The Band of the City of New York Police Department, commonly known as the NYPD Police Band, is an American Police band which serves under the

NYPD The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. The band currently has 70 members and is part of the NYPD Ceremonial Unit. The band's motto is as follows: ''Serve, Protect and Entertain''. The NYPD Band performs at department ceremonies, parades and community events across the city and in concerts around the world.

History

The band was founded in 1991, when the NYPD decided that it needed a ceremonial unit to provide musical accompaniment. It was originally founded with 12 members. The band had originally existed from 1901 to 1955 in order for the NYPD to be represented during official functions of the city.

Ensembles

Marching Band

The marching band is the premier ensemble of the NYPD Band. It is an annual participant in the

Columbus Day Columbus Day is a national holiday in many countries of the Americas and elsewhere, and a federal holiday in the United States, which officially celebrates the anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas. He went ashore at ...

parade and the

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual parade in New York City presented by the American-based department store chain Macy's. The Parade first took place in 1924, tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States ...

. It also performed at events such as the National Police Parade. It also took part in events such as the 2011 edition of the

Quebec City International Festival of Military Bands The Quebec City International Festival of Military Bands (FIMMQ) was a major cultural event in Quebec City that notably included a military tattoo by Canadian and foreign military bands as well as display teams. It has taken place annually in Au ...

, which included a performance of ''

God Bless America "God Bless America" is an American patriotic song written by Irving Berlin during World War I in 1918 and revised by him in the run-up to World War II in 1938. The later version was recorded by Kate Smith, becoming her signature song. "Go ...

'' with the

Alexandrov Ensemble The Alexandrov Ensemble (), commonly known as the Red Army Choir in the West, is an official army choir of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, Russian armed forces. Founded during the History of the Soviet Union, Soviet era, the ense ...

of the

Russian military The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, commonly referred to as the Russian Armed Forces, are the military of Russia. They are organized into three service branches—the Ground Forces, Navy, and Aerospace Forces—two independent comba ...

. In May 2018, the band jointly performed with the Alexandria Ceremonial Police Orchestra from Israeli film ''

The Band's Visit ''The Band's Visit'' () is a 2007 comedy-drama film written and directed by Eran Kolirin, and starring Saleh Bakri, Ronit Elkabetz, Sasson Gabai and Uri Gavriel. It is an international co-production between Israel, France and the United Sta ...

''.

Percussion Ensemble

The Percussion Ensemble, commonly known as the drumline consists of many different percussion instruments, including field snare drums, bass drums, cymbals, tenor drums, as well as alternative percussion instruments such as timbales, and shakers.

Jazz Ensemble

The

Jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

Ensemble is composed of 18 members from the band. It was formed in 2005 as a subset of the marching band. It gives Jazz and

Pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

performances.

Steel Drum Ensemble

The Steel Drum Ensemble was formed in 2004 and performs during the Brooklyn West Indian American Day Parade and Bronx Caribbean Day Parade.

Longtime bandleader

Lieutenant Tony Giorgio was the founder and is the current director of the band. Giorgio is a graduate of C.W. Post (now the LIU Post) and has had training from musicians like Charlie Perry,

Jack DeJohnette Jack DeJohnette (born August 9, 1942) is an American jazz drummer, pianist, and composer. Known for his extensive work as leader and sideman for musicians including Charles Lloyd (jazz musician), Charles Lloyd, Freddie Hubbard, Keith Jarrett, B ...

and Ron Gould. He is also a graduate of the

FBI National Academy The FBI National Academy is a program of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Academy for active U.S. law enforcement personnel and also for international law enforcement personnel who seek to enhance their credentials in their field and to ...

Quantico, Virginia Quantico (; formerly Potomac) is a town in southeastern Prince William County, Virginia, United States. The population was 578 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Quantico is approximately 35 miles southwest of Washington, D.C., bound ...

. He has been a member of the

New York City Police Department The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...

since 1983. He was promoted to Sergeant in 1988 and Lieutenant in 1997. In 1996, Giorgio was awarded the New York City Police Foundation's Hemmerdinger Award for excellence and outstanding contributions to Police Services in New York City. Giorgio retired in July 2019.

Main repertoire

The band's main repertoire includes, but is not limited to: * Amazing Grace *

Armed Forces Medley The Armed Forces Medley, also known as the Armed Forces Salute is today recognized as a collection of the official marchpasts/songs of the 6 services of the United States Armed Forces: Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Space Fo ...

* America the Beautiful Bad Boys * Christmas Medley *

Fanfare for the Common Man ''Fanfare for the Common Man'' is a musical work by the American composer Aaron Copland. It was written in 1942 for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra under conductor Eugene Goossens and was inspired in part by a speech made earlier that yea ...

* Mission Impossible * Notre Dame Victory March * On Broadway *

Star Spangled Banner "The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written by American lawyer Francis Scott Key on September 14, 1814, after he witnessed the bombardment of Fort ...

* The Navy Hymn *

The Stars and Stripes Forever "The Stars and Stripes Forever" is a patriotic American march written and composed by John Philip Sousa in 1896. By a 1987 act of the U.S. Congress, it is the official National March of the United States of America. History In his 1928 au ...

* This is My Country

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official Website of the NYPD

Official Website of the NYPD Band

Youtube: The NYPD Police Band at the New York City Saint Patrick's Day Parade

Youtube: NYPD Band - Serve, Protect and Entertain

"Ambassadors of music": NYPD mourns Alexandrov Ensemble deaths in fatal TU-154 crash
Musical groups established in 1901 Musical groups established in 1991 American police bands New York City Police Department 1901 establishments in New York City 1991 establishments in New York City Musical groups from New York City