CONTACT: Sgt 1st Class Becky Rapp, 914-944-6552, or e-mail to: becky.rapp@us.army.mil

FOR RELEASE: Thursday, Jul 28, 2011

NEW YORK, NY (07/24/2011)-- The Citizen Soldier musicians of the New York Army National Guard’s 42nd Infantry Division Band will present a free concert at the world renowned Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts at 8:30 p.m. on Thursday July 28. The band, whose roots go back to World War I, performed across Iraq during a deployment there in 2005 and performs regularly across New York during the summer as the musical ambassador of the New York Army National Guard. The performance is one of a series of shows the band is giving across the state as part of its annual training program. Each program features a selection of styles to include concert band music, big band sound, Latin music, and rock. The New York Army National Guard’s 42nd Infantry Division Band is based at the Camp Smith Training Site near Cortlandt Manor, N.Y. The mission of the band is to furnish music whenever and wherever while serving our nation and our community. In combat bandsmen traditionally served as stretcher bearers, today they pull security missions and perform other military duties when not playing to support troop morale. The 42nd Infantry Division Band consists of 33 talented musicians from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and Connecticut. Band members are called upon as Army National Guardsmen to provide entertainment for civic and military ceremonies, parades and concerts and perform a variety of music including classical, concert, marches/patriotic, pop and jazz. The band’s Soldiers deployed to Iraq in 2005 and performed shows for troops and Iraqi dignitaries. The band consists of different performing Groups which include Concert Band, Marching/Ceremonial Band, Brass Quintet, Woodwind Quintet, Jazz Combo, Latin Band, Rock Combo and Buglers. The majority of the unit’s skilled musicians are versatile on more than one instrument, which enables the band to perform for various types of military and civic functions. The band drills one weekend per month and has 15 days of active duty per year. Full-time occupations of the band members include students (both high school seniors and college), music education/music industry, construction, government, medical/therapeutic, pharmaceutical, information technology, criminal justice and management. The 42nd Infantry Division Band is under the command of Chief Warrant Officer Mark L. Kimes and First Sergeant Leslie G. Saroka.