
Last Friday afternoon was very special - we renewed acquaintances at Historic Congressional Cemetery (HCC) with foundation president Cindy Hayes and the many dynamite docents who take such good care of our MCI groups. The occasion was John Philip Sousa’s 155th birthday party. The Marine Band traditionally does a “stand and blow,” graveside, to honor Sousa’s time and leadership of the Band and his illustrious contribution to American Music.
This year was especially rewarding: there were about 150 people there for the ceremony and short concert! You may be interested to know this job was the genesis of the Marine Band Public Affairs Office. How? Thought you’d never ask!
In 1980 yours truly was standing in Marine Band full dress, saxophone hanging around neck, at Sousa’s grave thinking, “why is the Band here?” Looking around the cemetery on the walk in, headstones were knocked over, grass and weeds were waist high, feral cats screeched ominous, eerie sounds from various points and wild dogs were heard and seen, lurking behind dead trees and the rotting little chapel. [You don’t want to hear about the odors wafting thru the acrid southeast DC air. . .]
So, quite alone, we marched to the graveside, were positioned horseshoe-shape around the silent groundstone/ bench and played Sousa’s “Semper Fi” (Marine Corps’ official march, “Semper Fidelis”). A line officer, Marine Corps, approached the music-stand-rostrum and read some hyperbole. This included a biblical reference, Old Testament, where he quoted, paused frequently (he was reading . . .) and stammered “BEE- -zel- -bub.” Now you can imagine this is all it took to send the band over the edge; still, no laffing out loud, so all we could do is revel in shoulders bouncing up and down, heads bobbing deliriously and everybody KNOWING we are all thinking the same “what the expletive” are we DOING here?
It was at this magical, totally preposterous moment I had an epiphany. The Lord channeled to me this message: “the Marine Band needs a PR office!” So, sez I, “better make it happen!” (Had lots of PR/ concert promotion/ management work in prior years.) So I made an app’t to see the Director, presented him the proposal to start an active Public Affairs Office (PAO as the USMC terms it) and he said yes. Soon, the Band had it’s first “Concert Information” phone line (same number today, 202-433-4011 - try it!) and official Marine Band letterhead, among other upgrades. The rest is history.
Today there are four people in the PAO shop, which accounts for regular LARGE ads in the weekend section of the Wash. Post, a PAO presence at every concert handing out brochures and the decent-sized crowd at Friday’s Sousa event. Quite a turnaround from the squalid 1980 scene, eh?
Well, that’s enuf HCC history for one Musing. Now you know . . . the rest of the story. This should be “a good talking point” with band directors who ask, “What do we do in Washington?” Tell them the whole story of the Sousa Graveside job and how today’s Congressional Cemetery is clean, paved, manicured and staffed by caring, conscientious docents who will bring this place ALIVE for the students!
Right. So get those buses and planes pointed to DC! We can handle it!!
Musical regards,
Vincenzo
Vince Patterson, DMA, is a professional musician performing and teaching in the Washington, DC area. Since joining the Marine Band in 1974, he has played, sung and conducted in, the Library of Congress’ Coolidge Auditorium, The Kennedy Center, Washington National Cathedral and many other concert sites on the east coast. Vince heads up the Music Celebrations Washington, D.C. Office.






























