The final event of the 80th Anniversary Weekend was the Reunion Concert, featuring the Reunion Band and Chorus. Fifty former and current members of the National Capital Band played in the Reunion Band, filling the platform at the Alexandria Citadel Corps, and even more participated in the Reunion Chorus. Seven different conductors took the baton, and the five NCB members known to have more than thirty years of service with the band were recognized.

The festival, held on Sunday afternoon, 13 November 2005, began with words of welcome from the corps officer at Alexandria Citadel, Major Tony Barrington, who is the band’s current principal euphonium. Commissioner Raymond Cooper led a congregational song and Lt.-Col. Mary Lee Goodier offered an invocation. The concert was then turned over to former NCB executive officer and principal trombone, Lt.-Col. Tom Jones, who chaired the proceedings in his own unique style.

The concert began with two items conducted by Bandmaster Campbell Robinson, the longest-serving conductor in the history of the band. He conducted two items, the first being Leslie Condon’s festival march Celebration. The second was a more lyrical item, The Beautiful City (Erik Silfverberg). Robinson was followed by Deputy Bandmaster Robert C. Schramm, conducting his own composition, The Children’s Song. Schramm, who served as deputy bandmaster under both Campbell Robinson and Stephen Bulla (a total of 37 years), was unable to take his usual seat in the euphonium section because of a recent health problem.

Fittingly, the next conductor was Stephen Bulla. He led the Reunion Band in two of his own compositions, beginning with the selection Amidst His Love, written in 1985 for a Divisional Congress celebrating the centenary of the Salvation Army in Washington DC. The second item was a new march, Red Bank, composed for the celebration of a new building for the Red Bank Corps in New Jersey. Campbell Robinson then returned to the stage, this time using his considerable vocal talent, singing the old Eric Ball classic The Sergeant at the Door.

The next two items, conducted by Commissioner Paul Kellner, began with a euphonium solo played by the Commissioner’s son, Steve Kellner. Steve chose to play Now I Belong to Jesus, a melody which embodies his own personal testimony. Commissioner Kellner also conducted The Risen Saviour (also known as He Lives!), a march-style arrangement which for many years was known simply as “Number 5”, and which was used during the 1970s as the NCB’s “signature” piece.

There are five members of the National Capital Band known to have thirty or more years of service with the band, and all were in attendance at the Reunion Concert. They were recognized during the concert with an engraved crystal piece as an appreciation for their long service. The five honored were David Downing, Campbell Robinson, Joan Robinson, Robert Goodier, and Robert C. Schramm. Goodier and Schramm jointly hold the title of longest-serving NCB member, with 37 years of service each.

Over the years the National Capital Band has had a number of outstanding vocal soloists, and the next item on the program was Amazing Grace, sung by Captain Margaret W. Davis, arranged for her by Stephen Bulla. This was followed by Donald Osgood’s well-loved arrangement of the hymn tune French, conducted by Ian Anderson. Currently the deputy bandmaster and principal cornet of the NCB, Anderson served as bandmaster for one season (2002-2003), “standing in the gap” when the band was in desperate need of leadership.

Vocal performance, both by soloists and by the band forming a chorus, has long been a part of the National Capital Band repertoire. In recognition of this, the Reunion Concert featured two items by the Reunion Chorus, conducted by Campbell Robinson, who served as the choral conductor for his entire tenure with the band. Items by the Reunion Chorus included This Is the Day (arr. Stephen Bulla) and When We All Get to Heaven (arr. Norman Bearcroft).

Captain Kelly Igleheart, current Executive Officer of the National Capital Band, gave a Scripture meditation. This weekend represented Igleheart's first official performances with the band, having become Executive Officer in June of this year.

The concert concluded with two more items, the first conducted by the Territorial Music Secretary, Dr. Richard E. Holz. During his long tenure as the head of the territorial music department in USA South, Dr. Holz has always been extremely supportive of the efforts of the National Capital Band. He conducted the band in a classic mediation by Erik Leidén, Sweet Hour of Prayer. He was followed by Commissioner W. R. H. Goodier, who served as the bandmaster of the NCB from 1957-1959. Goodier conducted one of the great marches of Salvation Army band literature, Montreal Citadel (Norman Audoire). Goodier, a native of Canada, was a soldier at Montreal Citadel and played the march when it was still in manuscript.

The concert concluded with the current bandmaster, James Anderson, expressing courtesies. This included the presentation of framed covers from the reunion brochure to the members of the Reunion Committee, Ellen Jones (chair), Maria Mathieson, and Robert D. Schramm. The benediction was given by the Reunion Chorus, who sang May the Grace of the Lord, a piece which was used on several international tours for this purpose, drawing the 80th Anniversary Weekend to a fitting end.