Songful Legacy to Continue for Cornet Band at Butler Concerts

Tuneful notes will continue to carry through the gazebo at Butler Park this summer as the Butler Summer Concert Series gets underway.

The Bloomingdale Cornet Band, active for 129 years, will be performing its customary shows at the Butler Park this summer, as part of the Summer Concert Series.

Set for July 18, 25 and August 6, with rain dates for July 23, 30 and August 8, the Cornet Band will be entertaining the masses with musical pieces they’ve been rehearsing since January.

Led by director Mike Kallimannis, the band remains active in parades, festivals and gatherings of all sorts.

“Over the years, the Bloomingdale band has performed a varying number of concerts in the park, from as few as three to as many as seven,” said the band’s webmaster, Dave Wisneski.

There are no dues to become a member, and they enjoy keeping their tradition alive by playing in events similar to the Butler Concert Series.

Accompanying the group during parades is also a Color Guard led by Denyse Todd. They carry the Band Banner, New Jersey and United States flags, and are comprised of children aged eight through 18.

Though the musicians rest from the grind of summer concerts in August, they pick up the action again after Labor Day. So for those interested in pursuing a membership in the group, head to www.bloomingdalecornetband.org.

History of the Event

Additionally, for all those history buffs, a comprehensive look at the antiquity of the Cornet Band reveals a long list of notable junctures over the years.

The band made its first appearance on May 30, 1884, according to Wisneski. Twelve individuals formed it, and since that day in the late 19th century, they’ve remained active at parades and concerts.

One notable founder was Samuel R. Donald, who became director in January 1889. He remained in that position until 1938, according to Wisneski.

On how the group obtained their customary position of performing at the summer concerts, Wisneski said the history traces back to the heydays of the Butler Rubber Company.

In the beginning of the twentieth century, there was a Cornet Band in Butler; however, it was a “Company Band,” apart of the Butler Rubber Company.

In 1902, when the Butler Park was created (the gazebo coming shortly thereafter), the band began playing concerts on location there, until it folded at about the time of the First World War.

A few years earlier, according to Wisneski, a man named Hussey Haycock formed “Haycock’s Municipal Band in Butler,” and they took over the position that the Rubber Company’s band had left behind upon going under.

But as war again seemed to spoil things, this band also folded after the Second World War.  After their demise, a group put together by the American Legion Post in Butler graced the concerts. They eventually played there until 1964, when finally, the Bloomingdale Cornet Band took the ‘torch’ and began performing harmonious pieces for residents on warm summer nights in the park.