American Brass Bands

 American Brass Bands


The North American Brass Band Association was founded in 1983. Over the last 40 years the British-style brass band movement has grown in the US and Canada. Today I’d like to explore the history and achievements of a few of North America’s best brass bands.


Fountain City Brass Band


The Fountain City Brass Band is based out of Kansas City, MO. The group was founded in 2002 and has won the NABBA championship a whopping nine times, most recently in 2022. While the group is based in Kansas City, its members hail from across the country and hold teaching positions at major universities in multiple states. The Directors include Dr. Joesph Parisi, Dr. Lee Harrelson, and Helen Harrelson. The band has played at many conferences such as the Midwest Clinic, the 2019 International Tuba Euphonium Conference, and the 2023 International Trombone Festival. 





This performance of Jan Van Der Roost’s From Ancient Times won the 2016 NABBA Championship. The piece is inspired by Renaissance music with hints of Gregorian chant and middle age dance music. Van Der Roost adds modern atmospheric sounds, particularly in the percussion and trombones, to great affect. The results is a unique combination of very modern and very old music.




James Madison University


The James Madison University Brass Band was founded in 2000 and has won the NABBA championship twice and placed second 4 times. They are one of the only collegiate brass bands in the US. The group was formed by Dr. Kevin Stees who continues to conduct the band today. The JMU Brass Band has played at many prestigious festivals and venues across the world including the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. and the Brucknerhaus in Linz, Austria.  





This performance of Spirit by Thomas Doss earned them 4th place at the 2015 NABBA Championships. This piece is truly epic in scale and subject material. Most of the l material is derived from the music of Anton Bruckner, a favorite of many orchestral brass musicians. In addition, there is a Bach chorale that Bruckner was influenced by that, in turn, influenced Doss. Despite the epic source material, Doss uses minimalism to balance the heavy chorale-like texture of the end of the piece.


Five Lakes Silver Band


The Five Lakes Silver Band is the 2023 NABBA Championship winner, their first ever championship! The band was founded as the Oakland Brass Band in 2006, but was renamed The Five Lakes Silver Band in an effort to create a distinction between the Oakland University Brass Band. Their director, Christopher Ward, is the Director of Music and Gospel Arts for the Eastern Michigan Division of the Salvation Army. 





This performance is from the 2022 US Open Brass Band Championships (with Five Lakes Silver also won). The piece I’d like to focus on is Johan De Meij’s, Extreme Makeover. This piece is another tour-de-force of brass band compositions. It was written in 2005 for the European Brass Band Championship. There are many musical homages and quotations including several excerpts from Tchaikovsky’s Fourth and Sixth Symphonies, Romeo and Juliet, and his first string quartet. Another unique aspect of the instrumentation is the use of ten bottles tuned to different pitches, performed by the cornet section. 


Brass Bands are a bit of a blind spot for me personally, so I’ve enjoyed this quick overview of a few of the best bands in the US. I’m endeavoring to keep up with the news about these ensembles because I think their popularity will only increase in the coming years.

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