For the first time in five years, “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band returns to the Midwest on tour, performing a free 7:30 p.m. concert on Thursday, October 12, 2023, at Urbandale High School Performing Arts Center. Organizers from Urbandale High School have helped bring the ensemble from the nation’s capital to Urbandale, Iowa, for this community event.

For full details, please visit www.marineband.marines.mil/Tour. Free tickets are available online starting September 12 (limit 4 per request). Seating is general admission and ticket holders must be seated by 7:15 p.m.; remaining seats will be released to the standby line at that time.

“We are incredibly excited to continue the tradition of our national concert tour,” Marine Band Director Col. Jason K. Fettig said. “Musicians of the band are more eager than ever to share their musical talents with audiences live, and in-person on this Midwest tour.”

Fettig has programmed musical selections in the style of the band’s 17th Director John Philip Sousa, who initiated the concert tour tradition in 1891. Concertgoers can expect a mix of works including traditional band repertoire, Sousa marches, contemporary compositions, vocal and instrumental solos and a patriotic salute to the Armed Forces.

“We have tremendously appreciative patrons who come to Marine Band concerts for all types of different experiences, so our programs are designed to include a great variety of music that mirrors the wonderful diversity in our national musical heritage,” Fettig said.

Since Sousa was first granted permission to tour the country by President Benjamin Harrison in 1891, “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band has delivered a White House experience from Washington, D.C., to the far-reaching corners of our nation, and these special concerts have been shared by generations of Americans.

By the end of this year’s 31-day tour, the Marine Band will have covered more than 4,664 miles around the Midwest, performing in 29 different cities in 11 states, with concerts in Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

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