The Fountain City Brass Band, an award-winning ensemble based in the Kansas City area, will perform a Christmas concert at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 14 at the St. Joseph Cathedral, 519 N. 10th St. The concert, called “Blue Christmas,” is full of holiday favorites from “Sleigh Ride” to “Silent Night.” Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for senior citizens, $5 for students and free for children 10 and under. Tickets are available at the door or in advance from the Missouri Western State University department of music, Potter Hall room 114, or by phone at 816-271-4420.
The Fountain City Brass Band is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2012. Since forming in 2002, the band has won four U.S. Open Brass Band Championships and four North American Brass Band Championships. In November 2009 the Fountain City Brass Band became the first American band ever and the first non-UK band in over 50 years, to win a major brass band competition on UK soil at the Scottish Open Brass Band Championships.
Dr. Lee Harrelson, assistant professor of music at Missouri Western, founded the group and serves as artistic director and solo euphoniumist. Dr. Joseph Parisi, associate professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance, is the musical director and conductor.
The band is committed to a mission of cultural enrichment through the presentation of concerts that are both entertaining and educational. Performing a wide variety of music, including opera, jazz, Broadway and modern compositions written especially for the brass brand, Fountain City seeks to bridge the gap between popular and classical music.
Missouri Western State University is a comprehensive regional university providing a blend of traditional liberal arts and professional degree programs. The university offers student-centered, high quality instruction that focuses on experience-based learning, community service, and state-of-the-art technology. Missouri Western is located in St. Joseph, Mo., and is committed to the educational, economic, cultural and social development of the region it serves. Visit www.missouriwestern.edu.