Album Notes

The mission of the St. Johns River City Band is to keep jazz and other American music alive through performance and education. The geographical service area begins with all of Duval County and Florida’s First Coast, but encompasses the entire state of Florida and beyond. Since being proclaimed “Jacksonville’s Official Band” in 1985, the band has performed hundreds of concerts in venues like Metropolitan Park (home of the Jacksonville Jazz Festival), the Florida Theatre, The Jacksonville Landing, and in neighborhood parks throughout the city.

The selection of the St. Johns River City Band as a performing ensemble for the touring program of the State of Florida Division of Cultural Affairs has enabled the band to take its unique programs to communities throughout Florida. In May of 1990, the band was given the designation of “Florida’s Official Band” by the Florida State Legislature. The organization was also chosen to participate in the Florida Arts Council’s select Cultural Institution Program.

In 1998, the musical flagship of the St. Johns River City Band became its eighteen-piece big band, a swinging jazz juggernaut comprised of the finest professional musicians to be found anywhere. The band is committed to America’s indigenous art form, JAZZ, and offers programming from the traditional sounds of Glenn Miller and Count Basie to the more contemporary big band writing style of Thad Jones, Rob McConnell, and Tom Kubis.

The band has performed in concert with some of the most popular jazz celebrities in the business, including The New York Voices, The Manhattan Transfer, Rosemary Clooney, Doc Severinsen, Diane Schuur, and Dizzy Gillespie. Within the big band there exists a stellar Dixieland band.

In addition to the big band, there are other fine musical ensembles under the River City Band umbrella. The twenty-piece River City Brass Band has long been a favorite of audiences in the Jacksonville region because of its programming from holiday and patriotic classics to the sounds of Broadway, jazz, American folk music, country, and authentic British brass band masterpieces. Satin Swing is an eight-piece “little big band” featuring the music of the swing band era. A Casual Affair is a quartet specializing in light jazz and Latin rhythms - offering just the right musical ambiance for corporate functions and banquets. Other ensembles are available at the request of the contractor. The diverse nature of these performing ensembles truly enables the organization to perform music from around the world! The smaller groups are primarily comprised of musicians from the two large groups, the big band and brass band.

The St. Johns River City Band is organized and operated as a non-profit corporation, with revenues derived principally from an annual appropriation from the City of Jacksonville, corporate underwriting, foundation grants, individual gifts, the Florida Arts Council, and the Duval County School Board. The staff consists of two full-time employees, the Executive Director and the Music Director. More than 50 musicians are contracted on an as-needed basis to create the various ensembles. These individuals represent some of the finest brass, wind, keyboard and percussion performers in the country.