SEAN BOSTON
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson Municipal Band, one of the oldest continually operating ensembles of its kind, is celebrating its 150th year in 2025 with a full slate of summer performances, continuing tonight with its second concert of the season.
The band will take the stage at 8 p.m. in the recital hall at the Stringer Fine Arts Center on the Hutchinson Community College campus. Admission is free and open to the public.
Founded in 1875, the band’s longevity is a source of pride for its members and the Hutchinson community.
“A lot of people don’t know this, but the Municipal Band is actually written into the city charter,” said Charles Johnston, the group’s vice president. “It states that the city should maintain a military band. Originally, there was even a specific tax levied for that purpose. Over time, of course, that was folded into the general fund.”
Johnston said the ensemble’s funding and structure have evolved through the decades, but the mission has remained constant.
“Like many arts organizations over the years, our funding has waxed and waned,” he said. “So we're really pleased to have made it to 150 years. It's unusual for any organization, let alone a musical ensemble, to last that long.”
The group typically includes 35 to 55 musicians per concert and draws from a wide swath of the community, ranging from high school students to working professionals in fields like education, engineering, medicine and logistics.
“That’s one of the things I’m really proud of,” Johnston said. “The band continues to provide young people with their first professional gig. That’s what it was for me. I was in high school, sitting next to professionals and teachers. It was inspiring.”
He added that the diversity of the group adds depth and perspective to the ensemble.
“It’s made up of professional musicians, music educators, engineers, doctors, secretaries, nonprofit leaders and even FedEx drivers,” Johnston said. “All of these individuals had music touch their lives in some way.”
Each Tuesday performance features a new program, often assembled just hours before the show.
“We show up at 6 p.m., and by 8 p.m., we’re performing music we’ve often never seen before,” Johnston said. “Sight-reading is a crucial skill, and the Municipal Band relies on musicians who can do it well.”
After facing weather-related cancellations last summer in the central park area at HutchCC, the band has shifted its season indoors to the Stringer Fine Arts Center, where the recital hall offers both more space and protection from Kansas’s unpredictable weather.
“Last year we had to cancel three concerts, which was pretty unprecedented,” Johnston said. “And the gazebo at the park just wasn’t built to handle a group our size. So moving indoors has really solved a lot of those issues.”
This year’s summer concert series opened June 3 and continues on June 10, June 17, June 24 and July 1, with special performances by South City Jazz, an affiliated ensemble, on July 6 and July 15.
As for the music?
“It’s a little bit of everything,” Johnston said. “Marches, Broadway, patriotic themes, movie soundtracks, you name it. And every concert is different, with a fresh set of selections and a different conductor each week.”
This season’s rotation of conductors includes Abby Giles of Sterling USD 376, Sterling Reynolds of Central Christian School, Dan Brinkley of Nickerson–South Hutchinson USD 309, Daryl Koestel of Hutchinson USD 308, and Jeff Pelischek, retired from HutchCC.
The band expects to have between 50 and 75 musicians participate throughout the summer season, a reflection of both the ensemble’s broad reach and its deep community roots.
“It's a real cross-section of the community, and that’s a lot of people to coordinate and manage,” Johnston said. “But it’s worth it. Music brings people together, and that’s what this band has been doing for 150 years.”
You can find out more information by visiting the Hutchinson Municipal Band website by clicking here, or the group's Facebook Page by clicking here.