Sequim City Band’s 2015 free “Concert in the Park” series
• “A Decade with The James Center”
3 p.m. Sunday, May 17, at the James Center for the Performing Arts, 563 N. Rhodefer Road
• “A Magnificent 4th!!!”
3 p.m. Saturday, July 4, James Center
• “Tale of Two Cities’ Bands” with The Hometown Band
2 p.m. Sunday Aug. 9, James Center
• “See You in September”
3 p.m. Sunday Sept. 13, James Center
Note: Attendees encouraged to bring their own lawn chair, prepare for weather.
More info: Visit sequimcityband.org
From 14 members playing in Carrie Blake Park’s picnic shelter to summer concerts at its own amphitheater, the Sequim City Band has come a long way in its 24 years.
The band kicks off its summer season series at 3 p.m. Sunday, May 17, at the James Center for the Performing Arts, 563 N. Rhodefer Road, with “A Decade with the James Center.”
Music director Tyler Benedict, in his third year as director, said they are featuring pieces from their inaugural performance on April 17, 2005, at the center.
Some of the featured music includes marches “Daughters of Texas” and “Hands Across the Sea” by John Philip Sousa, a medley from “Oliver,” “Instant Concert” by Harold L. Walters, Leroy Anderson’s “The Rakes of Mallow,” highlights from the musical “Mamma Mia,” long-time band member Patsy Mattingley playing piccolo solo “Pennywhistle Jig” by Henry Mancini, plus newer compositions and more.
At the show, the band will honor special guests who helped with the center’s development.
The center’s history
Following the band’s formation in 1992 by Chuck Swisher, it would play in Carrie Blake Park’s picnic shelter until band members and citizens decided to find a place of their own.
Mattingley, a flute/piccolo player, said they practiced in Sequim High School’s band room, which was tight on space with no storage and the picnic shelter didn’t project sound well.
Mattingley said she saw an announcement in the newspaper about the City of Sequim’s Parks Master Plan, which included a bandstand so she approached the city, which led to the groundwork for the outdoor performance stage and rehearsal hall with storage space.
Ground was broken in June 2004 and the $600,000 center was completed in early 2005 in the Water Demonstration Reuse Site, north of Carrie Blake Park. When The James Center was completed the Sequim City Band donated the performance stage to the city, which continues to maintain the buildings and coordinates the use of the stage and its uses for many events each year.
The City Band and City of Sequim agreed to a 25-year lease which has 15 years left for the band’s monthly summer concerts and annual use of rehearsal space.
A band and its center
Original members David and Jan Proebstel have played saxophone and clarinet with the band since its formation. Jan said she remembers reading in The Jimmy Come Lately about the band.
“I was stoked to do it,” she said. “Chuck (Swisher) wanted to keep marches alive … It was our luck to be in the right place at the right time.”
David said Swisher had a vision. “He was passionate about communities and their connection to music,” he said.
While small at first, the band had a few professional musicians participate, Jan said, but many who hadn’t picked up a horn for a long, long time. Now the band boasts more than 60 members stretching from Port Angeles to Quilcene.
Looking back on the construction and use of the James Center, band members remain in awe of what volunteers were able to build.
“That’s an amazing thing for a little town like Sequim,” Jan said.
Some players with the Navy Band played at the center for the first time and were blown away that an all-volunteer group could build something like it, said band member Vicky Blakesley.
Mattingley said she’s surprised some people don’t know about the center.
“It’s definitely a good venue for music entertainment but because the city doesn’t have a mechanism to run it properly, they haven’t attracted more groups,” she said. “It could be much more utilized than it is.” She said there are future plans to expand the rehearsal space to increase storage so that more community groups can use it.
The City Band has two seasons — the Concerts in the Park at the James Center for the Performing Arts and the Winter Concert series generally at Sequim High School’s Auditorium. Annually, the band provides college scholarships for high school students who perform with the band.
