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The Karl L. King Municipal Band
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View concert photos from previous seasons
in our Concert Archive
KING BAND TO OPEN SUMMER SEASON:
The
months of June and July will be busy and exciting ones for the Karl L.
King Municipal Band of Fort Dodge. They will open their 2026 summer
season on Sunday evening, June 7th, at the Karl L. King Band Shell
in Oleson Park. Concert time is 7:30 pm, and will be preceded
by an ice cream social for a free-will donation, served by the Southeast
Valley Fine Arts Boosters starting around 6:30 pm.
Persons
attending these concerts are reminded to bring their own lawn chairs or
blankets, since no public seating is provided. These concerts
are free to all, and are provided as a public service by the City of Fort
Dodge. Directing the band again this season will be Dan Cassady
as Conductor and Paul Bloomquist as announcer.
These concerts always include
several marches, so on the program will be Phillipian Festival and
Monahan
Post, both written by Karl L. King, along with Fred Jewell’s exciting
circus march, High and Mighty, and the Julius Fucik Grand Italian
march classic, Florentiner. A fast-paced circus galop,
Royal
Hippodrome by Karl King is included as well.
Classical offerings for the evening
will include Carl Friedmann’s Slavonic Rhapsody, a tour-de-force
selection frequently performed by the band under Karl King’s direction
and by each conductor since. Harry Alford’s arrangement of
segments from many Karl King compositions is also included and titled Melody
ala King.
On the lighter side will be Leroy
Anderson’s popular 1951 song, Blue Tango, along with a George Gershwin
classic Strike up the Band. Also on the program will
be a beautiful arrangement of the traditional American folk song, Shenandoah.
Featured soloist will be Lacey
Larson on French Horn, daughter of Patty and Rodd Larson, Fort Dodge.
Lacey graduated from Fort Dodge Senior High in 2025 and Iowa
Central Community College in 2026. While in High School,
she maintained an active schedule in Marching Band, Jazz Band, Choir, and
Musicals, and was a member of the National Honor Society.
She also participated in volleyball, tennis, and several speech activities,
where she earned All-State recognition.
Lacey started piano lessons at
age 5, and trumpet in 9th grade. She has studied with Kris
Bodholdt, also a member of the King Band’s Horn section. Lacey
had been selected as a member of the Iowa All-State Band for 2 years
while in High School, and is currently a member of the Karl King Band.
She is presently a student at
Iowa
State University in Ames, where she is studying Criminal Justice and
Psychology. She will perform the 3rd movement, Rondo for
Horn from Concerto No. 1, op. 11 by the German composer Richard Strauss.
Each concert always closes in
the traditional way, with the playing of our National Anthem, The Star-Spangled
Banner.
In case of inclement weather at the starting time, the concert may be delayed
or cancelled. Any announcement will be made on the band’s Facebook
page. Plan now to be in attendance to hear the finest in band
music played by your very own local municipal band.
Sunday,
June 14th, will be the Band’s annual Flag Day Concert.
Dan Cassady will be gone that evening teaching at the Reggie Schive Summer
Jazz Camp at Iowa Lakes Community College in Estherville.
In his absence, the King Band will feature two guest conductors that evening.
Tim Miller, retired band director from the Humboldt High School and Middle
School will be on the podium, along with Paul Bloomquist from Iowa Central
Community College. The musical selections have not been announced
as yet. More details will follow.
Sunday
evening, June 21st, Dan Cassady will return to the podium as the King Band
showcases a special Father’s Day concert to honor all the dads in attendance.
Several marches by Karl King and Henry Fillmore are on the program, along
with America’s national hymn, God of Our Fathers. There
will be a narrated tribute to back up the marches of John Philip Sousa
with A Sousa Portrait. In keeping with the evening’s
celebration will be Festive Dance from ‘Faust’ by French composer
Charles Gounod.
Sunday
June 28, will find the band saluting the music of Broadway among other
special treats. Marches by King, Fillmore, Sousa, and Frank
Piersol, former Iowa State and Iowa director of bands, are on the program.
Composer Richard Rogers’ birth on June 28, 1902 will be celebrated with
his Symphonic Marches, including Valiant Years, March
of the Siamese Children from The King and I, Cinderella March,
The
Great Adventure, and Guadalcanal March from Victory at Sea.
Opening Night on Broadway will feature music written for some of
the newer musicals, such as The Producers, Avenue Q, Spamalot,
Wicked
and The Lion King. The Producers was written by Mel
Brooks, who turns 100 years old on June 28.
That is just a sampling of some
of the music being planned during the month of June! There
will be much more in store during July as America celebrates its 250th
anniversary. Watch for more details each week in your local
print media.
View some photos from the 2025
Scholarship
Concert.
View photos from the last concert
of conductor Jerrold Jimmerson
View the programs from the 2023
Concert Season
The Karl L. King Municipal Band of Fort Dodge is
seen during a practice session
before taking the stage.
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