By WKTV Staff

Anchors Aweigh, my boys, Anchors Aweigh.

Farewell to foreign shores, We sail at break of day.

America’s Navy is famous for many stories, in peace and in war, with the medals and ribbons over their hearts, and stripes on their arms, telling a Navy man/woman’s story all by themselves.

And inspirational music, patriotic music, just plain fun music is one of the ways to tell those stories.

Part of that storytelling is the United States Navy Band, coming to Grand Rapids later this month as one of 13 cities spanning six states to host a performance during the group’s 2022 tour.

“For many years, Navy bands have been where it matters, when it matters, just like the rest of our Navy,” Capt. Kenneth Collins, U.S. Navy Band commanding officer, said in supplied material. “Today, we have Sailors performing around the world, improving relations with our allies abroad as well as telling the Navy story here at home.”

The United States Navy Concert Band will be telling its stories April 27, at 7:30 p.m., at Grand Rapids Christian School’s Richard and Helen DeVos Center for Arts and Worship. This concert, like all Navy Band performances, is free and open to the public.

The U.S. Navy Concert Band is the premier wind ensemble of the U.S. Navy. As the original ensemble of the Navy Band, the Concert Band has been performing public concerts and participating in high-profile events for more than 95 years, according to promotional material. The band performs a wide array of marches, patriotic selections, orchestral transcriptions and modern wind ensemble repertoire.

One of the U.S. Navy Band’s primary responsibilities involves touring the country.

All of the band’s primary performing units embark each year on concert tours throughout specified regions of the country, allowing the band to reach out to audiences in areas of the country that do not have opportunities to see the Navy’s premier musical ensembles on a regular basis. The concerts are family-friendly events, meant to be entertaining to veterans, families, individuals and those interested in joining the Navy.

The U.S. Navy Band, based at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., is the “flagship” musical organization of the Navy and one of 11 Navy bands located around the world.
 

The Navy Band has been touring the country since 1925. Sailors in the Navy Band are full-time professional musicians, and almost all of the Sailors in the Navy Band have undergraduate degrees in music, and most have graduate degrees.

For more information on the band visit U.S. Navy Concert Band. For more information on the concert visit here.

On seven seas we learn, Navy’s stern call

Faith, courage, service true, with honor, over honor, over all.