Charles City Municipal Band adds patriotic soundtrack to July 4 celebration

By James Grob, jgrob@charlescitypress.com

The heavy rain pushed them inside, but it didn’t dampen the music.

The Charles City Municipal Band performed a concert of patriotic music Wednesday night in the North Grand Building before the fireworks. The concert was initially scheduled to take place outdoors, behind the Charles City Public Library, but a sudden thunderstorm caused the show to be moved inside.

As luck would have it, about the time the band was getting warmed up inside, the skies cleared and the sunshine removed all traces of the earlier torrential rainfall. Since they were just about to start, the decision was made to perform inside regardless of the weather.

The municipal band consists of musicians from Charles City and the surrounding area; including the communities of Nashua, Rockford and Osage. Typically 35-40 local musicians participate.

Wednesday was the last of three concerts this summer for the municipal band’s 37th season. Scott Stroud, director of bands from Nashua-Plainfield High School, directed the band Wednesday evening and on June 17, while the band’s June 3 concert was directed by Jake Gassman, director of bands from Charles City High School. Both those earlier concerts were in Central Park in Charles City.