Bettendorf native Master Gunnery Sgt. Elizabeth Matera will be participating in the National Anthem Bicentennial ("Star-Spangled Spectacular") this Saturday, Sept. 13 at Fort McHenry in Baltimore with "The President's Own" U.S. Marine Band. She is a clarinetist for the band and graduated in 1984 from Bettendorf High School.
Marine Band to Perform at 200th Anniversary of National Anthem Event
Performance to take place at Fort McHenry, Md.
WASHINGTON - On Sept. 13, 2014, "The President's Own" United States Marine Band will perform at Fort McHenry in Baltimore as part of the Star-Spangled Spectacular, a celebration of the National Anthem's 200th anniversary.
In commemoration of the anthem's bicentennial, the Marine Band will perform at 7 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 13, to pay homage to Francis Scott Key and those who fought for freedom two centuries ago.
"We are honored to have been invited to perform during the Star-Spangled Spectacular in celebration of the 200th anniversary of the poem that would eventually become our national anthem," said Marine Band Director Lt. Col. Jason K. Fettig. "Although the Marine Band was not present during the legendary battle at Fort McHenry when Francis Scott Key penned his famous poem in 1814, the organization was already 16 years old and very active in nearby Washington, D.C."
The program will feature patriotic selections spanning the past two centuries of American music as well as a performance in collaboration with recording artist and actress Jordin Sparks and the Morgan State University Choir from Baltimore. The concert will culminate with a grand finale honoring the national anthem and a spectacular fireworks show.
"Our country's unique musical history will be on full display for this special and historic occasion," Fettig said. "It's an opportunity for us to come together as a nation to honor the birth of a cornerstone in our American musical heritage and a work that, 200 years later, still so eloquently celebrates the land of the free and the home of the brave."
The performance will air on local PBS stations and Maryland Public Television from Fort McHenry beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
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