The year 2023 marks the 195th anniversary of The Allentown Band, sharing its extensive concert band repertoire and exceptional musicianship with the Lehigh Valley and beyond.

Allentown Band Conductor Ronald Demkee exudes excitement, saying, “It’s going to be a great year with a lot of really great performances.”

Patriotic performances set the tone for June with the “Flag Day Concert,” 7 p.m. June 14, West Park, 16th and Linden Streets, Allentown.

The annual event is sponsored by the Allentown Flag Day Association, established in 1907.

Featured guest soloist was well-known Lehigh Valley soprano Evelyn Stewart in a performance of John Rutter’s “Deep River,” a collection of familiar spirituals.

The Allentown Band travels to Washington, D.C., for a 7:30 p.m. June 29 performance in Constitutional Hall for the 133rd Continental Congress of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).

Says Demkee, “We are guests of the Pennsylvania State DAR and have the honor of performing preludes, processional music for the traditional ‘Entry of the State Flags’ and our National Anthem.”

The month concludes with the Allentown Band’s annual “Sousa Concert,” 7:30 p.m. June 30, West Park, Allentown, with a performance by trombone soloist Devon Kolumber, a recent graduate of Lehigh University.

Continues Demkee, “June performances are great and there’s so much more in July in August.

“For example, on July 4th, we perform at 7:30 p.m., Levitt Pavilion at SteelStacks, Bethlehem, and are premiering two unpublished solos for alto saxophone and band written by renowned cornet soloist, bandmaster and composer Herbert L. Clarke [1867-1945].

“Our sax soloist is Paul Cohen, saxophone instructor at the Manhattan School of Music.

“Also on that program, soprano Evelyn Stewart returns and is joined by Chet Brown of the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts, Bethlehem, in a medley on Gershwin’s ‘Porgy and Bess.’

“Another major event is our August 20 concert, “For Ukraine: A Concert of Remembrance and Hope,” 3 p.m. at Miller Symphony Hall in Allentown, and features Metropolitan Opera mezzo-soprano Patricia Risley, the Bach Choir’s Bel Canto Youth Chorus and guest conductor Johan de Meij.

“The Allentown Band’s first documented performance was July 4, 1828, and since that time, The Allentown Band, the oldest civilian concert band in the United States, has played a continuously active role in the musical life and cultural fabric of the community.

“At a documented 195 years,” says Demkee, “I feel very privileged to be a part of the group that has survived and flourished. It speaks to the dedication of the musicians.”

Allentown Band concert schedule:

https://www.allentownband.com

Classical View is a column about classical music concerts, conductors and performers. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com