1st Brigade Band:
Heritage 250 Celebration Concert

Thursday, July 9, 2026, 11:30am - 1pm

Whitewater Arts Alliance’s Savory Sounds Welcomes the 1st Brigade Band for a Heritage 250 Celebration- Thursday, July 9, 2026

 The Whitewater Arts Alliance is honored to welcome the 1st Brigade Band of Watertown, Wisconsin as part of the 2026 Savory Sounds Summer Concert Series and the community’s Heritage 250 Celebration, commemorating 250 years of American history. The free lunchtime concert will be held on Thursday, July 9, from 11:30 am to 1pm. at Flat Iron Park, 402 W. Main St, Whitewater.

 The 1st Brigade Band is widely known for MAKING HISTORY LIVE by performing authentic Civil War–era brass band music on restored antique instruments. More than 80 volunteer musicians, along with costumed participants and color guard members, bring the 1860s to life through period uniforms, gowns, and a performance style that blends music, storytelling, and historical interpretation. Their concerts recreate the atmosphere of the Civil War era, offering audiences a rare chance to hear the same sounds that once accompanied Presidents Lincoln and Davis, Generals Lee and Grant, and countless soldiers and civilians of the time.

 The band’s roots reach back to 1864, when eighteen members of the Brodhead Brass Band enlisted as the band of the 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, 15th Army Corps, joining General William T. Sherman’s campaigns in Northern Georgia and the Carolinas. The modern ensemble continues the “Tradition of Excellence” established more than 130 years ago, performing more than forty times each year at concerts, parades, military balls, and community events. Since 1964, the group has worked to locate, restore, and perform on original 1860s brass instruments and to reconstruct historic music from surviving manuscripts—reviving a sound world that had nearly disappeared.

 As part of the July 9 event, several knowledgeable band members will offer instrument demonstrations on four different antique brass instruments during the reception, giving attendees an up-close look at the craftsmanship and history behind these rare pieces. The band has also produced the Making History Live recording series, the most complete anthology of Civil War music ever assembled.

 A children’s workshop, sponsored by Studio 84 and the Whitewater Public Library, will take place during the concert, offering young attendees hands-on activities that connect creativity with history.

Annie’s Burger Town will provide food service during the concert

The concert will be held outdoors at Flat Iron Park, with a rain location at First English Lutheran Church across the street. Concerts continue rain or shine.

We Thank Our Sponsors For Supporting These Events:

Beaver Tree, Burtness, College of Arts and Communication, Culver's, Fairhaven, First Citizens State Bank, First English Lutheran Church, First United Methodist Church, Gomez Landscaping, Knapton Musik Knotes Inc, Krueger Jeweler, Nitardy Funeral Home, Pastor Clarissa Martinelli and Family, Pro Landscape Supply, Studio 84, The White House of Music, UW-W Summer Marching Bands, Whitewater Historical Society, Whitewater Public Library, WUSD Leadership Team, Window Genie, Kim Adams and Angie Alesci, Joseph and Jessica Coburn, Thayer and Anne Coburn.

This program is supported in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Wisconsin Arts Board is the state agency which nurtures creativity, cultivates expression, promotes the arts, supports the arts in education, stimulates community and economic development and serves as a resource for people of every culture and heritage. For more information on the Wisconsin Arts Board, please visit artsboard.wisconsin.gov.​

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