The St. Joseph Municipal Band continues the 2007 summer season with its normal set of double concerts on Sunday, August 5^th at 3:30 and 7:30 p.m. The weekly summer concerts are held at the John E. N. Howard Band Shell in downtown St. Joseph overlooking the St. Joe River and Lake Michigan.

The August 5^th concerts, the 8^th of 13 double concerts scheduled for the season, will feature Adam Wurst, Vocal Soloist, the Municipal Band Brass Quintet, a first performance of a newly published march by Dorothy Trachte, and a musical tribute to fallen outstanding music educator, Leonard Meretta.

Leonard V. Meretta, professor emeritus of music and founder of the Western Michigan University bands program, died July 23 in Kalamazoo. He was 91.

Meretta is credited with establishing the bands program at WMU in 1945. After leading the program for 27 years, he stepped down as director of bands in 1972. Meretta continued as a full-time member of the music faculty, teaching trumpet until he retired with emeritus status in 1981. He is also credited with staging the state's first college football high school band day in 1946.

A graduate of Ernest Williams School of Music in New York, Meretta received his bachelor's and master's degrees in music from the University of Michigan.

Prior to coming to WMU, he was an instrumental music teacher in Lenoir, N.C., and an instructor and assistant band director at the University of Michigan.

He was active in several professional music organizations during his career including as vice president of the Michigan chapter of the International Trumpet Guild.

Dr. Moely announced the band concert will begin its concert with it’s musical tribute to Meretta by performing two of his favorite marches, "Men of Might," and "Tioga."

Next the band answer a special request for Beethoven’s "Ode to Joy," by performing "Fanfare Prelude on "Ode To Joy, " arranged for band by Jim Curnow.

The band then features a first performance of a newly published march entitled "March for America," by Dorothy Trachte, guest conducted by the march’s arranger Drew Kapture.

DOROTHY TRACHTE is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin with a degree in Choral Music and emphasis on piano. She composed this march and originally entitled it "The Bicentennial March" in 1976 for the Wisconsin Grand Chapter of the Order of EASTERN Star in Wisconsin. The march has recently been transcribed for band and has been re-titled "Tribute to America," and is dedicated to the memory of those who lost their lives on 9/11. Dorothy is currently a music director at Fairplane Presbyterian Church in Benton Harbor and is a life Member of Monday Musical.

DREW KAPTUR from the euphonium section of the SJMB will be conducting his arrangement of Dorothy Trachte's march "Tribute to America." He is a graduate of Michigan State University with a degree in music theory and composition. He has been a regular and substitute musician for the SJMB since 1980.

The intermission performing group featured for the concerts is the Municipal Band Brass Quintet composed of William Camp, Coordinator, & Charles Steck, Trumpets; Stacie Detgen, French horn; Gary Cooper, Trombone; Jason Harris, Tuba. They will perform sections of "Carnival of the Animals," by Camielle Saint Saens, which includes: "March of the Royal Lion," "Acquariam," "Fossils," "The Swan," "Elephant," and "Finale."

THE MUNICIPAL BAND BRASS QUINTET is coordinated by William Camp, who has his Master’s Degree in Trumpet Performance from the University of Michigan and is presently a professional trumpet player in Chicago. He regularly performs with the Chicago Classic Brass and has also performed in Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, and at La Scala, Italy. Charles Steck, is Associate Director of Bands and Choirs at LaPorte High School, and Instructor of Trumpet and Trumpet Choir at Valparaiso University. He holds a Bachelor of Music Education and a Master of Music from Valparaiso University. Stacie Detgen, French horn, is an instrumental music teacher at Charlotte Middle School and a graduate of Michigan State University who has her Master of Music Education degree from VanderCook College of Music in Chicago. Gary A. Cooper, trombone, attended Lake Michigan College, Indiana University of South Bend and the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago. Cooper has played with the Michigan Opera Orchestra as well as the South Bend, Kalamazoo and Chicago Civic Symphonies. He is Artist in Residence in the St. Joseph Schools. Jason Harris, tuba, is a tool and die maker of Marcellus, who is beginning his Master’s Degree in Tuba performance this fall at Western Michigan University.

The band next performs "Irving Berlin Showstoppers," by Irving Berlin, arranged by John Higgins, which is followed by Adam Wurst, guest vocalist for the concert, who will perform "Colo Porter Selection," trascribed for band by David Bennett, followed by "My Way," a popular Pal Anka song arranged by John Cacavas.

The concert concludes with "Thunder and Blazes March," by Julius Fucek, arr. J. S. Seredy.

The hour long Municipal Band concerts at the John E. N. Howard band shell are held each Sunday at 3:30 & 7:30 p.m. and continue through Sunday, September 2 and conclude with the final set of concerts Monday, September 3, Labor Day.