Next
Concert - Sunday, February 19
The
Karl L. King Municipal Band of Fort Dodge, IA will open their 2012 indoor
concert season on Sunday, February 19, with a concert beginning at 3:30
p.m. in the Decker Auditorium at Iowa Central Community College in Fort
Dodge. There is no admission charge, since these concerts are provided
by the City of Fort Dodge. Jerrold P. Jimmerson is the conductor
of the King Band, with Dr. David Klee the assistant conductor and Duane
“Oley” Olson the band’s announcer.
This
February Concert always recognizes the music of the band’s namesake, Karl
L. King, in celebration of his birth on February 21, 1891. The music
to be performed reflects a wide variety of King’s musical styles and tastes,
and was heavily influenced by his career as a circus musician. When
Karl King arrived in Fort Dodge in the fall of 1920 with his wife Ruth
and young son Karl, jr., he was already a well-established performer, conductor,
composer and publisher of band music. He continued to write music
along with directing the local Municipal Band for 50 years, and eventually
opened his own music store and publishing business here.
Conductor
Jimmerson has drawn music for this concert from a variety of his publications.
Most of the compositions on the program were published 100 years ago in
1912, when Mr. King was a 21-year old young man traveling with the Sells-Floto
Circus, one of the larger and more famous circuses of the day.
These selections include the marches Garland Entree, and Royal
Hussars, along with a march written under his pseudonym, Carl Lawrence,
entitled Salute To The Sultan. In 1912, the director of the
Sells-Floto band was W.P. English, and Mr. King was the Baritone player
that year. King and English collaborated on a march called Howdy
Pap, which was published a year later in 1913.
Also
on the program will be the overture, Princess of India; an aerial
waltz, Spirit of Springtime; the beautiful serenade, A Night
In June; a schottische Wild Rose; and a lively galop, Homestretch.
Mr. King had all these compositions published in 1912.
Rounding
out the concert will be a medley of well-known compositions popular during
this same era. These five songs, published between 1909 and 1914,
are in a medley entitled Themes Like Old Times and have been arranged
by Warren Barker. Some of the songs to be heard in this medley are
Alexander’s Ragtime Band, Peg O’ My Heart, and the 12th
Street Rag.
Closing
this special concert will be Mr. King’s most famous and recognizable composition,
Barnum and Bailey’s Favorite, published in 1913.
The
concert will conclude with the playing of our National Anthem, The Star-spangled
Banner. In case of inclement weather, the concert will
be cancelled. The next performance by the Karl L. King Municipal
Band will be the annual Irish Concert on Sunday, March 18.
View photos of last summer's concerts
- June 19 - June
26 - July 3 - July
10 - July 17 - July
24 - July 31
View photos of the bandshell
during the renovation process.
View concert photos from previous seasons
Concert Archive
