About the Atlantic Brass Band
Originally formed as the Wheaton Brass Band by Yorkshire-born Herb Roselle in 1984, the three-time National Champion Atlantic Brass Band, is one of the premier volunteer performing ensembles in the greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey area and are artists-in-residence at Rowan University in Glassboro, NJ. Comprised of professional musicians, professors, educators, and community members, the band is committed to bringing the arts to the community through entertainment, educational collaborations, and fundraising efforts for local schools and charities.
The Atlantic Brass Band, a member of the North American Brass Band Association, is a traditional British style brass band. Instrumentation includes an Eb soprano cornet, 10 Bb cornets, 1 flugelhorn, 3 tenor horns, 2 baritone horns, 2 euphoniums, 2 tenor trombones, 1 bass trombone, 2 Eb basses, 2 Bb basses, and up to 5 percussionists. Performances throughout the year at a variety of conferences, festivals, and concert venues with a repetoire spanning hymns, marches, orchestral transcriptions, pop music, and traditional brass band literature make this group a favorite throughout the region. The band has previously performed at Cape May Victorian Week, the Great American Brass Band Festival, the Gettysburg Brass Band Festival, the International Trumpet Guild Conference, and the National Trumpet Competition, and has performed internationally with a tour of Italy, two tours of England, and an appearance at both NATO JFC Brunssum and the World Brass Band Championship in Kerkrade, Netherlands.
The band has been privileged to work with world renowned musicians, conductors, adjudicators, and composers Phil Harper, the Cory Band, Steve Sykes, Garry Cutt, Mark Frost, Ronald Waiksnoris, the New York Staff Band, Tyrone Breuninger, Stephen Bulla, James Gourlay, Dr. Nicholas Childs, the Black Dyke Band, Philip Smith, Peter Graham, Iain David Culross, Ronald Romm, Jens Lindemann, Peter Graham, Brett Baker, Peter Bond, Craig Roberts, and David Childs.
Recent initiatives to promote brass banding include the inception of the Mid-Atlantic Brass Band Festival in 2012, an annual event including masterclasses, clinics, solo competitions, and band performances that culminated in 2016 with hosting the #1 brass band in the world, the Cory Band from Wales, UK, as well as the collaborative effort with Rowan Prep to form the Rowan Prep Atlantic Youth Brass Band, an introductory brass band experience for area middle and high school musicians. CD recordings are undertaken every 2-3 years, with a new CD expected out in December 2017.