The Heisey Wind Ensemble will continue their 41st Season with a concert titled Evening at Pops on Saturday, April 18, 2026 at 7:30 p.m.  The concert will be held at the John W. Alford Performing Arts Hall in the John Gilbert Reese Center on the campus of The Ohio State University at Newark and Central Ohio Technical College.

Dr. Russel Mikkelson has selected six pieces that celebrate the upcoming 250th birthday of our country, three pieces showcasing music from popular movies, and a tribute to New Orleans style Dixieland music featuring a group of our own outstanding musicians.  Selections include Let Freedom Ring by Ryan Nowlin, Overture to The Cowboys by John Williams, Selections from Wicked by Stephen Schwartz, American Civil War Fantasy by Jerry Bilik, Armed Forces Salute, America the Beautiful and the official National March of the United States of America, The Stars and Stripes Forever by John Philip Sousa.

The HWE, formed in 1985, is recognized as one of Ohio’s finest adult concert bands.  Membership is by audition only and includes outstanding musicians from Licking, Franklin, Fairfield, Guernsey, Delaware, Coshocton, and Muskingum counties.  The band has been selected to perform at conventions of the Ohio Music Education Association (OMEA) and the American School Band Directors Association (ASBDA).  The first rehearsal for the HWE was on February 1, 1985, and the first concert was on June 10, 1985.  The group has performed 165 concerts to date.

Andrew Blosser will sing The Last Measure of Devotion with the band. “The last full measure of devotion” is a famous phrase from President Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 Gettysburg Address, signifying the ultimate sacrifice of life made by soldiers for a higher cause. It urges the living to ensure those who died in the Civil War did not die in vain.  Dr. Blosser currently serves as an assistant teaching professor at The Ohio State University, where he teaches applied voice, voice literature, opera history, and diction courses.

The remaining concert in the 2025-2026 Season is the HWE Big Band on Saturday, May 16, 2026 at 7:30 pm at the Reese Center on the Newark Campus of OSU and COTC.

Tickets for HWE concerts are available only at the door.  Adults are $15, seniors (60+) are $10 and students are $5.  Additional information can be found at the band’s web site at www.heiseywindensemble.org