The Williamsport Symphony Orchestra is proud to present the Billtown Brass Band as they perform a selection of fan favorites from the band’s 22-year history, all combined in one concert at 5 p.m. Saturday at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, 142 Market St.

Twenty-two years ago, the Williamsport Symphony Orchestra’s Billtown Brass Band started as a request for entertainment for a local end-of-season celebration. Since then, Billtown has grown to be an ensemble with a regional reputation of excellence that performs a broad range of audience friendly music. This concert is an opportunity to bring back many of the most popular selections in their library.

The WSO’s Billtown Brass Band was formed in 2000 to meet the need for a smaller and more “portable” ensemble under the Williamsport Symphony Orchestra’s umbrella. The ensemble is organized in the style of the traditional British brass band featuring 25 brass instrumentalists (cornet, flugelhorn, Eb tenor horn, baritone, euphonium, trombone, Eb and Bb tuba) and three percussionists.

The Billtown Brass Band is conducted by its founding director, Rick Coulter, who majored in trumpet performance and music education at Carnegie Mellon University in his hometown of Pittsburgh and worked for the Williamsport Area School District for 25 years.

“Our concert at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church represents the culmination of our first full season of performances,” Coulter said. “We have chosen many of our most popular selections from past years, with a special emphasis on selections that showcase all that makes Billtown Brass a unique concert experience.”

Billtown Brass performers come from within more than a 60-mile radius and bring with them a broad range of backgrounds — a foundation that provides a rich skill set allowing the band to be comfortable performing all kinds of music.

“With 28 musicians, the WSO Billtown Brass captures the essence of the full Orchestra; their ability to perform everything from orchestral arrangement to pop tunes amazes me,” said Hind Jabbour, WSO Director of Operations. “Over the 22 years of their existence, the audience embraced them and loved what they had to offer. This concert is the culmination of 22 years of music making. I encourage all to attend — bring your children and invite your friends.”

The music chosen for this concert provides insight into the depth and range of the traditional British style brass band, from the lyric Hymn for Diana to the fanciful A Disney Fantasy (“Zip a Dee Doo Dah,” “When You Wish Upon a Star,” “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf,” and “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious”).

The concert begins with the Broadway-favorite Seventy-Six Trombones from The Music Man. Clyde McCoy’s 1939 jazz classic, Sugar Blues, will feature cornet soloist Dave Bailey, a retired music educator, longtime member of the WSO brass and many other local bands.

A highlight of the program is the Irish River Dance inspired Gaelforce, a piece that challenges the fingers of everyone on the stage, while bringing a smile to listeners in the audience. Rounding out the program is Gustav Holst’s Second Suite in F Major, a band masterpiece that includes a march, a blacksmith anvil solo, and a lively gigue.

The program ends with a hymn, The Lost Chord, by Arthur Sullivan of Gilbert and Sullivan fame, featuring master organist Sam Robinson as guest organist.

The work is dedicated to Joyce and Bud Hershberger, longtime fans and supporters of the Billtown Brass.

Coulter said it is critical to know your audience, and that a well-chosen program includes something for everyone in attendance, with consideration for the audience, players, and conductor.

“Ideally, the mix should include selections that appeal to the head (Second Suite), the heart (Hymn for Diana and The Lost Chord), and the feet (Gaelforce and Seventy-Six Trombones),” he added. “We encourage the audience to sing-along, tap their feet, or clap as the spirit moves them.”

“Brass provides for a unique and appealing musical experience for a wide range of audiences, and Coulter said, “It is fair to say people like the sound of brass!”

“Brass instruments have been used as a form of expression and communication since the Romans,” he said. “Today’s instruments allow performances that cover the full range of expression from the softest hymn to a rollicking and boisterous dance work. A sign of their popularity is the growing number of brass bands like ours across the country.”

Coulter believes this concert is a great opportunity to bring back some of the most popular selections in the Billtown Brass Band’s 22-year history.

“The acoustics in St. Mark’s provide a perfect venue for the players to display their many talents,” he added. “That combination will provide the audience with many opportunities to tap their feet and share in the joy the players bring to the concert. Equally important are the hymns that display the beauty of brass, touch the heart, and perhaps bring on a tear.”