The Rhythm in Blue Jazz Ensemble of the United States Air Force Heritage of America Band will present a free concert at 4 p.m. Feb. 23 at the Grainger Hill Performing Arts Center, 300 Park Ave., Kinston. Grainger Hill Performing Arts Center, in partnership with the Community Council for the Arts, are co-sponsoring the concert.
This concert coincides with the Freedom Classic at Kinston’s Grainger Stadium. The last baseball game, between the Air Force and Navy, is at noon Feb. 23.
One of the few traveling bands still in existence, Rhythm in Blue regularly performs for audiences from Maine to South Carolina. At every performance, Rhythm in Blue honors American military heroes for their selfless sacrifice.
This elite ensemble is comprised of outstanding airmen-musicians from throughout the nation. The band plays with pride and is dedicated to preserving America’s true art form – jazz. Whether from the big band era, or modern sounds of today, Rhythm and Blue has something for audiences of all ages.
Made up of outstanding Airman-musicians from around the country, Rhythm in Blue takes great pride in preserving America’s true art form, developing a new generation of listeners, and representing all Airmen.
Paying homage to the great big bands of Basie, Ellington, Kenton and Goodman, Rhythm in Blue also spotlights the works of modern bands and composers such as the Mingus Big Band, Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra, and John Fedchock’s New York Big Band.
The United States Air Force Heritage of America Band has a rich history of inspiring hearts and minds, building and sustaining American patriotism, and enhancing esprit de corps in the United States Air Force. It was one of the original Army Air Corps bands, created by order of the Secretary of War on Oct. 1, 1941, and assigned to Barksdale Field, LA. In June 1946, after a short stay at Brooks Field, Texas, the band arrived at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, its current home.
For more than 50 years, the band has represented the USAF with musical and military distinction. Members bring music to the mid-Atlantic in live concerts and to the nation in such televised events as “The Today Show,” the Desert Storm National Victory Parade, and presidential inaugural events.
The Heritage of America Band has performed ceremonies for U.S presidents and foreign heads of state, including the Queen of England and the President of France. Using today’s technology, the band reaches a world wide audience through its web site, social media and audio recordings. Additionally, the band travels more than 50,000 miles to perform hundreds of concerts for listeners across a 15-state region from Maine to South Carolina.
The USAF Heritage of America Band’s exceptional musicianship has earned international critical acclaim and numerous honors: eight Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards, five Air Force Organizational Excellence Awards, four Colonel George S. Howard Citations of Musical Excellence for Military Concert Band, North Carolina’s Order of the Long Leaf Pine, and countless state and municipal proclamations.
