

. It was founded as a military band in 1837 by Joseph C. Greene. During its early years, the members were the highest paid in the country - even higher than the New York Philharmonic in its first season. Since its founding, the band has performed near-continuously until the present day, and is one of the oldest bands in the country still performing. Many of the members are music educators, and others are involved in other careers.

History

The band was incorporated in 1837 as the American Brass Band, a 15-piece ensemble of brass instruments and drums, by bugle soloist Joseph C. Greene.

The D.W. Reeves years

The band was directed by noted march composer D. W. Reeves, one of America's foremost conductors, from 1866 until his death in 1900.Dudgeon, page 255 In the years following the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, Reeves grew the ensemble into a professional organization, performing on tours across the United States. Reeves added flutes, clarinets, oboes, bassoons and the recently invented saxophones to the band's repertoire.

Bowen R. Church

Valley Falls native Bowen R. Church (1860–1923) was a master cornet soloist. Reeves invited Church, then a young musical prodigy, to join the band after an impromptu audition on a train, and thereafter became his mentor. Church eventually became a headliner of the band, and briefly led the band after Reeves' death in 1900.

Decline and revival

Following Reeves' death in 1900, the band became more of a local community group playing local concerts and parades. By the 1970s, facing dwindling membership, the band eventually ceased performing entirely, until it was revived by Dr. Francis Marciniak in 1978. Marciniak led the band until 1996. In the 21st century, the band has been recognized as one of the best symphonic bands in southeast New England, and was inducted into the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame in 2020.

Notable performances

* The band "saw action" at the Battle of Bull Run and served as stretcher-bearers for the wounded. * The American Band performed at all

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

graduations between "at least 1847" and 1970, when the

Brown University Band The Brown University Band is the official band of Brown University. Like all Ivy League bands except Cornell's, it is a scatter band. The Brown Band began performing on ice skates in 1970, and claims to be the world's best (and, actually, only) ...

took over the role. * The band entertained veterans at the annual reunions of the

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (U.S. Navy), and the Marines who served in the American Civil War. It was founded in 1866 in Decatur, Il ...

Civil War veterans at Rocky Point * The band regularly performed at Providence's

Roger Williams Park Roger Williams Park is an elaborately landscaped city park in Providence, Rhode Island and a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is named after Roger Williams, the founder of the city of Providence and the pr ...

, where a memorial to Reeves and another to Church were later erected

References

External links

*
Second Connecticut March
by D. W. Reeves, performed by the American Band, from the

National Jukebox The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

Reminiscences of Ireland
performed by the American Band, from the

Musical groups from Rhode Island {{US-band-stub