Brazil Concert Band concert Sunday will honor Jim Dressler

BRAZIL -- The Brazil Concert Band, under the direction of Matthew S. Huber, opens the 2011 season Sunday at 8 p.m. at the Forest Park bandshell (or pavilion if rain).

The concert is free and open to the public.

Now in its 154th year of continuous operation, the BCB will present "Seen and Heard," dedicated to the late Jim Dressler (1935-2011) former long time editor of The Brazil Times. He was a journalist for 38 years and titled his column "Seen and Heard."

Dressler was a big fan of the Brazil Concert Band and joined Huber in working on the project to replace the awning on the Forest Park bandshell last fall. The final result is now in place along with 200 new personalized benches; the project of former resident George Kumpf.

Kumpf's father, the late Carl Kumpf, will be honored July 3.

To honor Dressler's memory, Huber (a former longtime Greencastle teacher) has chosen an eclectic program recognizing Dressler's wide range of favorite band music from marches to Broadway to Big Band classics and music by Indiana's own Hoagy Carmichael.

During Sunday's concert, District 44 State Rep. Jim Baird (R-Greencastle) will present the Dressler family with a proclamation from the State of Indiana recognizing Jim's service to the legislature as a proofreader.

Janice Dressler, Jim's wife of 47 years, and all five Dressler children, including many grandchildren, will be present.

Each Sunday this season, the BCB will perform a musical selection from the Civil War in reference to the Civil War Sesquicentennial. Several members of the original BCB served in the Civiil War.

The BCB will salute Dressler Sunday with "The Brazil Special" by Davis, "Overture In B Flat" by Giovannini-Robinson, "Oliver!" by Bart-Leyden, "Gentry's Triumphal March" by Fred Jewell, "Big Band Spectacular" by Bullock, "American Salute" by Gould", "Fiddler On The Roof" by Bock-Warrington, "The Fairest Of The Fair" by Sousa, "Hoagy Carmichael: An American Classic", "The Viking March" by K.L. King and "The Star-Spangled Banner" sung by T.J. Sneddon.