Big band is back: Airmen of Note to perform Glenn Miller holiday concert

The Glenn Miller Orchestra’s big band era is coming back in full swing to Montgomery thanks to the Airmen of Note, and you can see it for free.

“Airmen of Note is the premier jazz ensemble of the Air Force,” said Chief Master Sgt. Brian F. Macdonald, Airmen of Note’s lead trumpeter and flight chief.

After a two-year pandemic break, Airmen of Note is returning to Troy University’s Davis Theatre, 251 Montgomery St., on Wednesday at 7 p.m. for the Glenn Miller Concert. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

“Its basically a holiday concert, along with paying tribute to Glenn Miller’s Army Air Forces dance band,” said MacDonald. “(Airmen of Note) started back in 2003, supporting Air University and the city of Montgomery with this concert.”

Tickets are free but hurry. They’re available on a first-come, first-served basis at local MAX Federal Credit Union locations, and will go quickly:

• MAX Taylor Road Branch, 3401 Malcom Drive, Montgomery

• MAX Eastdale Branch, 400 Eastdale Circle, Montgomery

• MAX on Maxwell Air Force Base, 10 East Selfridge St.

• MAX Cobbs Ford Road branch, 2309 Cobbs Ford Road, Prattville

Concert guests are asked to bring food for a canned goods drive to benefit the Montgomery Area Food Bank.

MacDonald plays lead trumpet for Airmen of Note. He’s a jazz trumpet player and a native of Fort Lauderdale. Before Airmen of Note, he toured with KC and The Sunshine Band for four years.

Airmen of Note is made up of 18 active-duty musicians and a vocalist. Because of retirements, the lineup has changed a little since their last visit. For Wednesday’s show they'll have:

Saxophone:

• Lead Alto: Master Sgt. Kristian Baarsvik — Marion, Massachusetts

• Second Alto: Master Sgt. Mike Cemprola — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Lead Tenor: Master Sgt. Tedd Baker — Marshfield, Massachusetts

• Second Tenor: Senior Master Sgt. Grant Langford — Chapel Hill, North Carolina

• Lead Baritone: Technical Sgt. Seth Ebersole — Reading, Pennsylvania

Trumpet:

• Lead: Brian MacDonald — Fort Lauderdale, Florida

• Split-lead: Kevin Burns — Cleveland, Tennessee

• Third: Luke Brandon — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Fourth: Logan Keese —  San Antonio, Texas

Trombone:

• Lead: Technical Sgt. Matt Hettwer —  Salem, Oregon

• Second: Master Sgt. Kevin Cerovich — Overland Park, Kansas

• Third: Master Sgt. Darren Workman —  Thomasville, North Carolina

• Bass: Master Sgt. Ben Polk —  Greenbush, Maine

Rhythm:

• Piano: Master Sgt. Chris Ziemba —  Buffalo, New York

• Bass: Technical Sgt. Ben Thomas —  Windsor, Connecticut

• Guitar: Senior Master Sgt. Geoff Reecer —  Arlington, Virginia

• Drums: Master Sgt. David McDonald —  Decatur, Illinois

• Vocals: Technical Sgt. Nadia Sosnoski —  Nashville, Tennessee

Along with a few new members, a couple is filling in from other Air Force bands — Workman on trombone of the Air Force’s ceremonial band and vocalist Sosnoski of the Air Force rock band Max Impact.

“We hired a new vocalist, and she’s in basic training right now,” MacDonald said.

Along with the holiday music, MacDonald said they’d be performing classic Miller songs like “American Patrol,” “Little Brown Jug,” and “Pennsylvania 6-5000.”

“We’re trying to keep that music alive,” MacDonald said. “To many folks, that was the sound of freedom as the Allied troops were marching through.”

When the band starts playing, some people can’t stay in their seats, and that’s a good thing.

“We do encourage people to get up and dance in the aisles,” MacDonald said.

Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Shannon Heupel at sheupel@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Big band is back: Airmen of Note to perform Glenn Miller holiday show