Performer Details
Performer Bio Synopsis
The Concert Band & Soldiers’ Chorus are the oldest and largest of The U.S. Army Field Band’s
performing components. Founded in 1946 and 1957 respectively, these two ensembles combine to present joint concerts on their national tours. They have performed in all 50 states and 30 foreign countries for audiences totaling hundreds of millions.
The 65-member Concert Band and 29-member Soldiers’ Chorus perform regularly in some of the
most famous concert halls in the world, and just as often in the humblest auditoriums in the smallest of
communities. The joining of these two ensembles allows them to offer unparalleled versatility of
programming, ranging from orchestral masterworks and operatic arias to Sousa marches, jazz classics,
and Broadway musicals. The band and chorus also perform independently, and have recently shared the
stage with such ensembles as the Boston Pops, the Cincinnati Pops, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and the National Symphony Orchestra.
In addition to their national tours, formal concerts, chamber recitals, and educational outreach,
members of the Concert Band & Soldiers’ Chorus frequently represent the Army at formal and
ceremonial functions, including the Presidential Inaugural Parade, presidential funerals, the Army All-
American Bowl, and diplomatic efforts overseas.
The United States Army Field Band
Conductor's Bio
Lieutenant Colonel Jim Keene became the Commander of The United States Army Field Band in January 2015. Prior to this assignment, he served as Commander of the United States Military Academy Band at West Point, New York; Commandant of the Army School of Music at Norfolk, Virginia; at The United States Army Band "Pershing's Own" in Washington, DC; the U.S. Army Europe Band and Chorus in Heidelberg, Germany; and the Army Ground Forces Band in Atlanta, Georgia.
LTC Keene has led numerous performances for international military and civilian leaders, dignitaries, and heads of state. During his time as Commander of the United States Military Academy Band at West Point, he led performances for the 125th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty, co-directed the music for A&E's and the National Park Service's "A New Birth of Freedom" special for the 150th commemoration of the Battle of Gettysburg, and a one-hour music special holiday production by the West Point Band aired on Fox News, "A West Point Holiday." LTC Keene led The U.S. Army Chorus in performances at the interments of former Presidents Ronald Reagan in Simi Valley, California, and Gerald R. Ford in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He has performed for seven U.S. presidents, at the 1996 Summer Olympic and Para-Olympic Games in Atlanta, the dedication of the National WWII Memorial, the one-year anniversary of 9/11 at the Pentagon, the "Kennedy Center Honors," and the Military District of Washington's production, "Spirit of America." He has worked with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra and Chorus and the National Symphony Orchestra, and has conducted the Dallas Wind Symphony, the Boston Pops Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic.
Prior to joining the Army, LTC Keene served as Assistant Conductor of the Southern Methodist University (SMU) Symphony, Orchestra Conductor at the SMU International Conservatory Summer Festival in Taos, and Music Director of the Albuquerque Civic Light Opera. He holds a Master of Music degree in Orchestral Conducting from the Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University and a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance from the University of New Mexico. He is a violinist, fiddler, pianist, accompanist, and songwriter, and is a native of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
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