BOONE, Iowa—The 32nd annual Iowa Municipal Band Festival will be held from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, July 13, at Herman Park Pavilion in Boone.
The festival will increase to nine bands in 2024 after taking eight bands for years. Each band will perform a 45-minute concert. All nine bands are from central Iowa.
The New Jolly Germans Band will travel from Winterset to make its first festival appearance and will play at 2:00.
The West Des Moines Community Band and the Marshalltown Municipal Band were able to attend this year. West Des Moines performs at 11:00, and Marshalltown performs at 4:00 p.m.
The Heart of Iowa Band from Ames, a group made up primarily of senior citizens, will play at noon. The New Horizons Band from Des Moines, another group of senior citizens, plays at 3:00.
Adding a ninth band allowed both the Urbandale Community Adult Band and the Greater Des Moines Community Band to perform. Urbandale will return at 1:00, and Greater Des Moines will return at 5:00.
The Ames Municipal Band and Boone Municipal Band will bookend the festival with Ames playing the first concert at 10:00 and Boone playing the final concert at 6:00.
Four small groups will offer music during the breaks. The Dixieland Jazzers of Des Moines will perform at 10:45 a.m. The Boone Jazz Trio, which includes Boone musicians Dave Swenson, Dave Richardson and Steve O’Brien, will entertain the crowd at 11:45 and 12:45.
Betrunken Messing, a polka-style low brass group from Des Moines, will play two sets at 1:45 and 2:45. Finally, the Urbandale Community Adult Swing Band will play at 3:45 and 4:45.
The Iowa Municipal Band Festival is a free event hosted by the Boone Municipal Band. Bring a lawn chair or use the bleacher seating or picnic tables and hear a great lineup of community bands. The Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) will operate the food court where sandwiches, pies, ice cream and drinks will be on sale. A shuttle service will be available to transport you from your vehicle to the pavilion. This event is held annually the second Saturday in July, rain or shine.
2024 band schedule
10:00 a.m. Ames Municipal Band
11:00 a.m. West Des Moines Community Band
Noon Heart of Iowa Band (Ames)
1:00 p.m. Urbandale Community Adult Band
2:00 p.m. New Jolly Germans Band (Winterset)
3:00 p.m. New Horizons Band (Des Moines)
4:00 p.m. Marshalltown Community Band
5:00 p.m. Greater Des Moines Community Band
6:00 p.m. Boone Municipal Band
2024 small group schedule
10:45 a.m.
Dixieland Jazzers, Des Moines
11:45 a.m. and 12:45 p.m.
Boone Jazz Trio (Dave Swenson, Dave Richardson, Steve O’Brien)
1:45 and 2:45 p.m.
Betrunken Messing (polka-style low brass group from Des Moines)
3:45 and 4:45 p.m.
Urbandale Community Adult Swing Band
Here more about the Iowa Municipal Band Festival and the Patriotic Concert planned for July 4th on the KWBG Tuned In Program, Friday at 8:40 a.m. on KWBG AM 1590, FM 101.5 and the Live Stream at kwbglive.com.
