The Modern Americus Brass Band
The Americus Brass Band is one of America’s best-known professional brass ensembles. Founded over 40 years ago by students in the Music Department at California State University, Long Beach, this Southern California Civil War historical replica brass band is nationally recognized for its authentic performance of 19th and early 20th Century brass music on authentic period instruments.
The Americus Brass Band has toured nationally for over 30 years, performing hundreds of shows in over 35 states. The group has also recorded three critically acclaimed CDs and their music has been included on two additional movie sound-track albums and two civil war CDs. The Buffalo Bill Wild West Show Cowboy Band CD, recorded on a grant from the Buffalo Bill Foundation was named a "Best of the Year" and "a must buy" by Randy Salas in Fanfare Magazine.
The band has been invited to perform at many national events including the 125th anniversary reenactments of the battles of Bull Run and Gettysburg, the International Brassfest II, The 2016 International Trumpet Guild conference, the Great American Brass Band Festival, and the National Civil War Band Festival. The band has also performed at the Hollywood Bowl, the first band to perform in that venue for over 60 years. John Henken of the Los Angeles Times described the performance as "blazing" and "taut" and wrote, "Its 13 members...handled their assignments with virtuoso flair...."
The Americus Brass Band is probably best known for its work in Hollywood where it has recorded sound-track music for and/or appeared on-screen in well over a dozen major motion pictures and television shows including Glory, Gettysburg, Geronimo: An American Legend, and Hidalgo.
Today, the ABB specializes in educational programs about the Civil War and has developed this new touring show, “Top Brass” that expands it’s repertoire to include historical reenactments of four iconic American military bands: Patrick Gilmore’s 24th Massachusetts infantry band from the Civil War, John Phillip Sousa’s United States Marine Band, James Reese Europe’s 369th “Hellfighters” Infantry band from WWI, and Glenn Miller’s famous Army Air Force band of WWII. “Top Brass” demonstrates once again why the Americus Brass Band is, and will forever be, America’s Brass Band!
—Richard Birkemeier, Musical Director, Americus Brass Band
The Americus Brass Band is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation.
Donations are tax deductible as permitted by law.
© 2016 Americus Brass Band