Dodworth-Saxhorn to liven up 200-year-old brass band music at the Gazebo

This 2018 photo of the Dodworth-Saxhorn Band shows a larger group than will be featured at Thursday night’s Gazebo concert, but the musical fun will be there just the same!

by Marsha Chartrand

Gazebo concerts have been a summer staple in Manchester since 1989 and provide entertainment for everyone in the family. The first week this year we welcomed Joe Reilly, doing a nature-centered children’s concert, while last week’s gazebo concert featured the Palooka Brothers, playing everything from rags to reels to ’60s rock and roll, while also debuting two brand-new 2022 songs written by the group especially for Manchester. A rollicking good time was had by all in attendance.

This coming week, the Dodworth-Saxhorn Band (DSB), based in Ann Arbor, will once again be living history on the gazebo stage, with musicians performing on authentic brass and percussion instruments made in the 1800s. Their performances always delight audiences with authentic interpretations of middle-19th-century American music for 21st-century appreciation. The band tours nationally, performing 19th-century music, including compositions and arrangements from the Smithsonian Institute, the Library of Congress, private collections, and university libraries, and has appeared in venues as diverse as Ken Burns documentaries and the White House! We are fortunate to have them here in Manchester.

The ensemble appearing at the Manchester Gazebo Concert, beginning at 7:30pm on Thursday, will be a 10-piece instrumental group, with no vocal singers — just brass and percussion, appearing in period dress and playing authentic antique instruments. This should be a fun way to kick off the holiday weekend!

As always, this performance is free and open to the public, but a freewill donation basket will be passed during the intermission of the concert. Riverfolk Music & Arts Organization also gratefully acknowledges Michigan Humanities for their grant funding for the 2022 program year.

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.