The group performs concert, patriotic, and popular entertainment music at high school, college, and civic concerts.
By: Mark Moffa
UPPER FREEHOLD The U.S. Air Force Heritage of America Band will perform 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Allentown High School.
Doors open at 7 p.m. for the free event. Those without tickets must wait until 7:20 p.m. for any remaining seats.
The band, one of the original Army Corps bands, was created Oct. 1, 1941. It has been stationed at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia since 1946.
The group performs concert, patriotic, and popular entertainment music at high school, college, university and civic concerts.
Its performance Saturday will include patriotic selections such as Irving Berlin’s "God Bless America," and John Philip Sousa’s "The Black Horse Troop March."
John Williams’ "Adventures on Earth" from the film "E.T." will be heard along with Dixieland, swing and other types of music.
"Air Force bands support the global Air Force mission in war and peace by fostering our national heritage and by providing professional musical products and services for official military, recruiting and community relations events," the Air Force’s Web site reads.
The Heritage of America Band consists of 61 men and women assigned to two ensembles, the concert band and the Blue Aces, a popular music ensemble.
The band’s components travel more than 30,000 miles each year to perform 340 concerts for a half million listeners in seven states, from New Jersey to South Carolina.
"Under the leadership of its commander and conductor, Maj. Larry H. Lang, the USAF Heritage of America Band will remain at the forefront of preserving and enriching America’s musical heritage into the 21st century," the Web site reads.
Maj. Lang entered the Air Force in 1990. In 1993, he was appointed flagship Commander of the Air Force Band of the Pacific at its headquarters in Anchorage, Alaska.
He has led the Heritage of America Band since 1995. Major Lang was named the Air Force’s Outstanding Band Officer for 1998 and was promoted to major last year.