The Michigan City Municipal Band (MCMB) will begin its 157th season on Thursday, June 5, 7:30p, at the Guy F. Foreman Bicentennial Amphitheater in Washington Park. The MCMB is sponsored by the City of Michigan City.
The MCMB’s 157th season will consist of ten free concerts, beginning June 5, and ending August 7. The band plays a wide variety of music, with concerts designed to entertain audience members of all ages. The MCMB also plays for the annual Memorial Day ceremony at Greenwood Cemetery, and in the Michigan City Patriotic Parade. With one exception, all of the concerts will be performed on Thursdays at 7:30p, and will last about an hour. On June 19, the concert will take place at 4:30p as part of the Michigan City Juneteenth Celebration. The Juneteenth MCMB concert will be followed that evening by a performance of The Reggie Foster Experience.
Highlights of the MCMB summer concert series include special guest soloists and three commissions by acclaimed composers. Guest artists will be GySgt. Hiram Diaz, euphonium, from the US Marine Band (July 31); Carnessa Carnes, narrator (June 19); Anne Marie Bice, soprano (June 26, July 24, and August 7), Richard Liwosz, clarinet (June 26); Dr. Lauren Hartman, soprano (July 10); Charles Steck and Ryan Rabe, trumpets (July 24). Other soloists and special events will be announced during the season.
The MCMB will present the premieres of three commissions:
Winds Across the Water by Erika Svanoe (June 5 and again on July 10 and August 7)
Yearning to Breathe Free by Michele Fernandez (July 24 and August 7)
Rhapsody for Euphonium by Kevin Day (July 31)
Erika Svanoe is a composer and conductor from Wisconsin. Winds Across the Water contains melodies and intervals inspired by Dr. Svanoe’s impressions of the Michigan City Lighthouse, and the breeze felt by standing at the edge of Lake Michigan in Washington Park. Michele Fernandez is a composer and conductor from Florida. Yearning to Breathe Free is a tribute to The Statue of Liberty, as we prepare to celebrate USA 250 in 2026. Kevin Day is a composer from California. His Rhapsody for Euphonium will showcase the band with world-class euphonium soloist GySgt. Hiram Diaz from the US Marine Band, “The President’s Own.”
On June 19, the MCMB will also reprise its 2024 premiere of Michigan City composer Dan Schaaf’s composition Remembering Naomi. The work honors Naomi Anderson, African-American suffragist and Michigan City Native. Naomi’s words will be narrated by Michigan City’s Carnessa Carnes.
In addition to being outstanding performers, many of the MCMB members are successful conductors. Some of those conductors will be featured on individual compositions throughout the summer: Tracy Bermingham (June 12), Jacen Smith (June 26), Sarah DeRossi (July 10), Paul Wagner (July 24), and Julie Plant (August 7). The band will also recognize two just-retired members—Roger and Susan Smith—who played in the band for 69 and 57 years, respectively (June 26).
The June 5 concert repertoire will be:
Fanfare Indiana by Guy Foreman
The Star-Spangled Banner arranged by John Philip Sousa and Walter Damrosch
The Gallant Seventh March by John Philip Sousa
Gentle Winds of Spring by Robert W. Smith
Winds Across the Water by Erika Svanoe (premiere)
Never Gonna Give You Up by Mike Stock, et al
Musical Memories Overture by Philip J. Lang
Bravada Paso Doble by Frederic Curzon
Radetsky March by Johann Strauss
Pop and Rock Legends: Elton John, arr. Ted Ricketts
Sing-along: My America arranged by Joyce Eilers
Musical Memories Overture allows everyone to remember songs of yesteryear: While Strolling through the Park One Day; After the Ball; I’ll Take You Home Again, Katheen; and Ta-ra-ra-Boom-de-ay. Philip J. Lang was a composer, arranger, and music educator who created the orchestrations for over 50 shows on Broadway, including Hello, Dolly!, Annie, and My Fair Lady.
Johann Strauss’s Radetsky March will be familiar to everyone as the encore for the annual New Year’s Eve concerts of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. Be ready to clap along!
Pop and Rock Legends: Elton John will bring us back to the early 1970s, with Crocodile Rock, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Candle in the Wind, and Saturday Night’s Alright.
Finally, the MCMB will continue its tradition of opening and closing each concert with a patriotic audience sing-along. After the opening fanfare, the audience will be invited to sing The Star-Spangled Banner. The final selection will be Joyce Eilers’ arrangement of America (My Country ‘tis of Thee) allowing everyone to enthusiastically honor our great nation.
All of the concerts are free, and everyone is welcome. School band members and young children are especially encouraged to attend. Parking on Lake Shore Drive is prohibited. Parking is available in the lots closest to the amphitheater, as well as the Senior Center. Entrance to the park is free with a Michigan City Park sticker; otherwise, there is a parking fee of $4 ($8 for buses) for the band concert.
Jeffrey Scott Doebler is the conductor of the MCMB, and Quincy Ford is the assistant conductor. In 2018, Dr. Doebler was named a Distinguished Hoosier by Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb. Dr. Doebler serves as director of music education and bands at Valparaiso University. He is a past president of the Indiana Bandmasters Association and the Indiana Music Education Association. Mr. Ford, principal saxophone in the MCMB, is retired director of bands and music department chair from Michigan City High School.
The band’s announcer is Rick Carlson.