The President's Own United States Marine Band

The President's Own United States Marine Band plays Atlanta Symphony Hall on Monday, October 26, at 7:30 PM, as part of their 2026 National Concert Tour. It's a free concert, but you'll need tickets for admission.

The program mixes the band's most famous standards with newer works. You'll hear John Philip Sousa's The Stars and Stripes Forever and The Crystal Lute, along with The Glory of the Yankee Navy. There's also the Cuban Overture by George Gershwin, Colonial Song by Percy Grainger, and the March from 1941 by John Williams. The newer side of the set includes Riffs (2009) by James Tyzik, the suite from Band of Brothers by Lorne Kamen, and Spirit of America (2026) by James Stephenson.

There's a fair bit of history behind the name. The United States Marine Band is America's oldest continuously active professional musical organization, founded in 1798 and known as "The President's Own" since the days of Thomas Jefferson. They've performed for every U.S. President since John Adams, and their mission is to provide music for the President and the Commandant of the Marine Corps. The national tour itself dates back to 1891, started by their 17th director, John Philip Sousa, who was granted permission to tour by President Benjamin Harrison. Sousa turned the band into the nation's premier military ensemble, replacing much of its repertoire with symphonic transcriptions and making it one of the world's first recording stars. The tour became an annual engagement in 1920 and has run every year since, except during times of war, sequestration, and public health crises.

This October, about 65 musicians are on the road, and they offer free educational clinics to school music programs along the way. The Atlanta stop is at Atlanta Symphony Hall on Monday, October 26, at 7:30 PM. Admission is free, but tickets are required.