Col Michael J. Colburn, Director Maj Jason K. Fettig, Assistant Director/Executive Officer
The United States Marine Band, established by an Act of Congress in 1798, is America’s oldest professional musical organization. The relationship between the Marine Band and the White House began on New Year’s Day in 1801, when President John Adams invited the Band to perform at the Executive Mansion. Later that year, Thomas Jefferson invited the Marine Band to perform for his Inaugural, and they have performed for every presidential inauguration since. Today, the Marine Band engages in more than 500 public and official performances annually. Every year the band travels across the United States on concert tours, a tradition that began with John Philip Sousa in 1891. Members of “The President’s Own” are active duty members of the United States Marines Corps who enlist under a contract of service with the Marine Band only. The musicians are selected through a rigorous audition procedure.
