Community Bands Keep the Sound of Music Alive in OC
- Sharon Stello
- 9 hours ago
- 12 min read
At least half a dozen groups provide an outlet for local musicians while also presenting free or low-cost community concerts at the holidays and throughout the year.
Community bands abound in Orange County, performing holiday programs, music in the park and other concerts for the public to enjoy. These volunteer groups play for the love of sharing music with others. Members enjoy seeing the smiles on faces in the crowds, toes tapping and heads bobbing to familiar tunes. It’s an experience appreciated by both the audience and those on stage.
Many members played their instruments in high school and college, then packed away their flute, saxophone or horn for years while pursuing a career or raising children before dusting it off to join a community band decades later. Somehow the muscle memory kicks in and fingerings are remembered. It might be a little rusty at first, stumbling through the fast licks and key changes, but the joy that music brings is still there.
People have different reasons for joining a community band. For some, it’s the continuation of a hobby, but for others it’s an opportunity to make friends with a shared passion or a way to relieve stress by jamming at weekly rehearsals. Indeed, engaging in a challenging or immersive activity like art or music that requires full concentration – a concept called “flow” in psychology – allows daily worries to slip away for a while.
“Being part of this band enhances my life in a way that is difficult to put into words,” said Karen Smith, a clarinet player in the Orange County Concert Band. “It’s that magical moment when you blow through your instrument and your note merges with your fellow musicians’ notes to create that one glorious unified sound. When I am playing at rehearsal or a performance, it is a true escape from the stress of ‘real life.’ (And) bantering with all the good friends we have made always cheers me up.”
Karen Smith also met her would-be husband, saxophone player Eric Smith, when they both joined the group in 1989. They married in 1990 after a “whirlwind romance,” Eric said. Since the band played such a big role in bringing them together, it was also part of the wedding – the group’s swing ensemble played in their backyard reception.
And, since they met in the band, the Santa Ana couple “made a pact to keep this common interest alive and we have kept this promise for almost 36 years,” Karen said.
Aside from a shared hobby with his wife, Eric said he appreciates playing for the community. “This type of music is very ingrained in me as a person and I want to share it, hoping to keep it alive for future generations to come,” he said.
Laguna Community Concert Band in winter and summer concerts. Photos courtesy of Madison Neuhausen and Steven Wu
Banding Together
Most, if not all, local community bands are nonprofits and run on donations and member dues to cover the cost of insurance and rehearsal space – often a school or church – as well as storing and transporting large percussion instruments and sound equipment to concerts or purchasing sheet music. There may also be a small stipend for the conductor. Some bands were initially sponsored by cities or local colleges, but budget cuts inevitably lead these groups to set out on their own.
Membership is generally open to local musicians of all levels and walks of life. Some might come from a professional music background or work as band teachers in area schools, but most have jobs in other fields or are retired and want a place to continue playing music.
Eric Smith is a retired loss control consultant in the insurance industry while Karen Smith is “almost fully retired” from running her own business, Campitelli Cookies (and sandwiches) shop, in Anaheim Hills.
Jay Kramer, who is president of a marketing consulting firm serving Silicon Valley technology companies, plays clarinet and saxophone in the Laguna Community Concert Band (which also includes an 18-piece jazz ensemble); he joined a year after the band formed in 1999.
“Like many of our band members, I had not played since college marching band,” Kramer said. “Twenty years later, I was looking for a group to start playing with again.”
“I love the diversity of music we play, which includes concert band arrangements written over the last 200 years by composers from different countries,” continued the Laguna Beach resident. “Playing this music is like traveling on vacation to exotic places, while traveling through time as well. I also enjoy playing Broadway show tunes, music from the great movies of the silver screen, patriotic Americana music and holiday music.”
Russ Lancaster, a French horn player who joined the Huntington Beach Concert Band right after graduating from Canyon High School in Anaheim in 1977 (at the invitation of his school band director, Thomas Ridley, who was also HBCB’s conductor), is a retired software developer and currently the longest-serving member of the band.
“Over the years, it (has been) … great to have an outlet during the week that wasn’t work-related or house repair-related … to be able to play my horn somewhere,” said Lancaster, who lives in Orange.
Golden West Pops perform during their 2023 and 2024 concerts. Photos courtesy of Golden West Pops
Newport Beach resident Pollyanna Gorman, who plays French horn in several local bands and is also conductor of the Golden West Pops – which rehearses in Costa Mesa – works in the accounting department of a home owners association management company when not making music several nights a week. Monday nights find her playing with the band at Vanguard University; on Tuesdays she plays with the Orange County Concert Band; she conducts the Golden West Pops on Wednesdays; her brass quintet rehearses one Sunday a month and she conducts the GWP’s flute choir one Saturday per month, as well as subbing in as needed in other groups. “It keeps me out of trouble,” she quipped.
“Our group has a really great time,” Gorman said of the Golden West Pops. “And when you come to the concerts, you can see how much we respect each other and how much we love being together as a group.”
Golden West Pops is one of the region’s newest community bands, formed in 2003. Gorman helped to found the group after Goldenwest College ended its symphonic band program following the longtime conductor’s retirement. “A bunch of us had been playing together for a number of years and we wanted to continue playing together,” she said.
Community bands perform a variety of music from Sousa marches to movie medleys to holiday favorites, and songs by popular groups like The Beatles and Chicago. Many also play “concert band music” like “Festive Overture” by Shostakovich and Holst’s “First Suite” – but the Golden West Pops does not. “If I play a concert and you don’t recognize at least half of what I’m doing – as a regular person, not as a musician – I’m not doing my job,” Gorman said. “We don’t play concert band music. We just do popular music.”
The Orange County Concert Band perform in the park during the summer. Community out reach for kids is a part of the concert experience. Photos courtesy of OCCB
Gorman said some things have changed over the years, but one thing that has remained the same is GWP’s size – to maintain balance in the group’s sound. Local community bands typically have about 50 members with some ranging higher. But Gorman said she read in a number of publications that 50 is the ideal size for a concert band, with a certain number allotted to each instrument section.
“(For example,) if I get more than nine trumpets, then they overpower everybody else,” Gorman said. “And what happens is that nobody gets to play forte. And then you have to cut people to get them to play piano … and I don’t want to do that. They’re not here to watch the music; they’re here to play it.”
Gorman played trumpet and French horn through high school and college in North Carolina, earning a bachelor’s degree in music education before moving back to Southern California, where some of her family lived. For Gorman, music – like so many art forms – is a way to express feelings.
“Some people sing, you have people who recite poems …. That’s never been my forte,” she said. “I’ve always loved the way that music interacts with things. My first love was movie music. If you’ve ever … seen a movie without the music and then add the music in, it changes the whole tone of the movie …. But mostly what I love is the interaction between the parts. Sometimes I’ll start a phrase and then somebody else will pick it up and then it comes back to me. It goes around the whole group.”
A Timeless Tradition
Across the country, community bands have long provided live music in quaint gazebos and parks, school theaters and town parades. While there may be fewer gazebos these days, the mission remains the same: To perform music for the public’s enjoyment. And some O.C. bands have been making music for a half century or more.
Leisure World Orchestra, primarily comprising residents of Leisure World (a Seal Beach retirement community), is believed to be O.C.’s oldest continually performing community ensemble, according to orchestra volunteer William Thompson. “Founded in 1966, the LWO even predates the Pacific Symphony by 12 years,” Thompson said.
Led by conservatory-trained conductor Linda DeRungs, the orchestra includes many current and former professional musicians performing challenging classical works. In fact, the group’s June concert featured 79-year-old pianist Yuri Lotakov, a Leisure World resident who is a doctoral graduate of Ukraine’s national Kyiv Conservatory (now called Ukrainian National Tchaikovsky Academy of Music), performing Grieg’s powerhouse Piano Concerto in A Minor, Thompson said.
A more recent addition to the orchestral scene, the South Coast Symphony was established in 1996 as “the unstuffy symphony.” The 65-member group aims to provide south and central O.C. communities with a “professional, accessible and affordable symphonic musical experience,” performing everything from the classics and opera to Broadway and popular music.
The 1970s were a big decade for local community band formation. The Orange County Concert Band began in 1971 as a summer concert series organized by Villa Park High School band student Denis Finnegan and band director Randy Coleman. High school and college students came together with other adult musicians in the community to perform in local parks. Following the initial concert series, the group continued with funding from Orange City Council and then Rancho Santiago Community College, before budget cuts forced the band to form a nonprofit organization, the Orange County Preservation Bands, and rely on donations to keep going.
Currently directed by Suzanne Gindin, OCCB not only performs, but also is active in music education and outreach. For example, the group hosted a booth featuring its “Instrument Petting Zoo” – to give children the opportunity to try out different instruments – at the Anaheim Children’s Festival in Pearson Park.
The Huntington Beach Concert Band. PHOTO 1: Ken Foerch conducts the Huntington Beach Concert Band during its Summer Series in Central Park. PHOTO 2: The 2024 holiday concert by the band at a local church. PHOTO 3: The band performs at its Summer Series in Huntington Beach Central Park. Photos courtesy of HBCB
Huntington Beach Concert Band was established in 1973 under the leadership of John Mason, then the band director at Marina High School, who was approached by the city to start a group. Now an independent nonprofit, the baton passed to Thomas Ridley, who directed the band for 46 years before retiring in 2023. The group is currently conducted by Kenneth Foerch, who is also an associate professor of music at Vanguard University. In addition to performing around O.C. and beyond, the band organizes its Summer Series on Sunday evenings from late June through August in Huntington Beach Central Park with HBCB and other groups playing on a stage, which the city named after Ridley.
Longtime band member Kerri Weisenberger, an oboe player, recalls the group’s early days when the men wore burgundy sports coats with an HBCB patch on the front. “And the women all wore navy blue long dresses,” she continued. “They bought many bolts of the fabric and you had to request the yardage you needed for your dress. The dresses were all different, whatever pattern you chose, but long and the same fabric. Either you were a talented seamstress or you took it someplace to have it made for you.”
A year after HBCB started, the Fullerton Community Band was founded in 1974 under the direction of Larry Lowder, rehearsing in the Fullerton College band room as it still does today. Taking part in the band originally earned members one unit of class credit, but eventually, budget cuts led the college to pull financial support and the band took a hiatus in 2011. But that didn’t deter members. The next year, under the direction of Anthony Mazzaferro – who began conducting in 1991 – the band reorganized as a nonprofit and continues with the support of donations and grants.
Founded in 1999, Laguna Community Concert Band and its jazz band perform at a variety of events, adding to the artistic tapestry of the town.
“Laguna Beach is a treasure for the arts,” Kramer said. “We have two excellent indoor venues where the band plays – Laguna Playhouse and the Artists Theatre at Laguna Beach High School. Both venues provide excellent acoustics. Our outdoor venues include the grounds at Festival of Arts, the Sawdust Festival and the cobblestones of Main Beach. We also play in downtown Laguna each year before the Patriots Day Parade in the spring and at Hospitality Night in the winter. The audience is a nice blend of family and friends from Laguna Beach and the surrounding area.”
Meanwhile, the Golden West Pops has performed everywhere from Knott’s Berry Farm to the Orange County Fairgrounds, the Field of Valor in Orange and the deck of the USS Iowa in San Pedro, where HBCB also performed a few years ago. And GWP presents free concerts in an Anaheim park once or twice a year.
“It gives us a reason to rehearse, it gives us a concert opportunity and it gives back to the community,” Gorman said.
A reason for recent rehearsals is a lineup of upcoming holiday concerts planned by O.C. community bands. For many band members, it’s a favorite time of the year, bringing locals together for a celebration with festive tunes. It’s a great way to get in the spirit of the season.
Editor’s note: Writer Sharon Stello is a 13-year member and clarinet player in the Huntington Beach Concert Band.
Sounds of the Season
Local community bands present holiday concerts throughout December.
Laguna Community Concert Band
Program: Popular holiday arrangements
When: 6 p.m. Dec. 5 (during Hospitality Night)
Where: Peppertree Parking Lot, 322 Forest Ave., downtown Laguna Beach
Tickets: None needed; free outdoor concert
When: 11 a.m. Dec 13
Where: Sawdust Winter Fantasy at Sawdust Art Festival grounds, 935 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach
Tickets: Concert included in Winter Fantasy admission ($12 for adults, $10 for seniors ages 65 and up, $5 for children ages 6-12, free for children ages 5 and under)
When: 2 p.m. Dec. 14
Where: Artists Theatre, Laguna Beach High School, 625 Park Ave., Laguna Beach
Tickets: Free admission; donations accepted
Information: lagunaconcertband.com
Golden West Pops
Program: “Let’s Go to the Movies” theme with some pieces including “Overture to Miracle on 34th Street,” “Baby It’s Cold Outside” with a bari sax and clarinet duet, “Auld Lang Syne” featuring a solo flugelhorn, “Sleigh Ride,” “Home Alone,” “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and “The Polar Express”
When: 4 p.m. Dec. 7
Where: Segerstrom High School, 2301 W. MacArthur Blvd., Santa Ana
Tickets: $15 donation
Information: gwpops.com
Laguna JaZz Band (part of Laguna Community Concert Band)
Program: Popular Holiday arrangements featuring vocalist Ginger Hatfield
When: 6:15-7:30 p.m. Dec. 10
Where: Laguna Beach Community & Susi Q Senior Center, 380 Third St., Laguna Beach
Tickets: Free admission; donations requested; contact the Community Center to reserve
Information: lagunaconcertband.com
Huntington Beach Concert Band
Program: Some pieces include “Blue Christmas” by Billy Hayes & Jay Johnson/arranged by Jay Dawson, “Christmas on Broadway” by John Higgins, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” arranged by Chris Sharp, “A Jazzy Christmas” arranged by Johnnie Vinson, “Sleigh Ride” by Leroy Anderson and “Rhapsody for Hanukkah” by Stephen Bulla
When: 7 p.m. Dec. 13
Where: St. Wilfrid of York Episcopal Church, 18631 Chapel Lane, Huntington Beach
Tickets: $20 for adults; $15 for children and seniors, free for kids under 5
Information: hbconcertband.org
Leisure World Orchestra
Program: Selections from Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker Suite,” Handel’s “Water Music” and Prokofiev’s “Lieutenant Kijé Suite”; the Leisure World Korean Community Church Choir will perform the “Hallelujah” movement from Handel’s “Messiah”; soprano soloist Carol Winston will perform a medley of Hanukkah-themed songs, Handel’s “Come Unto Him,” Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas” and lead the audience in a sing-along of holiday carols; the concert also features guest soloist Armen Anassian, a first violinist from LA Opera
When: 1 p.m. Dec. 13
Where: Leisure World Clubhouse 2, 13681 El Dorado Drive, Seal Beach
Tickets: Free admission
Information: lwsb.com/music; nonresidents may attend by letting one of the security gate attendants know you are there to attend the Leisure World Orchestra concert
Fullerton Community Concert Band
Program: “Baby, It's Cold Outside,” “Jingle Bells Fantasy,” “Good Swing Wenceslas,” “Sleigh Ride,” “Sussex Mummers’ Christmas” and more
When: 7:30 p.m. Dec. 16
Where: Performing Arts Center at Kennedy High School, 8281 Walker St., La Palma
Tickets: Free admission; donations accepted
Information: fullertoncommunityband.com
South Coast Symphony
Program: “Illuminations Noel: Our Holiday Spectacular” with the South Coast Singers; holiday favorites, a special “Twelve Days of Christmas” and sing-alongs
When: 7 p.m. Dec. 20; pre-concert Wassail from 6:15-6:55 p.m.
Where: Coast Hills Church Auditorium, 5 Pursuit, Aliso Viejo
Tickets: starting at $48 or $43 for students and seniors; or choose the McBeth Family Plan, which offers a free children’s ticket with each paid adult ticket (can be ordered through the box office)
Information: southcoastsymphony.org, box office: 714-731-8079
Orange County Concert Band
Program: Pieces are TBA, but will all be within a holiday theme.
When: 6-7:30 p.m. Dec. 21
Where: First Christian Church of Orange, 1130 E. Walnut Ave., Orange
Tickets: Free admission
Information: ocpbands.org
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